WeatherXM H2 is a solar-powered, 8-in-1 station that reports over LoRaWAN. No Wi-Fi, no cables, no SIM. Only a gateway somewhere within range.
The technology
A weather station sends small readings, often, from places without infrastructure. LoRaWAN was designed for exactly that: tiny packets, very long range, and batteries that last seasons instead of days.
Layer 1 · the radio
A chirp spread-spectrum modulation that trades data rate for reach. Receivers can decode LoRa signals even below the noise floor, so a transmitter using milliwatts is heard by gateways kilometers away on licence-free sub-GHz bands. H2 uses the Semtech LR1110 radio.
Layer 2 · the network
An open protocol maintained by the LoRa Alliance. A station never pairs with one gateway: every gateway in range hears the same uplink and forwards it to a network server, which removes duplicates and routes the packet to its application. More gateways means more redundancy, with no configuration on the station.
Security · built in
Each packet carries two layers of AES-128. A network session key lets the network server confirm the packet is authentic and unaltered. A separate application session key encrypts the payload so only the application can read it. Gateways relay what they cannot decrypt.
| Wi-Fi | LoRaWAN | Cellular LTE | LoRa mesh | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reaches | Your router, usually within one building | A gateway 2–10 km away | Wherever the carrier has coverage | A local console, 100+ km hop by hop through other mesh nodes |
| Needs on site | Wi-Fi and a powered indoor console | Nothing beyond the station | Compatible cellular signal | Other mesh nodes |
| Best for | Homes, offices, schools | Farms, campuses, rural land | Remote commercial sites | Off-grid sites and station clusters |
| WeatherXM station | D1 Wi-Fi → | H2 LoRaWAN | Pulse LTE → | D2 Mesh → |
Signal path
The same LoRaWAN architecture applies whether your station reports through Helium, The Things Network or a private gateway. Only the network server and destination change.
Eight sensors in one outdoor unit sample temperature, humidity, pressure, wind, rain, light and UV, powered by the sun.
The station packs the readings into a compact, encrypted LoRaWAN uplink and transmits it. No pairing and no local router.
Any gateway in range picks it up and forwards it to the network server, which keeps one copy and verifies it.
Network Edition data is quality-checked by WeatherXM and served in the app, Explorer and Pro API. Open Edition data goes wherever you route it.
Deployment planning
Three ways to get H2 observations off site. The network you pick decides the edition you need.
A decentralized public LoRaWAN network of community-deployed hotspots. Instead of subscriptions, packet traffic is paid in Data Credits: a fixed-price, non-transferable unit.
A global community LoRaWAN network built on The Things Stack. The community tier is free to use under a fair-use policy that caps daily airtime per device.
Mount an off-the-shelf LoRaWAN gateway on a building with internet access and run the network server yourself, for example with open-source ChirpStack.
Off-grid alternatives
Stations relay packets through other mesh nodes over a multi-hop peer-to-peer LoRa mesh to reach a local console, so a chain of stations can reach across ridgelines and valleys without any public network. Local-first, with REST and MQTT on the console. Meshtastic and MeshCore compatible.
Explore D2 Mesh →For single, isolated sites. In development with Lacuna Space to relay H2 observations directly over low-Earth-orbit satellites, with no ground infrastructure nearby.
Explore H2-LEO →Range
LoRa links are limited less by distance than by what sits between the station and the gateway. The radio path needs a clear, football-shaped corridor, the Fresnel zone, not just a thin line of sight.
Gateway height
The largest single factor. A rooftop or mast gateway reaches much farther than one at ground level.
Terrain and line of sight
Hills block the signal. Flat, open land gives the best results.
Buildings and vegetation
Dense foliage and walls absorb sub-GHz energy, especially when wet.
Station mounting
Mount H2 on a pole at least 2 m high, clear of obstacles. That also improves wind and temperature readings.
Hardware editions
Identical sensors, build and radio range. The edition sets which LoRaWAN network the station joins and where its data goes.
Lower-priced edition for stations contributing observations under WeatherXM Network rules. Pre-onboarded on Helium, with Data Credits covered by WeatherXM. Reward eligibility depends on the applicable Network rules and contribution quality.
For independent operation on compatible third-party or private LoRaWAN infrastructure. Customer-controlled credentials, and observations go to the application stack your deployment needs.
Engineering
Temperature
−40 to +80°C
±0.5 °C
Humidity
1–99% RH
±3 % RH
Pressure
540–1100hPa
±5 hPa
Wind speed
0–50m/s
±0.5 m/s below 5 m/s
Wind direction
0–360°
±8°
Rain rate
0–450mm/h
±7 %
Light
0–200klux
Illuminance
UV index
0–16UVI
±10 %
| Radio | Semtech LR1110 · LoRaWAN 1.0.2 · Class A · OTAA |
|---|---|
| Frequency plans | Region-specific sub-GHz ISM plans, for example EU868, US915 and AU915 |
| Range to gateway | Typically 2–10 km, depending on terrain, obstacles and gateway height |
| Power | Integrated solar panel with 3× AA backup, or 6× AA with the external battery pack. 1.5 V non-rechargeable cells; lithium recommended for sub-zero sites. |
| Configuration | Bluetooth Low Energy for claiming, frequency plan and diagnostics |
| Size & weight | 44 × 17 × 27 cm · 2 kg |
Rechargeable batteries can damage the station.
Questions
No. H2 runs on its solar panel with AA batteries as backup, and sends observations over LoRaWAN radio. The only infrastructure it needs is a LoRaWAN gateway within range, which can be a public Helium hotspot, a The Things Network gateway, or a gateway you install yourself.
Check the Helium coverage map for the Network Edition, or the official The Things Network Gateway Map and TTN Mapper heatmap for The Things Network. Note that coverage maps and heatmaps are indicative planning tools, not operational guarantees. Actual connectivity depends on whether nearby gateways are active, local terrain line-of-sight, building penetration, and matching your station to the correct regional frequency plan (e.g. EU868, US915, AU915). A lack of mapped coverage in TTN Mapper simply indicates that no contributor has driven by and logged an uplink there—it does not necessarily mean no gateway is within reach. If coverage is missing, installing your own gateway on a connected rooftop provides dedicated local coverage.
Helium charges for packets in Data Credits. For the H2 Network Edition, the station is pre-onboarded on Helium and WeatherXM covers the Data Credits. You do not need a Helium account.
No. LoRaWAN encrypts every payload with an AES-128 application session key that only the application server holds. Gateways forward packets they cannot decrypt, and a separate network session key lets the network server verify that each packet is authentic.
The Open Edition. You configure its LoRaWAN credentials (DevEUI, JoinEUI and AppKey) over Bluetooth at flasher.weatherxm.com and register it on The Things Stack, ChirpStack or any compatible network server. The Network Edition is configured for the WeatherXM Network on Helium.
Two WeatherXM options fit off-grid sites. D2 Mesh stations relay observations through other mesh nodes over a multi-hop LoRa mesh until they reach a local console, covering 100+ km of terrain no single radio link could, with no public network involved. For a single isolated site, WeatherXM H2-LEO is in development with Lacuna Space to send H2 observations over low-Earth-orbit satellites; it is not shipping yet.
Check coverage, pick your edition, and mount H2 on a pole. The network does the rest.
