Solar
Privacy & cookies
The short version: we collect as little as we can, nothing non-essential runs without your say-so, and you can ask us to delete anything we hold.
Last updated 24 September 2026
Who we are
Solar is run by Wicked Sick Ltd, a company registered in England and Wales. For anything in this policy, email [email protected].
What we collect, and why
- Server logs. Our hosting provider records the IP address, requested page, browser type and time of each request, as every web server does. We use these only to keep the site running and to investigate abuse. They are kept for up to 30 days.
- Account and alert data. If you create an account, we store your name, email address, password hash and any visibility alerts you save (object and location) so we can notify you when the condition matches. Remove alerts from your alerts page, and contact us to delete your account data.
- Analytics (only with your consent). If you accept analytics cookies we load Google Analytics 4 with IP anonymisation, which tells us which pages people find useful and roughly where in the world they are. It is told the page you are on with sensitive parts of the address removed, so a settings link you open never sends the observing location inside it to Google. We do not use it for advertising and we do not link it to any account. If you choose "essential only", nothing from Google is loaded at all. (Analytics is not currently switched on.)
- Newsletter. If you sign up, your email address goes straight to Mailchimp, who send you a confirmation link (double opt-in). Nothing is stored on our servers. You can unsubscribe from the link in any email, and we will delete your address on request.
- Your location (astronomy tools). Some tools can use your approximate location to tailor sky data. If you allow it, the location stays in your browser and is sent to our API only for that calculation; it is not stored or logged with anything that identifies you. Weather checks for the observer panel are made server-side to Open-Meteo from our infrastructure, using the same location rounded to two decimals (about a kilometre), so your IP address is not sent to Open-Meteo. Forecasts are cached for 30 minutes per rounded grid cell and are not tied to a person. A settings link you copy to another device keeps those values in the fragment of the URL (after #), which browsers do not send to our server, to our logs, or as a Referer. Entering a what3words address is optional — the other ways of giving a location involve no third party. If you do use one, the three words are sent to what3words to convert them to coordinates; we do not store, cache or log the address or the result.
Cookies and local storage
| Name | Purpose | Lifetime |
|---|---|---|
| cookie_consent | Remembers your cookie choice (essential). | 1 year |
| solar-session | Keeps interactive pages working between requests (essential). | 120 minutes after the last request |
| XSRF-TOKEN | Protects forms against cross-site request forgery (essential). | 120 minutes after the last request |
| theme | Local storage, not a cookie: your light/dark choice. Never leaves your browser. | Until cleared |
| observer_location | Local storage: your observing location, rounded to about a kilometre, so you don't re-enter it on every object page. Sent to our API only for the sky calculation; never stored there. | Until cleared |
| preferences | Local storage: display preferences such as 12- or 24-hour times. Never leaves your browser. | Until cleared |
| _ga, _ga_* | Google Analytics, set only after you accept analytics. | Up to 2 years |
You can change your mind at any time by clearing the cookie_consent cookie in your browser; the banner will ask again on your next visit. Everything in local storage is listed, editable and clearable on Your settings. Account and alert records are separate from browser storage and are used only for sign-in and notifications.
Third parties
- Google Analytics — usage statistics, only with consent. Google privacy policy
- Open-Meteo — hourly cloud, visibility, humidity and wind forecasts for observer weather outlooks. Open-Meteo docs
- what3words — converting a what3words address you paste into coordinates. what3words privacy policy
- Mailchimp (Intuit) — newsletter delivery. Mailchimp privacy statement
- NASA / JPL, IAU Minor Planet Center — the astronomical data itself. No personal data is exchanged.
Your rights
Under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 you can ask what we hold about you, have it corrected or deleted, object to processing, or withdraw consent. Email [email protected] and we will respond within one month. If you are unhappy with how we handle it, you can complain to the Information Commissioner's Office (ico.org.uk).
Changes
If this policy changes in a way that matters, we will update the date above and, where we can, say so on the site.