A calm coastal instrument.

The Salt Light Instrument is a local-first, privacy-first, open device: a hand-built pane of glass that puts a beautiful, easy-to-read face on the data all around you and online, the weather, tides, sky, surf and the ferry. It keeps showing the last good reading even when the internet doesn't.Set it and forget it, or tinker with it yourself.
See the instrumentMeet the maker
On-device tide, sun & moon mathPay with money, not your dataOpen sourceNo AI, just quiet functionality
The Salt Light Instrument in its reclaimed-pine frame, showing the Home screen: temperature, air quality, the day's tide curve and the next hours.
WeatherWeather stationsTidesSunrise & sunsetMoon & planetsSurf & swellMarine trafficShark trackerFerry boardOutdoor air qualityAurora watchMore coastlinesAlpine & skiSalt Light Edge nodeOutdoor sensorIndoor air qualityBirdsong IDCellular dataLoRa meshNOAA Weather RadioLocal sensorsWeatherWeather stationsTidesSunrise & sunsetMoon & planetsSurf & swellMarine trafficShark trackerFerry boardOutdoor air qualityAurora watchMore coastlinesAlpine & skiSalt Light Edge nodeOutdoor sensorIndoor air qualityBirdsong IDCellular dataLoRa meshNOAA Weather RadioLocal sensors

Everything the coast is doing, right now

Swipe between calm screens. No apps, no feeds to scroll. Pick a view, and pick the wood your frame is finished in.
The Salt Light Instrument Home screen.
Temperature, the day's sun arc, a two-cycle tide curve, and the next 12 hours.
Frame
Red oak
Driftwood
Cherry
Warm golden-brown, open grain. The warm default.

Pulled from the source, the moment it changes

Live coastal feeds sync over Wi-Fi; the sun, moon, planets and tides are computed on the device itself. Everything's cached, so a dropped signal never leaves you in the dark.
NOAA tide predictionsOpen-Meteo forecastLocal weather stations (on-board radio)On-device sun, moon & planet mathMarine swell & sea-surface temperatureMarine vessel traffic, open feed + on-board AISNWS small-craft advisoriesOCEARCH & AWSC shark trackingBlock Island Ferry timetableKBID airport conditionsOutdoor air quality, US AQI (Open-Meteo)NOAA SWPC aurora (planetary Kp)
The launch version is a love letter to Block Island: custom made for that coast, and fine-tuned and tested on and by the island. Work is underway to make it a device for everywhere, with more pre-tuned locations on the way.Every feed above is connected and minded for you on the Keeper Edition. The Maker's Edition self-hosts the same streams, or your own.

It keeps its cool when the connection doesn't.

Plenty of the coast has thin Wi-Fi. The instrument computes tides, sun and sky on-device, keeps the ferry board running from its stored timetable, and when a feed is out of range it holds the last good reading. At dusk it dims itself; at dawn it brightens. No buttons to babble at, no notifications begging for attention.

Bring the coast indoors.

The Salt Light Instrument is hand-built to order and tuned for Block Island. Two editions, one calm instrument: kept for you, or open to you.Choose your edition