South Africa - Soaring Weather API
South Africa coverage is on the radar. The classic Drakensberg flying, the long flatland XC out of Bloemfontein and Welkom, and the Cape ridge soaring - all on the list once a forecast path is settled.
Planned specifications
What South Africa coverage will include
Same JSON contract as live regions. Final field list confirmed when South Africa goes live.
Thermal Strength
wstar_ms - thermal updraft velocity in m/s
Soaring Height
hglider_agl_m + hglider_msl_m - usable thermalling height
Cloudbase
cloudbase_agl_ft + cloudbase_msl_m, Cu potential, OD risk
Wind
surface_wind_* plus wind_925_*, wind_850_*, wind_800_*, wind_700_*
Trigger Temperature
thermal_trigger_temp_c - surface temperature at which thermals fire
Day Rating
day_rating - poor, marginal, fair, good, excellent
Corridor Sampling
Weather along a route - time-aware available
Sounding Profile
Full vertical profile - temp, dewpoint, wind
About soaring weather in South Africa
South African gliding is famous for very long classic-class flatland tasks. Days out of Bloemfontein, Gariep and the Free State that routinely produce 1000+ km flights. The forecast problem is sharply different from Cape ridge soaring or the Drakensberg paragliding scene.
South Africa is on the radar rather than queued partly because the public model landscape is thinner than in Europe. A custom WRF run from GFS is the most likely first path, with regional sub-domains depending on waitlist demand.
Day-window and sounding labels would use Africa/Johannesburg.
Want South Africa coverage next?
Join the waitlist. We email when South Africa goes live, and waitlist demand drives launch order.