Coast and sea
The general synopsis for UK
At 150000UTC, low 72 north 09 west 960 expected 73 north 07 west 962 by 160000UTC. Lows 65 north 08 west 966, 59 north 24 west 965 and 58 north 36 west 973 losing their identities by same time. New low expected 40 north 07 west 1001 by that time
Issued at: .
For the period to .
High seas forecast and storm warnings map
Sole
- Wind
- North or northwest 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Shannon
- Wind
- Southwest 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Very rough.
- Weather
- Squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Rockall
- Wind
- Southwest 4 to 6, but 6 to gale 8 at first.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Bailey
- Wind
- Southwest 6 to gale 8, occasionally severe gale 9 until later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Faeroes
- Wind
- Southwest 6 to gale 8, decreasing 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Southeast Iceland
- Wind
- Cyclonic 7 to severe gale 9, decreasing 4 to 6 later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, occasionally rough near Iceland.
- Weather
- Squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
East Northern Section
In north
- Wind
- Cyclonic 6 to gale 8, occasionally severe gale force 9 at first in southeast, decreasing 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, becoming rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Squally wintry showers, becoming mainly fair later in west.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
In south
- Wind
- Southwesterly 6 to gale 8, becoming southerly or southwesterly 4 to 6 later.
- Sea state
- High, becoming very rough later.
- Weather
- Squally wintry showers, thundery at times, becoming mainly fair later in west.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
West Northern Section
- High seas storm warning
-
Issued:
Northerly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 at times, until 151500UTC and then again from 160400UTC, in the northwest of north Iceland near the ice edge. In addition, southeasterly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 from 160400UTC, in the southwest corner of West Northern Section, the area bounded by west of 32 west and south of 57 north. Additionally, southwesterly winds are also expected to reach storm force 10 from 160200UTC, in the southwest corner of West Central Section, in the area bounded by west of 35 west and south of 52 north.
In north
- Wind
- Cyclonic 4 to 6, decreasing 3 or 4, becoming easterly or southeasterly 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, becoming moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Wintry showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
In south
- Wind
- Westerly or northwesterly 6 to gale 8, occasionally severe gale force 9 at first in east, backing westerly or southwesterly 4 to 6, then backing southeasterly gale 8 to storm 10 later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, becoming rough or very rough later.
- Weather
- Wintry showers, perhaps thundery, becoming mainly fair, then rain and sleet later in south, perhaps thundery and squally at times.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor, becoming moderate or poor later in south, occasionally very poor later in south. Occasionally light icing from 151500utc in southwest.
East Central Section
- High seas storm warning
-
Issued:
Northerly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 at times, until 151500UTC and then again from 160400UTC, in the northwest of north Iceland near the ice edge. In addition, southeasterly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 from 160400UTC, in the southwest corner of West Northern Section, the area bounded by west of 32 west and south of 57 north. Additionally, southwesterly winds are also expected to reach storm force 10 from 160200UTC, in the southwest corner of West Central Section, in the area bounded by west of 35 west and south of 52 north.
- Wind
- Westerly or northwesterly 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 at first in northwest, backing southwesterly 4 or 5, then backing southerly or southwesterly gale 8 to storm 10 later in west.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, becoming mainly very rough later.
- Weather
- Wintry thundery showers, rain for a time later, perhaps thundery at times later in west.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
West Central Section
- High seas storm warning
-
Issued:
Northerly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 at times, until 151500UTC and then again from 160400UTC, in the northwest of north Iceland near the ice edge. In addition, southeasterly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 from 160400UTC, in the southwest corner of West Northern Section, the area bounded by west of 32 west and south of 57 north. Additionally, southwesterly winds are also expected to reach storm force 10 from 160200UTC, in the southwest corner of West Central Section, in the area bounded by west of 35 west and south of 52 north.
- Wind
- Westerly 4 to 6, but 6 to gale 8 at first in north, becoming cyclonic 7 or gale 8, then becoming southwesterly 7 to severe gale 9 later in south, increasing severe gale 9 or storm 10 later in far west.
- Sea state
- High becoming very rough or high.
- Weather
- Wintry thundery showers at first, then rain for a time, perhaps thundery later, then showers later in west.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor, becoming moderate or poor for a time.
Denmark Strait
- Wind
- Area north of 69 north, northeasterly 6 to gale 8, occasionally severe gale force 9.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough.
- Weather
- Snow.
- Visibility
- Poor or very poor, occasionally moderate. Light to moderate icing, with temperatures ms02 to ms05.
- Wind
- Rest of area, northeasterly 5 or 6, becoming cyclonic 3 or 4, then becoming southwesterly 4 or 5.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, becoming moderate or rough later.
- Weather
- Occasional rain and sleet at first near Iceland, otherwise mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor at first near Iceland.
North Iceland
- High seas storm warning
-
Issued:
Northerly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 at times, until 151500UTC and then again from 160400UTC, in the northwest of north Iceland near the ice edge. In addition, southeasterly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 from 160400UTC, in the southwest corner of West Northern Section, the area bounded by west of 32 west and south of 57 north. Additionally, southwesterly winds are also expected to reach storm force 10 from 160200UTC, in the southwest corner of West Central Section, in the area bounded by west of 35 west and south of 52 north.
In north
- Wind
- Cyclonic 6 to gale 8, but gale 8 to storm 10 at first and later in west near ice edge.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, occasionally high at first.
- Weather
- Sleet or snow at times.
- Visibility
- Poor or very poor, occasionally good. Light to moderate icing in west until 160600utc, with temperatures ms03 to ms06, becoming severe near the ice edge until 151600utc with temperatures around ms07.
In south
- Wind
- southwesterly 5 or 6, becoming cyclonic 6 to gale 8, then becoming westerly later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, occasionally moderate near Iceland, and high later in far southeast.
- Weather
- Occasional rain, but sleet or snow in northwest, showers later in southeast.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor in northwest.
Norwegian Basin
- Wind
- Southerly or southwesterly 6 to gale 8, decreasing 5 or 6.
- Sea state
- Very rough, occasionally high at first in northwest, becoming rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Showers at first and later in west, otherwise mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Outlook for following 24 hours
Violent storm or storms are expected in East Northern Section and West Northern Section, East Central Section, West Central Section and Denmark Strait. Severe gales are expected in north Iceland, Rockall, Bailey, Faeroes and Southeast Iceland. Gales are expected in all other areas.
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.