On December 1st 2020, we retired old yr.no to retro.yr.no and replaced them with our new websites. After a period of retirement, the old websites was completely removed on October 4th, 2021.
The new website is actually not that new - it was launched in 2016 as a modernization of the old mobile pages and have accounted for over 20 percent of Yr's website usage. But now they have replaced the old desktop site.
On this page we will try to answer the most frequently asked questions our users have.
Content
- Why can we not just keep the old websites on retro.yr.no?
- Why are you developing a new website?
- Is there any new content on the new website?
- What are you working on right now?
- Help! I can´t find the content I used on the old websites
- Why can't I find pictures from the webcams?
- Where are the radar images?
- Where can I find the hourly forecast?
- Where do I find a detailed weather forecast?
- Where did all the maps go?
- Will I have access to "Observations" other places on Yr.no?
- Why did you remove the meteogram with observations?
- Where can I find the weather records?
- Where can I find climate information?
- Questions about location names?
Why can we not just keep the old websites on retro.yr.no?
It comes down to capacity. We simply spent too much time maintaining two web solutions. The Yr team is relatively small and it is important that we use the resources well. There was also a great need to shut down some of the underlying systems that provided data to retro.yr.no.
The ability to focus on one web solution luckily means more speed in the development of the new website.
Why are you developing a new website?
Yr is for everyone! And we mean everyone. Even if you are dependent on aids such as a screen reader, Yr should work for you as well. We are able to achieve this on our new website. This is one of the reasons why it is so important for us to make a new and modern web solution for Yr.
It will now require less resources to display the weather forecast on the screen thanks to the modernization. This is especially important when you are in areas with poor coverage and an important improvement from the old websites.
The new web pages are designed to adapt to the users screen size. This means that we now have only one one website that will work well regardless of screen sizes.
Is there any new content on the new website?
The biggest change is first and foremost a new structure of the pages, completely new technology and a far more modern and airy design.
But it's not just new design. The nowcast that you see at the top of the site page is new and gives you completely up-to-date information about temperature, cloud cover, wind and precipitation for the location you have searched for. Cloud cover symbol and precipitation information are updated here every 5 minutes. In particular, the precipitation graph for the next 90 minutes is useful in planning everyday activities.
New is also additional information related to the point you see the forecast for, such as air quality, pollen, UV forecast and bathing temperatures. You can find this information on the "Nearby" page.
It is also worth pointing out that we have made a significant upgrade of the site that shows weather for mountain passes. We have gathered useful information from the Norwegian Public Roads Administration together with the weather forecast. This makes it easier to plan trips along these routes. We have also created a new overview page for weather warnings. Here you can sort the warnings according to severity and event type. Eventually you will also be able to sort them by region / area.
We will continue developing the new web pages based on feedback from our users.
What are you working on right now?
To answer things many people are wondering about, we will try to update a list here with the tasks that are at the top of our priority list. That means we will likely make it available for users within half a year. Note that priorities may change along the way.
- New maps
- Webcams for Norway
- Information about solar angle and lunar phases
- Visualizing uncertainty in long term forecast
- Adjustments to the page structure will occur based on experience and input
Questions about specific content
There is content on the old web pages that is not included on our new pages. We develop content by prioritizing the most important and popular content first. That means content will be added continually as time goes by.
However, we have removed som content altogether. This is usually content that we see that users rarely use, or that we incorporate in some other way. There may also be specialized content we won´t have on Yr, but rather refer users to other web sites.
Help! I can´t find the content I used on the old websites
Most of the information on the new web pages is related to the location you are searching for. To see what is available you should start by searching for a location and go to the location page. Here you will see all available data.
If there are still content you can not find, it may be worthwhile to take a look at the help function that hides behind the yellow button in the bottom right corner. Here we post tips and hints that will help you.
There are also a few things that have not been included on the new website, but that has a new home on the Meteorological Institutes website (https://www.met.no/vaer-og-klima). This includes text forecasts, the meteorologist's weather maps (analysis and forecast maps) and satellite images. You will also find the links on the bottom of the front page.
Why can't I find pictures from the webcams?
Unfortunately, we lost our previous supplier of images from webcams. We have fortunately found a solution in collaboration with the Norwegian Air Ambulance that will give us good coverage of webcams in Norway, which we will have in place on the new website at some point.
On the “Mountain crossing” page, pictures from the Norwegian Public Roads Administration are shown for different mountain crossings.
Where are the radar images?
You will find radar images on the new web pages (and in the apps) under the "Maps" tab. Here you will also find the forecast for rain in the radar images 90 minutes ahead. We have written an article about this precipitation forecast that explains how it works (for the nordic countries).
Where can I find the hourly forecast?
To get the hourly forecast you can click on the rows of the long term forecast. We have hourly data for the 3 next days.
Where do I find a detailed weather forecast?
We have a table with detailed information about the weather, just like the one on the old website. You can find the table by opening the "Details"-tab at the top of the page after you choose a location page.
Where did all the maps go?
As you have noticed, there are fewer maps on the new web pages. Unfortunately, the maps on the old websites have long had technical challenges and were perceived as slow. We are therefore working on new and better map for the new web pages. Working with maps is challenging, but we are working on it and will release new maps continuously when we first start. Although it´s hard to say when.
Will I have access to "Observations" other places on Yr.no?
Observations and historical data is available on the new website now. Historical data is only available for locations in Norway. Here you can find observations from the nearest weather-stations to your selected location.
Why did you remove the meteogram with observations?
The systems that are delivering this graph is shut down and won't support this content anymore. We are currently focusing on creating new content on our new website that will meet the same needs.
Where can I find the weather records?
The system that provided data on weather records has been shut down and we currently have no data available. We do want to provide information om weather records om Yr and have plans for this on our new website. It may take some time before it is available.
Where can I find climate information?
The system that provided data on climate has been shut down and we currently have no data available. We do want to have climate data on Yr and are currently working out what kind of content this should be. It may take some time before new climate pages are available.
Questions about location names?
We actually have a separate article about location names. In the article, you get information about where the location names on Yr are from, and who to contact in the event of any errors.