7 months ago
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A well-designed app designed to optimize your viewing of the total solar eclipse on Tuesday has surged to the top of the App Store. With 140,000+ lifetime downloads across iOS and Android, a simply named “The Eclipse App” offers a complementary experience for viewing the astronomical event, including cloud cover forecasts, guides that pinpoint when totality will occur at your exact location, and information about local events, parks and viewing sites, in your area.
The app itself was born out of a partnership between independent space interest organization The Planetary Society and The Eclipse Company, a tech company formed around the time of the 2017 Great American Eclipse to help more people witness total solar eclipses.
Image Credits: The Eclipse App
The companies first put out a user-friendly eclipse map to help people find a viewing spot for the annual eclipse on Oct. 14, 2023.
The Eclipse App, released in the U.S. and Canada in February, currently generates revenue through in-app purchases that allow users to pay $3 for a live stream. There are now roughly 9.8K paying users as of yesterday, according to data from app intelligence firm Appfigures. The app began its App Store climb late on Sunday, gaining 35,000 downloads on the App Store, and starting to move up the charts. Google estimates are delayed by a couple of days, the firm tell us, so the total downloads are likely well past 140,000 by now.
The app is currently ranked first in its category (Travel) and 9th Overall in the U.S. App Store and 8th in its category via Google Play.
What’s more, the app doesn’t appear to be gaining traction from any Apple Search Ads campaigns, but rather organic searches.
Reviews are mostly positive on the App Store — there are 40 5-star reviews vs 22 1-star reviews, Appfigures says. There seems to be more consumer dissatisfaction with the Android version.
The company promises the app will offer the ability to explore U.S. states and Canadian provinces across the path of totality as well as community events in search states. Plus, you can use the timer to know when the moment of totality is for your exact location, so you can put on your eclipse glasses and watch. You can also check your local forecast and subscribe to local events and check out other local points of interest. Parking information for many events is also included.
