High seas forecast and storm warnings
The general synopsis for UK
At 030000UTC, low 60 north 29 west 983 expected 61 north 13 west 986 by 040000UTC. High 73 north 08 west 1017 expected 73 north 02 west 1015 by same time
Issued at: .
For the period to .
High seas forecast and storm warnings map
Sole
- Wind
- Southwest, veering west or northwest later, 4 to 6, occasionally 7, perhaps gale 8 later.
- Sea state
- Moderate, occasionally rough.
- Weather
- Occasional rain.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Shannon
- Wind
- Southwest, veering west later, 5 to 7, perhaps gale 8 later.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough becoming rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Occasional rain.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Rockall
- Wind
- Southwest, veering west later, 5 or 6, increasing 6 to gale 8.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, occasionally high later.
- Weather
- Squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Bailey
- Wind
- Cyclonic 5 to 7, occasionally 4 in north and gale 8 later in south.
- Sea state
- Rough, becoming rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Rain or squally showers, thundery later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Faeroes
- Wind
- Cyclonic 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough later in south.
- Weather
- Occasional rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Southeast Iceland
- Wind
- Easterly becoming cyclonic, 4 to 6, but 6 to gale 8 until later in west.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
East Northern Section
In north
- Wind
- Cyclonic 5 to 7, occasionally 4 in south and east and gale 8 at first in north, becoming northwesterly 4 to 6 later.
- Sea state
- Rough, occasionally very rough at first and moderate later.
- Weather
- Occasional rain at first in north, otherwise squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
In south
- Wind
- Cyclonic, becoming northwesterly later, 6 to gale 8, occasionally severe gale 9 at first in south, decreasing 5 at times later in west.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, occasionally high in southeast.
- Weather
- Squally showers, perhaps thundery.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
West Northern Section
In north
- Wind
- Cyclonic, mainly northerly or northwesterly, 4 to 6, but 6 to gale 8 at first in east.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough at first in east.
- Weather
- Occasional rain or showers, squally at first in east.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
In south
- Wind
- Northwesterly 6 to gale 8, backing westerly 4 to 6, becoming cyclonic 3 to 5 later in west.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, becoming moderate or rough in west and later in east.
- Weather
- Occasional rain or showers, squally at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor at first in east.
East Central Section
In north
- Wind
- Southwesterly veering westerly or northwesterly, 6 to gale 8, occasionally severe gale 9 at first in north, decreasing 4 or 5 later in south and west.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, occasionally high in far north.
- Weather
- Squally showers in north, rain at first in southeast.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor in far north and at first in southeast.
In south
- Wind
- Cyclonic 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first in south and east, becoming variable 2 to 4 later in east and far north.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Occasional rain, fog patches in south, becoming mainly fair in north.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor in south and poor at first in north.
West Central Section
In north
- Wind
- Northwesterly backing westerly, 4 to 6, but 7 or gale 8 at first in northeast.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, becoming moderate or rough in west and later in east.
- Weather
- Showers, squally at first in northeast.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate at first in northeast.
In south
- Wind
- Northerly or northeasterly 4 to 6, becoming variable 2 to 4 in far north, and increasing 6 to gale 8 later in south.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough later in south.
- Weather
- Rain in southeast, otherwise mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor in southeast.
Denmark Strait
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4 in far northeast, otherwise northerly or northeasterly 4 to 6, increasing 6 to gale 8 except in far west, occasionally severe gale 9 later in northeast.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate in far northeast, otherwise moderate or rough, occasionally very rough later.
- Weather
- Rain at times, becoming mainly fair in far northeast, fog patches developing in far southeast.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor but very poor in far southeast.
North Iceland
In area north of 71 north
- Wind
- Cyclonic 3 to 5, becoming variable 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Slight, occasionally moderate at first.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor at first.
In area south of 71 north
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 4 to 6, increasing 7 at times.
- Sea state
- Moderate, becoming moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Rain at times, but mainly fair in far northeast, fog patches in south.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor in south.
Norwegian Basin
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4 at first in east, otherwise easterly or southeasterly 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Moderate, occasionally rough later in west.
- Weather
- Showers, then occasional rain in south and west.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor in south and west.
Outlook for the following 24 hours
Severe gales expected in West Central Section and Denmark Strait with gales in Rockall, Bailey, East Northern Section and East Central Section. Risk of gales in Shannon and Faeroes.
Unscheduled storm warnings are broadcast via Safetynet and in bulletin WONT54 EGRR available via some internet and ftpmail outlets
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.