sharktopus

Terms of Service

sharktopus · last updated 2026-04-20

These Terms govern your use of the sharktopus open-source software (the “Tool”). By installing or running the Tool, you agree to these Terms. If you do not agree, do not install or run the Tool.

1. The Tool is MIT-licensed open-source software

sharktopus is distributed under the MIT License, reproduced in the LICENSE file of the source repository. The MIT License governs your rights to use, copy, modify, and redistribute the Tool. These Terms supplement the license for users who run the Tool's cloud-deploy features; in case of conflict, the MIT License controls on matters of copyright and redistribution.

2. AS-IS, no warranty

THE TOOL IS PROVIDED “AS IS”, WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES, OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT, OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF, OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE TOOL OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE TOOL.

3. Scientific research context

sharktopus is a utility for fetching numerical weather prediction input data. It is intended for research, education, and operational weather-model infrastructure run by qualified practitioners. Weather-model outputs produced with the Tool's inputs are probabilistic forecasts subject to well-known limits of numerical weather prediction. The Tool is not certified for safety-of-life applications (aviation, maritime navigation, severe-weather warnings to the public) and must not be used as the sole source for such decisions. Use official national meteorological service products for operational decision-making where lives or property are at stake.

4. Your cloud account, your bill

When you use sharktopus's deploy features (--auth browser, AWS Lambda deploy, Azure Functions deploy), the Tool provisions resources in your cloud account using credentials you provide. You are solely responsible for:

The Tool's defaults aim for small, low-cost deployments, but costs depend on your usage patterns, region pricing, and changes to third-party pricing over which we have no control.

5. Acceptable use

You agree not to use the Tool to:

6. Third-party services

The Tool interacts with services operated by third parties, including NOAA, Google, Amazon Web Services, and Microsoft. Your use of those services is governed by their terms, not by these Terms. We do not control those services and are not responsible for their availability, pricing, policies, or changes thereto.

7. No institutional endorsement

sharktopus was originally developed to support the CONVECT project (“Convective Systems Forecasting: Integrated Analysis of Numerical Modeling, Radar and Satellites” — CNPq Extreme Events Call 15/2023, coordinated by Dr. Tânia Ocimoto Oda), executed at IEAPM (Instituto de Estudos do Mar Almirante Paulo Moreira, Brazilian Navy) in partnership with UENF (Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense Darcy Ribeiro) and UFPR (Universidade Federal do Paraná). The Tool acknowledges that project and institutional context but is maintained as an independent open-source project. The Tool is not a product of, endorsed by, or a representation of CNPq, the Brazilian Navy, IEAPM, UENF, UFPR, or the CONVECT project, and must not be marketed or attributed as such. Using the Tool does not create any relationship (contractual, fiduciary, or otherwise) with any of these entities or any contributor's employer.

8. Limitation of liability

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, the authors, maintainers, and copyright holders of the Tool shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages, or any loss of profits, revenues, data, or goodwill, arising out of or related to your use of the Tool — including but not limited to incorrect forecasts, cloud charges, data loss, or service interruptions.

9. Changes

We may revise these Terms from time to time. Material changes will be noted in the project's CHANGELOG.md and reflected on this page with an updated date. Because the Tool is software you install, you control when you upgrade; continued use of an upgraded version constitutes acceptance of the Terms in effect at the time of that upgrade.

10. Governing law

Nothing in these Terms waives the MIT License's choice of law. To the extent any additional matter not covered by the MIT License requires a governing law, it shall be the law of the Federative Republic of Brazil, without regard to conflict-of-laws principles. Users outside Brazil remain subject to their own local law for matters of consumer protection.

11. Contact

Questions about these Terms: sharktopus.convect@gmail.com, or open an issue at github.com/sharktopus-project/sharktopus/issues.