☀️ Sun Seeker
Find your closest warm-weather escape.
Sun Seeker is a web application that helps you discover the nearest warm-weather destinations based on your current location and desired temperature. Whether you're looking to escape a chilly rainy day or planning a quick road trip to the sun, Sun Seeker calculates the closest cities currently meeting or exceeding your target temperature.
✨ Features
- Flexible Origin Input: Use browser geolocation to automatically detect your coordinates, or enter any 5-digit US Zip Code.
- Interactive Temperature Slider: Choose your ideal target temperature (between 60°F and 100°F) with a dynamic, color-coded range slider.
- Smart Proximity Search:
- Calculates the great-circle distance (via the Haversine formula) from your origin to ~100 curated destinations across the Western United States.
- Sorts destinations by distance and queries real-time weather conditions sequentially to find your top 10 closest warm escapes while respecting API rate limits.
- Live Weather Details: Displays current temperature, weather conditions, weather icons, and distance in miles for every matching destination.
- One-Click Navigation: Jump straight to any recommended destination on Google Maps.
🛠️ Tech Stack
- Frontend: HTML5, CSS3 (custom glassmorphism design & responsive grid), Vanilla JavaScript
- Backend: Node.js, Express (
^5.2.1)
- External APIs:
🚀 Getting Started
Prerequisites
1. Clone the Repository
git clone https://github.com/daconrad/sun-seeker.git
cd sun-seeker
2. Install Dependencies
npm install
3. Configure Environment Variables
Create a .env file in the root directory and add your OpenWeatherMap API key:
OPENWEATHER_API_KEY=your_openweathermap_api_key_here
PORT=3000
4. Start the Application
npm start
The server will start at http://localhost:3000. Open this URL in your browser to start searching for warm destinations!
📂 Project Structure
sun-seeker/
├── destinations.json # Curated list of ~100 Western US destinations with coordinates
├── package.json # Project metadata, scripts, and dependencies
├── server.js # Express server, distance calculator, and OpenWeather API proxy
└── public/ # Static frontend assets
├── index.html # Main application layout and destination card template
├── main.js # Frontend state, geolocation handling, and API integration
└── style.css # Custom styling, animations, and responsive layout
🔌 API Endpoints
| Method | Endpoint | Description |
|---|
GET | /api/geocode?zip={zip} | Resolves a 5-digit US Zip Code into latitude and longitude coordinates. |
POST | /api/destinations | Accepts { originLat, originLon, targetTemp } and returns up to 10 closest destinations meeting the target temperature. |
