Privacy Policy

VayuMet Weather ("VayuMet", "we", "us") operates the website vayumetweather.com. This privacy policy explains what information we collect when you visit or use VayuMet, how we use it, and your rights with respect to that information.

1. Information We Collect

1.1 Server Log Data

When you visit VayuMet, our web server automatically records standard access log data, including:

• Your IP address (anonymised after 24 hours)
• Browser type and version
• Pages visited and time of access
• Referring URL
• HTTP status codes

This data is used solely for security monitoring, diagnosing technical issues, and measuring aggregate traffic. It is not used to identify individual users and is not shared externally.

1.2 Analytics

VayuMet uses Google Analytics 4 (provided by Google LLC) to understand aggregate usage — page views, popular features, approximate geographic distribution of visitors, device type and referral source.

What this means in practice:

• Google Analytics sets first-party cookies in your browser (named _ga and _ga_<id>) to tell repeat visits apart from new ones. See section 2 below.
• Your IP address is used by Google to derive an approximate location (typically city or state level) and is not stored in our reports. Google Analytics 4 masks IP addresses by default; we cannot see the IP of any individual visitor in our dashboards.
• We report only on aggregate figures. We do not attempt to identify individual visitors, and we do not upload or link any personal identifiers to Analytics.
• We do not enable Google Signals, advertising personalisation, remarketing audiences, or any ad-related features of Google Analytics.

Google processes this data as described in Google's Privacy Policy and Google's data-processing terms. You can opt out of Google Analytics entirely on every site you visit by installing the Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on, or by using your browser's "Do Not Track" / tracking-protection settings.

1.3 No Account or Registration Data

VayuMet does not require user registration or login. We do not collect names, email addresses, or payment information unless you voluntarily contact us at contact@vayumetweather.com, in which case your email is used only to respond to your enquiry.

2. Cookies

VayuMet uses minimal cookies:

• Session preference cookies (e.g., light/dark theme, last-selected map layer) — stored locally in your browser, never sent to our servers for profiling.
• Analytics cookies — Google Analytics sets two first-party cookies, _ga and _ga_<id>, which expire two years after your last visit. They store a randomly generated identifier used only to count returning versus new visitors. They contain no name, email, or other personal detail.
• No advertising cookies. VayuMet does not display third-party advertising and does not place advertising tracking cookies.
• No cross-site tracking cookies. The analytics cookies above are first-party — readable only on vayumetweather.com — and we do not enable any Google feature that would link your activity here to other sites.
• Comment-widget cookies (blog articles only). Blog articles embed giscus, which threads discussion through GitHub. Loading an article page loads that widget from giscus.app and github.com, and those services may set their own cookies under their own domains. This is the only third-party embed on VayuMet that involves any sign-in, and the sign-in belongs to GitHub, not to us — see section 3. Pages without a comment section do not load it at all.

You can clear or block these at any time through your browser settings without losing access to any VayuMet feature — blocking analytics cookies does not degrade any forecast, map, or data tool on the site.

3. Third-Party Data Sources

VayuMet loads weather data and map tiles from third-party services:

Weather, climate and index data is fetched by us on the server, processed, and served to you as static files — your browser does not contact these providers and no information about you is transmitted to them:

• NOAA NOMADS / AWS Open Data — GFS and CFSv2 model data
• ECMWF open data — IFS-HRES and AIFS forecast fields used for the Rain Futures index projections
• ECMWF-CAMS — aerosol fields (PM2.5, PM10, AOD, dust AOD) behind the air-quality and experimental visibility layers
• NOAA Aviation Weather Center — METAR, TAF, SIGMET and significant-weather data
• NOAA Physical Sciences Laboratory — reanalysis and climatology archives
• JMA Meteorological Satellite Center — Himawari-9 satellite imagery
• India Meteorological Department (IMD), Pune — observed gridded rainfall and temperature archives
• NCDEX public disclosures — official RAINMUMBAI and RAINCHNNAI index, LPA and futures values reproduced on the Rain Futures Index Desk

The following are loaded directly by your browser, so those providers see your IP address and standard request headers as part of serving the resource:

• Google Fonts — typography fonts loaded from Google's CDN. Google may log the request; see Google's Privacy Policy.
• Google Analytics 4 — aggregate usage measurement, as described in section 1.2. Loaded from googletagmanager.com.
• OpenStreetMap / Leaflet tile providers — base map tiles. Tile requests include your IP address as is standard for HTTP requests.
• giscus and GitHub — the comment widget on blog articles only, loaded from giscus.app and backed by GitHub Discussions. Reading comments requires nothing from you; posting one requires a free GitHub account, and anything you post is stored publicly by GitHub under GitHub's privacy statement, not by us. This is the only sign-in anywhere on VayuMet and it belongs to GitHub. We receive no personal data from it.

4. How We Use Information

• Serving weather data, maps, and forecasts to your browser
• Monitoring server health and diagnosing technical errors
• Understanding aggregate traffic patterns to improve the service
• Responding to email enquiries

We do not use your data for advertising profiling, sell it to third parties, or use it in any automated decision-making that affects you.

5. Data Retention

Server access logs are retained for a maximum of 90 days and then deleted. Email correspondence is retained for as long as reasonably necessary to resolve your enquiry. No other personal data is systematically retained.

6. Your Rights

Depending on your jurisdiction (including the EU/EEA under GDPR, and Indian residents under DPDP 2023), you may have rights including:

• Right to access the data we hold about you
• Right to rectification of inaccurate data
• Right to erasure ("right to be forgotten")
• Right to data portability
• Right to object to processing

Because VayuMet collects minimal data and no registration data, most of these rights apply primarily to email correspondence. To exercise any right, contact us at contact@vayumetweather.com.

7. Children's Privacy

VayuMet does not knowingly collect personal information from children under 13. The service is a general weather information platform with no features directed at children.

8. Security

VayuMet is served over HTTPS. Weather data files are served from encrypted CDN endpoints. We do not store passwords or payment information.

9. Analytical Content and Financial Disclaimer

VayuMet publishes meteorological analysis, including forward projections of the exchange-traded rainfall indices RAINMUMBAI and RAINCHNNAI on the Rain Futures Index Desk, and the VayuMet Indian Monsoon Index (VIMI).

• These are independent meteorological analyses. VayuMet is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting for NCDEX, and is not a registered investment adviser, research analyst or broker.
• Projected index values are VayuMet's own estimates, not official settlement values and not a forecast of any contract price. Official values are published by the exchange.
• Nothing on VayuMet is investment, trading or financial advice, and nothing on it is a recommendation to enter or exit any position. Trading in commodity derivatives carries market risk; consult a registered financial adviser and verify contract terms directly on ncdex.com.
• We do not collect, hold or process any trading, brokerage, position or payment information. VayuMet has no connection to any exchange, broker or trading account.

All forecast and index content on VayuMet is provided for informational purposes without warranty of accuracy, and the safety notice on the About page applies throughout: this is not a substitute for official IMD warnings or aviation authority guidance.

10. Changes to This Policy

We may update this policy from time to time. When we do, the "Last updated" date at the top of this page will change. Material changes will be announced on the VayuMet website. Continued use of VayuMet after changes constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.

11. Contact

Questions about this privacy policy or your data rights:

📧 Email: contact@vayumetweather.com

🌐 Website: www.vayumetweather.com