Coast and sea

High seas forecast and storm warnings

The general synopsis for UK

At 040000UTC, high 50 north 32 west 1031 expected 45 north 29 west with little change by 050000UTC. Lows cornwall 1011 and 71 north 08 west 998 both losing their identities by same time. New low expected northern Scotland 1014 and Newfoundland 986 by that time

Issued at: .

For the period to .

High seas forecast and storm warnings map

Sole

Wind
Northerly or northwesterly 4 to 6, but variable 2 to 4 until later in east.
Sea state
Moderate, occasionally slight in east and rough in west.
Weather
Rain or showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Shannon

Wind
North or northwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Moderate, occasionally rough at first in south and slight later in northeast.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

Rockall

Wind
West or northwest 3 to 5, veering north 4 to 6.
Sea state
Moderate, occasionally rough later.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Bailey

Wind
West or northwest 3 to 5, veering north 4 to 6, occasionally 7.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Faeroes

Wind
Cyclonic becoming northerly or northwesterly, 4 to 6, occasionally 7 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, occasionally slight at first and very rough later.
Weather
Rain, wintry showers later.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Southeast Iceland

Wind
Cyclonic becoming northerly or northwesterly, 4 to 6, occasionally 7 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, occasionally slight at first and very rough later.
Weather
Rain, wintry showers later.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

East Northern Section

Wind
Cyclonic at first in far northeast, otherwise northerly or northwesterly 4 to 6, becoming variable 4 or less in west, then cyclonic 3 to 5 in far northwest.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally rough in east.
Weather
Showers, wintry in northeast.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor in northeast.

West Northern Section

In north

Wind
Cyclonic 4 to 6, occasionally 7 in far west.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain, fog patches in southwest.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor in southwest.

In south

Wind
Westerly or southwesterly, backing southeasterly in west, 4 to 6, but becoming variable 2 to 4 in east.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally rough later in far southwest.
Weather
Rain or drizzle, fog patches in northwest.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor in northwest.

East Central Section

Wind
Northerly or northwesterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first in east, becoming variable 4 or less in west.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers mainly in north and east.
Visibility
Good.

West Central Section

Wind
Variable 4 or less in east, otherwise southeasterly 3 to 5, increasing 5 to 7, becoming cyclonic later in far southwest.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally rough later in west.
Weather
Showers in north, rain later in west.
Visibility
Good, becoming moderate or poor later in west.

Denmark Strait

Wind
Variable 2 to 4 at first in far southeast, otherwise northerly or northeasterly 4 to 6, but 7 or gale 8 at first in northeast, occasionally 7 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, but rough, occasionally very rough, in east.
Weather
Occasional snow or snow showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally very poor. Light to moderate icing in northeast with temperatures ms02 to ms05 and occasional light icing near greenland coast with temperatures ms02 to ms04.

North Iceland

In north

Wind
Northerly or northeasterly 6 to gale 8, occasionally severe gale 9 at first in west.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough in southeast.
Weather
Snow or snow showers, occasional freezing rain in northwest.
Visibility
Moderate or poor, occasionally very poor. Widespread light to moderate icing in north and west with temperatures ms03 to ms06.

In south

Wind
Cyclonic, mainly northwesterly, 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 at first, becoming northerly or northwesterly 5 to 7 later.
Sea state
Rough or very rough, occasionally moderate at first in south.
Weather
Snow or snow showers, occasional freezing rain in northwest.
Visibility
Moderate or poor, occasionally very poor. Light icing in northwest with temperatures ms02 to ms04, occasionally moderate in far northwest with temperatures ms05 to ms06.

Norwegian Basin

Wind
Westerly or northwesterly, becoming cyclonic later, 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first in east and later in west.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough later in southwest.
Weather
Snow showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

Outlook for following 24 hours

Storms are possible in East Northern Section, with gales expected in West Northern Section and Denmark Strait.

Unscheduled storm warnings are broadcast via Safetynet and in bulletin WONT54 EGRR available via some internet and ftpmail outlets

The high seas forecast information

High seas forecasts are issued twice daily at 0930 and 2130 GMT and cover the next 24 hours and outlooks for the following 24 hours.

The part of the North Atlantic known as Metarea I is divided into twelve sea areas, six of which are also in the Shipping forecast.

The high seas forecast contains a general synopsis and sea-area forecasts containing forecast wind direction and force, weather and visibility for the next 24 hours with an outlook for the following 24 hours.

Marine forecasts disclaimer

In the UK, the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) is responsible for the provision of Maritime Safety Information (MSI) to ships at sea, which includes the broadcast of warnings and forecasts. The Met Office initiates warnings and prepares routine forecasts for dissemination on behalf of the MCA.

Caution: The internet is not part of the Maritime Safety Information system and should never be relied upon as the only means to obtain the latest forecast and warning information. Access to the service may be interrupted or delayed from time to time, updates may also be delayed.

Please refer to GMDSS services, INMARSAT SafetyNET or international NAVTEX for the latest information. When using these web pages, always check that the page on your screen is not from your cache. Use the Refresh or Reload button if in any doubt.