Terms of Service

Last updated: March 24, 2026

1. Acceptance of Terms

By downloading, installing, or using Earth Exhibit ("the app", "we", "our", "us"), you agree to these Terms of Service. If you do not agree, please do not use the app.

We may update these terms from time to time. Continued use of the app after changes are posted constitutes acceptance of the revised terms. We will update the "Last updated" date above when changes are made.

2. Description of Service

Earth Exhibit is a natural phenomena tracking app. It helps you discover, track, and plan trips to see events like auroras, meteor showers, eclipses, wildlife migrations, bioluminescence, volcanic activity, blooms, and hundreds of other natural phenomena around the world.

The app provides:

  • A database of 600+ natural phenomena with locations, seasonal timing, and educational guides
  • Real-time viewing condition scores based on weather, moon phase, and other factors
  • Push notifications when phenomena you track are approaching or have favorable conditions
  • A personal sighting log where you can record what you have witnessed
  • A map view for discovering phenomena near any location

3. User Accounts

You can use Earth Exhibit without creating an account. By default, you are assigned an anonymous identifier stored on your device, which allows basic functionality like saving phenomena to your list.

For full features (sighting logs, community activity, cross-device sync), you can create an account using Google Sign-In, Apple Sign-In, or email and password. You are responsible for maintaining the security of your account credentials.

You must be at least 13 years old to create an account or use the app.

4. User Content

You may submit content through the app, including sighting photos, ratings, notes, and phenomenon suggestions ("User Content").

You retain ownership of your User Content. By submitting content to Earth Exhibit, you grant us a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free license to use, display, reproduce, and distribute your User Content within the app and related services (such as the Earth Exhibit website and social media). This license exists solely to operate and improve the service.

You may delete your User Content at any time by removing individual sightings or by deleting your account entirely. Once deleted, we will remove the content from our servers within a reasonable timeframe.

You represent that you own or have the necessary rights to any content you submit, and that your content does not violate any third party's rights.

5. Acceptable Use

You agree not to:

  • Use the app for any unlawful purpose
  • Upload content that is harmful, abusive, defamatory, or infringes on others' rights
  • Attempt to gain unauthorized access to our systems, other users' accounts, or data
  • Interfere with or disrupt the app's functionality, servers, or networks
  • Use automated scripts, bots, or scraping tools to extract data from the app
  • Impersonate another person or misrepresent your affiliation with any entity
  • Submit false or deliberately misleading sighting reports

We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these terms.

6. Location Data

Earth Exhibit uses your device's location to provide nearby phenomena, distance calculations, and location-specific viewing conditions. Location access is requested through your device's standard permission system and is used in the foreground only. We do not track your location in the background.

Your location data is never sold or shared with third parties for advertising or marketing purposes. Approximate coordinates may be sent to weather APIs (Open-Meteo) solely to retrieve forecast data. See our Privacy Policy for full details.

You can revoke location permission at any time through your device settings. The app will continue to function, but location-dependent features will be unavailable.

7. Push Notifications

Push notifications are entirely opt-in. You choose which phenomena to subscribe to, and you can unsubscribe at any time within the app or through your device's notification settings.

Notifications may include alerts about seasonal windows, favorable viewing conditions, or upcoming events for phenomena you are tracking. We do not send promotional or marketing push notifications.

8. Third-Party Services

Earth Exhibit relies on the following third-party services to operate:

  • Firebase (Google) -- Authentication, database, file storage, push notifications, and crash reporting
  • NOAA Space Weather Prediction Center -- Aurora and geomagnetic storm data
  • Open-Meteo -- Weather forecasts for viewing condition scores
  • iNaturalist -- Wildlife observation data to supplement scoring
  • eBird (Cornell Lab of Ornithology) -- Bird migration data

These services operate under their own terms and privacy policies. We are not responsible for their availability, accuracy, or practices. Outages or changes to these services may affect app functionality.

9. Disclaimer -- Phenomena Predictions Are Estimates

This is important: viewing condition scores, seasonal windows, peak dates, and all other predictions in the app are estimates based on historical data, weather forecasts, and astronomical calculations. They are not guarantees.

Natural phenomena are inherently unpredictable. Weather can change rapidly. Wildlife does not follow rigid schedules. Geomagnetic storms may or may not produce visible aurora at your location.

You should:

  • Treat the app as a planning and discovery tool, not a definitive forecast
  • Never rely on the app for safety-critical decisions. If you are in an area with volcanic activity, severe weather, tidal risks, or other natural hazards, always follow official guidance from local authorities and emergency services
  • Exercise your own judgment when traveling to remote locations to view phenomena
  • Check official sources (national park services, weather services, local authorities) before traveling

Earth Exhibit is not responsible for travel plans, expenses, or experiences that do not go as expected based on information in the app.

10. Limitation of Liability

Earth Exhibit is provided "as is" and "as available" without warranties of any kind, whether express or implied, including warranties of merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, or non-infringement.

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, Earth Exhibit and its operators shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or any loss of profits or revenues, whether incurred directly or indirectly, or any loss of data, use, goodwill, or other intangible losses resulting from:

  • Your use of or inability to use the app
  • Any inaccuracy in phenomena data, viewing scores, timing estimates, or location information
  • Unauthorized access to or alteration of your data
  • Any third-party service outage or data issue
  • Any other matter relating to the service

11. Intellectual Property

The app's design, code, branding, and curated phenomena database are the property of Earth Exhibit. You may not copy, modify, distribute, or create derivative works from the app or its content without our written permission.

Some phenomena images are sourced from Wikimedia Commons under Creative Commons licenses. Individual image attributions are displayed within the app where applicable.

12. Account Deletion

You can permanently delete your account and all associated data at any time:

  1. Open the app
  2. Go to Settings > Account
  3. Tap Delete Account
  4. Confirm twice

This permanently deletes your profile, sighting records, uploaded photos, saved items, alert subscriptions, and all other data associated with your account. This action cannot be undone. For full details on what is deleted, see our Privacy Policy.

13. Termination

We may suspend or terminate your access to the app at any time if you violate these terms, without prior notice. You may stop using the app at any time by uninstalling it and, if desired, deleting your account.

14. Governing Law

These terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the United States. Any disputes arising from these terms or your use of the app shall be resolved in accordance with applicable law.

15. Contact

If you have questions about these terms, contact us at:

Email: feedback@phenomenontracker.com

See also our Privacy Policy for details on how we handle your data.