Coast and sea

High seas forecast and storm warnings

The general synopsis for UK

At 141200UTC, low 58 north 33 west 970 expected 55 north 23 west 982 by 151200UTC. New low expected 64 north 11 west 981 by same time. Lows 63 north 02 east 987 and 70 north 15 west 985 losing their identities

Issued at: .

For the period to .

High seas forecast and storm warnings map

Sole

Wind
Cyclonic, becoming westerly later, 4 to 6, increasing 7 at times.
Sea state
Rough or very rough, occasionally high in west.
Weather
Rain then showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Shannon

Wind
Southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Rough or very rough becoming very rough or high.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Rockall

Wind
Southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Rough or very rough becoming very rough or high.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Bailey

Wind
Cyclonic 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first.
Sea state
Rough becoming very rough.
Weather
Rain then showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good.

Faeroes

Wind
Cyclonic 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming rough or very rough.
Weather
Occasional rain or sleet.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Southeast Iceland

Wind
Cyclonic 4 to 6, occasionally 7.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming rough or very rough, occasionally high in west.
Weather
Occasional rain or sleet.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

East Northern Section

In area north of 62 north

Wind
Easterly or northeasterly 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 at first, backing northerly or northeasterly 4 to 6 later.
Sea state
Rough or very rough, occasionally high at first in west.
Weather
Occasional rain or showers, becoming wintry at times.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

In area south or 58 north

Wind
Southwesterly 5 to 7, becoming cyclonic 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later in far west.
Sea state
Very rough or high.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

In rest of area

Wind
Variable 2 to 4, becoming northerly 4 to 6 later in west.
Sea state
Very rough or high occasionally rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

West Northern Section

In north

Wind
Northerly or northeasterly 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 at first, backing westerly 3 to 5 in far northwest and becoming cyclonic 4 to 6 in far southeast, then becoming variable 2 to 4 later in northwest.
Sea state
Very rough or high becoming rough or very rough, then moderate later in northwest.
Weather
Occasional rain or showers, wintry in northwest, becoming mainly fair in north and west and later elsewhere.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor, but very poor at first in northwest, becoming good in north and west and later elsewhere.

In southeast

Wind
Cyclonic, 4 to 6, occasionally 7 in south, becoming northwesterly 6 to gale 8 in south and west, occasionally severe gale 9 in far southwest.
Sea state
Very rough or high, becoming rough later in far north.
Weather
Showers, becoming squally in south and west, perhaps wintry at times.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

In southwest

Wind
Westerly or northwesterly 7 to severe gale 9, decreasing 5 or 6 later in west.
Sea state
Very rough or high, becoming rough or very rough later.
Weather
Rain or squally showers, perhaps wintry at times, becoming mainly fair later.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor, becoming good later.

East Central Section

High seas storm warning
Issued:

At 141200UTC, low 58 north 33 west 970 expected 55 north 23 west 982 by 151200UTC. Winds are expected to reach storm force 10 between 250 and 400 miles of the centre in the southwestern quadrant from 150600UTC.

In far northeast

Wind
Southwesterly 5 to 7, becoming cyclonic 4 to 6 later.
Sea state
Very rough or high.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

In rest of area

Wind
Westerly or southwesterly 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 in northwest, veering westerly or northwesterly 7 to severe gale 9, occasionally storm 10 later in west.
Sea state
Very rough or high occasionally very high.
Weather
Squally showers.
Visibility
Moderate or poor.

West Central Section

High seas storm warning
Issued:

At 141200UTC, low 58 north 33 west 970 expected 55 north 23 west 982 by 151200UTC. Winds are expected to reach storm force 10 between 250 and 400 miles of the centre in the southwestern quadrant from 150600UTC.

Wind
Westerly 7 to severe gale 9, veering northwesterly gale 8 to storm 10, decreasing 5 to 7 later in south or west, occasionally gale 8 later in south.
Sea state
Very rough or high, occasionally very high in north.
Weather
Squally showers, perhaps wintry at times, rain later in southwest.
Visibility
Moderate or poor.

Denmark Strait

Wind
Mainly northerly or northeasterly 6 to gale 8, but cyclonic 3 to 5 in northwest and becoming cyclonic 3 to 5 in west.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough in south.
Weather
Snow showers in far east.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor in far east. Occasional light or moderate icing expected in far east with temperatures ms03 to ms05.

North Iceland

In area enclosed west of 16 west and north of 69 north

Wind
Cyclonic mainly northerly, 6 to gale 8.
Sea state
Rough becoming moderate.
Weather
Snow at times.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor. Occasional light or moderate icing with temperatures ms03 to ms05.

In rest of area

Wind
Cyclonic 3 to 5, increasing 6 at times except in far northwest.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, becoming moderate in north, occasionally very rough later in far south.
Weather
Rain at times, but sleet or snow at times in north and west, fog patches in southeast.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor. Occasional light or moderate icing in far northwest with temperatures ms03 to ms05.

Norwegian Basin

In area west of 00 east

Wind
Cyclonic 3 to 5 becoming southerly or southeasterly 4 to 6, veering southwesterly 3 to 5 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, becoming rough or very rough later.
Weather
Occasional rain or showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

In area east of 00 east

Wind
Cyclonic becoming southerly or southeasterly 6 to gale 8, decreasing 5 at times in far northeast.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, becoming rough or very rough later in west.
Weather
Occasional rain or showers, squally at times, becoming mainly fair in far northeast.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Outlook for following 24 hours

Severe gales expected East Central Section and West Central Section with gales in Sole, Shannon, West Northern Section, Denmark Strait, north Iceland and Norwegian Basin.

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.