Caught in Florida rain one too many times, an FAU student built a campus weather assistant powered by Tomorrow.io’s real-time weather intelligence.
TL;DR
An FAU student got tired of surprise rainstorms, so he built OwlCast — a Python-based Discord bot that delivers daily forecasts and real-time rain alerts for Florida Atlantic University. Using Tomorrow.io’s hyperlocal Weather API, the bot warns students before precipitation hits. It’s a lightweight, smart solution showing how individual developers can use Tomorrow.io to solve local weather problems.
Introduction
Sometimes innovation is born from nothing more than a soggy walk to class. For Dylan, a student at Florida Atlantic University’s Boca Raton campus, Florida’s surprise rain showers turned into a coding opportunity. After getting drenched one too many times, he decided to build OwlCast, a weather-tracking Discord bot that gives students a heads-up before the rain hits.
At the heart of this DIY weather assistant is the Tomorrow.io Weather API, which delivers hyperlocal, real-time precipitation alerts that help Dylan and his fellow students make smarter decisions before heading out the door.
Weather Challenges on Campus
College life demands mobility: walking to lectures, club meetings, or coffee runs across sprawling campuses. In Florida, that often means stepping out under blue skies and getting caught in a downpour minutes later. Dylan experienced this problem firsthand over two wet weeks in Boca. The weather apps he was using weren’t cutting it. They were too general, too slow, and too disconnected from the daily campus routine.
Rather than wait for a better app, Dylan decided to build one himself.
The Solution: A Custom Weather Bot with Tomorrow.io Built In
Dylan’s goal was simple. He wanted a weather assistant that knows when and where it’s about to rain and tells you in time to take action. So he created OwlCast, a Python-based Discord bot tailored specifically for FAU’s campus community.
Here’s how OwlCast works:
- Morning Forecast: Pulls in daily summaries from the National Weather Service to give students a quick look at the day’s weather conditions.
- Real-Time Rain Alerts: Uses the Tomorrow.io Weather API to trigger notifications whenever precipitation is approaching. The alerts are hyperlocal, focused on FAU’s exact location, and give students advance notice of changing conditions.
With Tomorrow.io’s hyperlocal data, OwlCast doesn’t just say “it might rain today.” It tells you when the rain is actually starting, how intense it will be, and whether it’s worth grabbing your umbrella or taking a different route.
Why Tomorrow.io?
Dylan chose the Tomorrow.io API for one major reason: accuracy. Unlike standard weather apps, Tomorrow.io provides hyperlocal data with minute-by-minute forecasts that are highly relevant to real-world decision-making. For a student walking across campus, that level of precision is essential.
“I thought the API was very intuitive, extremely comprehensive,” said Dylan Liesenfelt, creator of OwlCast. “The biggest thing for me that made me choose Tomorrow.io over others was that it gave me forecast data for a specific location, very localized. And the free tier is very generous. It was perfect for my project.”
Key features that made Tomorrow.io a perfect fit:
- Minute-by-minute precipitation tracking
- Support for specific geolocations like FAU Boca Raton
- Fast and developer-friendly API integration
Tomorrow.io turned OwlCast into more than just a daily forecast tool. It became a real-time weather companion that adapts to the moment.
From Personal Project to Campus Utility
What began as a personal project to avoid getting soaked quickly turned into something more. Dylan shared the bot in his Discord community, and soon others were benefiting from its timely alerts. He even open-sourced the code so other students and developers could customize it for their own use cases.
This is a perfect example of how Tomorrow.io’s technology can empower individuals to create tools that make a daily impact, whether in school, work, or community spaces.
Try It for Yourself
Interested in building your own version of OwlCast or exploring how Tomorrow.io’s API can work for your project? Dylan has published the code in a public GitHub repository. You can find it here along with instructions on how to deploy it.
“I kept getting caught in the rain on my way to class, so I threw together a Discord bot I’m calling OwlCast. It gives me a morning weather report and real-time upcoming rain alerts, all tailored for FAU’s campus.” – Dylan, FAU Student and Creator of OwlCast
Conclusion: Big Impact Through Smart Weather Data
OwlCast is proof that powerful solutions can come from simple ideas when supported by the right technology. With the Tomorrow.io Weather API, Dylan transformed his frustration into an opportunity to build a better way to navigate campus life. His story showcases how real-time weather intelligence isn’t just for large-scale operations. It’s for anyone with a problem to solve and the tools to build something meaningful.
Whether you’re managing a team, running logistics, or walking to your next class, Tomorrow.io makes it possible to act on the weather before it acts on you.
