High seas forecast and storm warnings
The general synopsis for UK
At 281200UTC, low 41 north 27 west 995 expected 51 north 16 west 972 by 291200UTC. Low 52 north 22 west 990 expected 59 north 14 west by same time. High 54 north 01 east 1022 expected southern Sweden 1031 by that time. at 281200UTC, low 61 north 42 west 1002 losing its identity
Issued at: .
For the period to .
High seas forecast and storm warnings map
Sole
- Wind
- South or southeast 5 to 7, increasing 7 to severe gale 9, veering west or southwest 6 to gale 8 later.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, becoming rough or very rough later.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Shannon
- Wind
- Southeast 6 to gale 8, becoming cyclonic 7 to severe gale 9 later.
- Sea state
- Rough, becoming very rough later, occasionally high later in west.
- Weather
- Showers, squally rain later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Rockall
- Wind
- Southeast 6 to gale 8, becoming cyclonic 7 to severe gale 9 later.
- Sea state
- Rough, becoming very rough later, occasionally high later in west.
- Weather
- Showers, squally rain later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Bailey
- Wind
- South 4 or 5, backing southeast 6 to gale 8.
- Sea state
- Rough, becoming very rough later.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Faeroes
- Wind
- Southwesterly 4 to 6, backing easterly or southeasterly 5 to 7, perhaps gale 8 later.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough later.
- Weather
- Squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Southeast Iceland
- Wind
- Southwesterly 4 to 6, backing easterly or southeasterly 5 to 7, perhaps gale 8 later.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough later.
- Weather
- Squally showers, then rain in.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
East Northern Section
In northern half of area
- Wind
- Cyclonic 4 to 6, increasing 6 to gale 8.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, becoming rough or very rough later.
- Weather
- Rain or squally showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
In southern half of area
- Wind
- Cyclonic 6 to gale 8, increasing severe gale 9 later in south.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, becoming rough or very rough occasionally high later in far southeast.
- Weather
- Rain or squally showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
West Northern Section
- Wind
- Cyclonic, mainly northerly, 4 to 6, increasing 6 to gale 8 later in east.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough in far northeast.
- Weather
- Showers, wintry in far northwest.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally moderate, but poor in far northwest.
East Central Section
In northern half of area
- Wind
- Cyclonic 6 to gale 8, but 4 to 6 at first in west, increasing gale 8 or severe gale 9 later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough occasionally high later in far northeast.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
In southern half of area
- Wind
- Cyclonic, mainly westerly later, 6 to gale 8.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
West Central Section
- Wind
- Cyclonic becoming northerly or northwesterly 6 to gale 8, decreasing 4 to 6 later in west.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, thundery at first in east.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally moderate, but poor at first in east.
Denmark Strait
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4 in far southwest and far north, otherwise northeasterly 4 to 6, increasing 7 to severe gale 9 later.
- Sea state
- Mainly very rough or very rough, but slight or moderate near greenland coast.
- Weather
- Occasional rain or sleet at first, occasionally snow later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor, but very poor later.
North Iceland
In northern half of area
- Wind
- Cyclonic 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Rough becoming moderate later.
- Weather
- Showers, occasional rain in south, wintry later in north.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
In south of area
- Wind
- Cyclonic 4 to 6, increasing 6 to gale 8 later in northwest.
- Sea state
- Rough, occasionally very rough at first.
- Weather
- Occasional rain.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Norwegian Basin
- Wind
- Southwesterly backing southeasterly 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Rough, occasionally very rough at first in far north, becoming moderate or rough later.
- Weather
- Squally showers at first.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally poor at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours
Violent storms expected in East Northern Section, East Central Section and Denmark Strait. Risk of storms in Rockall and Bailey. Severe gales expected in Shannon and West Northern Section. Gales expected in all other area.
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.