Create a GUI for weather forecast using weatherstack API in python

Weather forecasting is essential for daily planning and decision-making. The weatherstack API provides accurate weather data that can be integrated into Python applications. In this tutorial, we will create a graphical user interface (GUI) using tkinter to display real-time weather information.

Prerequisites

Before starting, ensure you have the following ?

• Python 3.6 or higher installed

• tkinter (usually comes with Python installation)

• requests library: pip install requests

• A free weatherstack API key from weatherstack.com

Setting Up the Weather GUI Application

Step 1: Import Required Libraries

import tkinter as tk
from tkinter import messagebox
import requests

We import tkinter for the GUI, messagebox for error handling, and requests for API calls.

Step 2: Configure API Settings

API_KEY = "your_weatherstack_api_key"
API_URL = "http://api.weatherstack.com/current"

Replace your_weatherstack_api_key with your actual API key from weatherstack.

Step 3: Create the Main Window

root = tk.Tk()
root.title("Weather Forecast Application")
root.geometry("400x300")
root.configure(bg="#e6f3ff")

This creates the main window with a title, size, and background color.

Building the User Interface

Input Fields and Labels

# City input
city_label = tk.Label(root, text="City:", font=("Arial", 12), bg="#e6f3ff")
city_label.grid(row=0, column=0, padx=10, pady=10, sticky="w")

city_entry = tk.Entry(root, font=("Arial", 12), width=20)
city_entry.grid(row=0, column=1, padx=10, pady=10)

# Country input (optional)
country_label = tk.Label(root, text="Country (optional):", font=("Arial", 12), bg="#e6f3ff")
country_label.grid(row=1, column=0, padx=10, pady=10, sticky="w")

country_entry = tk.Entry(root, font=("Arial", 12), width=20)
country_entry.grid(row=1, column=1, padx=10, pady=10)

Weather Data Function

def get_weather():
    city = city_entry.get().strip()
    country = country_entry.get().strip()
    
    if not city:
        messagebox.showerror("Error", "Please enter a city name!")
        return
    
    # Build query string
    query = f"{city},{country}" if country else city
    url = f"{API_URL}?access_key={API_KEY}&query={query}"
    
    try:
        response = requests.get(url, timeout=10)
        data = response.json()
        
        if "error" in data:
            messagebox.showerror("Error", f"API Error: {data['error']['info']}")
            return
        
        # Extract weather information
        current = data["current"]
        location = data["location"]
        
        temperature = current["temperature"]
        description = current["weather_descriptions"][0]
        humidity = current["humidity"]
        wind_speed = current["wind_speed"]
        
        # Update display labels
        location_info = f"{location['name']}, {location['country']}"
        location_label.config(text=f"Location: {location_info}")
        temperature_label.config(text=f"Temperature: {temperature}°C")
        description_label.config(text=f"Description: {description}")
        humidity_label.config(text=f"Humidity: {humidity}%")
        wind_label.config(text=f"Wind Speed: {wind_speed} km/h")
        
    except requests.RequestException:
        messagebox.showerror("Error", "Network error! Check your internet connection.")
    except KeyError:
        messagebox.showerror("Error", "Invalid response from weather service.")

Button and Display Labels

# Get Weather button
get_weather_button = tk.Button(root, text="Get Weather", command=get_weather, 
                              font=("Arial", 12), bg="#4CAF50", fg="white", 
                              padx=20, pady=5)
get_weather_button.grid(row=2, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=20)

# Weather display labels
location_label = tk.Label(root, text="", font=("Arial", 11, "bold"), bg="#e6f3ff")
location_label.grid(row=3, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=5)

temperature_label = tk.Label(root, text="", font=("Arial", 14), bg="#e6f3ff", fg="#d32f2f")
temperature_label.grid(row=4, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=5)

description_label = tk.Label(root, text="", font=("Arial", 11), bg="#e6f3ff")
description_label.grid(row=5, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=5)

humidity_label = tk.Label(root, text="", font=("Arial", 10), bg="#e6f3ff")
humidity_label.grid(row=6, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=2)

wind_label = tk.Label(root, text="", font=("Arial", 10), bg="#e6f3ff")
wind_label.grid(row=7, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=2)

Complete Weather Application

import tkinter as tk
from tkinter import messagebox
import requests

# API Configuration
API_KEY = "your_weatherstack_api_key"
API_URL = "http://api.weatherstack.com/current"

# Create main window
root = tk.Tk()
root.title("Weather Forecast Application")
root.geometry("400x300")
root.configure(bg="#e6f3ff")

# Input fields
city_label = tk.Label(root, text="City:", font=("Arial", 12), bg="#e6f3ff")
city_label.grid(row=0, column=0, padx=10, pady=10, sticky="w")

city_entry = tk.Entry(root, font=("Arial", 12), width=20)
city_entry.grid(row=0, column=1, padx=10, pady=10)

country_label = tk.Label(root, text="Country (optional):", font=("Arial", 12), bg="#e6f3ff")
country_label.grid(row=1, column=0, padx=10, pady=10, sticky="w")

country_entry = tk.Entry(root, font=("Arial", 12), width=20)
country_entry.grid(row=1, column=1, padx=10, pady=10)

def get_weather():
    city = city_entry.get().strip()
    country = country_entry.get().strip()
    
    if not city:
        messagebox.showerror("Error", "Please enter a city name!")
        return
    
    query = f"{city},{country}" if country else city
    url = f"{API_URL}?access_key={API_KEY}&query={query}"
    
    try:
        response = requests.get(url, timeout=10)
        data = response.json()
        
        if "error" in data:
            messagebox.showerror("Error", f"API Error: {data['error']['info']}")
            return
        
        current = data["current"]
        location = data["location"]
        
        temperature = current["temperature"]
        description = current["weather_descriptions"][0]
        humidity = current["humidity"]
        wind_speed = current["wind_speed"]
        
        location_info = f"{location['name']}, {location['country']}"
        location_label.config(text=f"Location: {location_info}")
        temperature_label.config(text=f"Temperature: {temperature}°C")
        description_label.config(text=f"Description: {description}")
        humidity_label.config(text=f"Humidity: {humidity}%")
        wind_label.config(text=f"Wind Speed: {wind_speed} km/h")
        
    except requests.RequestException:
        messagebox.showerror("Error", "Network error! Check your internet connection.")
    except KeyError:
        messagebox.showerror("Error", "Invalid response from weather service.")

# Button and display labels
get_weather_button = tk.Button(root, text="Get Weather", command=get_weather, 
                              font=("Arial", 12), bg="#4CAF50", fg="white", 
                              padx=20, pady=5)
get_weather_button.grid(row=2, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=20)

location_label = tk.Label(root, text="", font=("Arial", 11, "bold"), bg="#e6f3ff")
location_label.grid(row=3, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=5)

temperature_label = tk.Label(root, text="", font=("Arial", 14), bg="#e6f3ff", fg="#d32f2f")
temperature_label.grid(row=4, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=5)

description_label = tk.Label(root, text="", font=("Arial", 11), bg="#e6f3ff")
description_label.grid(row=5, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=5)

humidity_label = tk.Label(root, text="", font=("Arial", 10), bg="#e6f3ff")
humidity_label.grid(row=6, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=2)

wind_label = tk.Label(root, text="", font=("Arial", 10), bg="#e6f3ff")
wind_label.grid(row=7, column=0, columnspan=2, pady=2)

# Start the application
root.mainloop()

Key Features

• Error handling Validates user input and handles API errors

• Enhanced UI Improved styling with colors and fonts

• Comprehensive data Shows temperature, humidity, wind speed, and description

• Network timeout Prevents application freezing on slow connections

Conclusion

This weather application demonstrates how to integrate external APIs with Python GUI applications. The enhanced version includes proper error handling, improved styling, and additional weather data for a better user experience.