Terms of Use
1. Agreeing to these terms
By downloading or using Lightning (the "app"), you agree to these Terms and to our Privacy Policy. If you don't agree, don't use the app. You must be at least 13 to use it. If you are using it for a team, league, school or other organization, you confirm you can accept these Terms for it.
2. What the app is, and isn't
The app displays lightning detections from third-party sources, including the NOAA GOES satellite Geostationary Lightning Mapper, the EUMETSAT Meteosat Third Generation Lightning Imager and, in some places, commercial detection networks, plus NOAA radar (live: NOAA MRMS; past storms in the US: the Iowa Environmental Mesonet archive of NOAA NEXRAD). We do not operate these networks. Each detection has a location error (with satellite data, often several miles) and a delay. Some strikes are never detected.
The app is not an emergency warning service, not a substitute for official warnings from the National Weather Service or local authorities, and not a substitute for your own judgment or your organization's rules. Nothing in the app is a statement that conditions are safe.
3. The wait timer (Lightning Clock)
Lightning Clock, our companion app, can count down a wait after the last detected strike within a distance you choose. You choose the length of the wait. The app only counts the time since the last strike it received. When the count ends, it means only that Lightning Clock has not received a detected strike within that distance for that long. It does not mean lightning has stopped or that it is safe. League, school and venue rules override the app. References to the National Weather Service describe its published guidance; NOAA and the NWS do not endorse this app.
4. Alerts
Alerts depend on detection, our servers, Apple's push service, your network, your device, and your notification settings. Any of these can delay or drop an alert. Do not rely on an alert alone.
The names of the alerts. "Lightning Warning", "Lightning Watch" and "Storm Alert" are the app's own names for its notifications, which are based only on the distance of detected strikes from a place you choose and on how many are detected. They are not official watches or warnings, they are not issued by the National Weather Service or any government agency, and they do not replace official alerts.
5. Assumption of risk
Lightning is dangerous and unpredictable. You use the app, and make decisions for yourself and for anyone in your care, at your own risk.
6. No warranty
THE APP AND ALL DATA ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE," WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WARRANTIES OF ACCURACY, COMPLETENESS, TIMELINESS, AVAILABILITY, MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT ANY STRIKE WILL BE DETECTED, SHOWN OR ALERTED.
7. Limitation of liability
TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW, [COMPANY] AND ITS DATA PROVIDERS WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, OR FOR PERSONAL INJURY, DEATH OR PROPERTY DAMAGE ARISING FROM RELIANCE ON THE APP OR ITS DATA. OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR ANY CLAIM IS LIMITED TO THE GREATER OF THE AMOUNT YOU PAID US IN THE 12 MONTHS BEFORE THE CLAIM, OR US$50. Some jurisdictions don't allow some of these limits; in those places they apply to the extent allowed. Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits liability that cannot be excluded or limited by law, including liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, or for fraud, and nothing affects your statutory rights as a consumer.
8. Indemnity
If you use the app for an organization or for decisions about other people, you agree to defend and indemnify [COMPANY] against third-party claims arising from that use, to the extent permitted by law.
9. Subscriptions
Lightning Pro is sold through Apple as a one-time purchase or as a subscription. Payment is charged to your Apple Account when you confirm the purchase. A subscription renews automatically at the same price for the same period unless you cancel it at least 24 hours before the current period ends; your account is charged for the renewal within the 24 hours before it. You can manage or cancel a subscription in your iPhone's Settings, under your name, then Subscriptions. Refunds are handled by Apple under its terms. Your use of the app is also governed by Apple's standard Licensed Application End User License Agreement (apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula). Safety information is never behind a purchase.
10. Acceptable use
Don't scrape, resell or redistribute the app's data, overload our servers, or try to access data that isn't yours.
11. Third-party data
Data comes from NOAA (public domain; NOAA does not endorse this app), EUMETSAT (contains modified EUMETSAT Meteosat data, used under the EUMETSAT data policy), the Iowa Environmental Mesonet, place names from GeoNames (CC BY 4.0, geonames.org) and commercial providers under their own terms. Terrain: Mapzen/AWS Terrain Tiles (SRTM, GMTED, NED, ETOPO1 and others). Providers may change or stop their data at any time, and so may we.
12. Changes and ending
We may update these Terms; the date above will change and continued use means you accept them. You can stop using the app and delete your data at any time (Menu › Safety & data › Delete my data).
13. Law
[GOVERNING LAW AND VENUE: TO BE SET BY COUNSEL.] Apple is not a party to these Terms and is not responsible for the app, but Apple and its subsidiaries are third-party beneficiaries and may enforce these Terms against you.
14. Apple
These Terms are between you and us, not Apple. We, not Apple, are responsible for the app and its content, for any maintenance and support, for any product claims (including any claim that the app fails to meet a legal or regulatory requirement, and consumer protection claims), and for investigating and resolving any claim that the app infringes someone's intellectual property. If the app fails to conform to an applicable warranty, you may notify Apple and Apple will refund the purchase price, if any; to the extent permitted by law, Apple has no other warranty obligation. You confirm that you are not located in a country subject to a US government embargo and are not on a US government list of prohibited or restricted parties.
Contact
[CONTACT EMAIL]