High seas forecast and storm warnings
The general synopsis for UK
At 111200UTC, low 68 north 20 west 977 expected 66 north 09 west 984 by 121200UTC. Low 64 north 32 west 983 expected to lose its identity by same time. New low expected 72 north 09 west 981 by that time. at 111200UTC low 53 north 27 west 999 expected to lose its identity by 121200UTC
Issued at: .
For the period to .
High seas forecast and storm warnings map
Sole
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4, becoming west or southwest 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, becoming moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Occasional rain.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Shannon
- Wind
- Southerly or southwesterly 6 to gale 8, veering westerly or southwesterly 4 to 6 later.
- Sea state
- Moderate at first in east, otherwise rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Occasional rain.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Rockall
- Wind
- Southerly or southwesterly 6 to gale 8, veering westerly or northwesterly 4 to 6 later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Occasional rain.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Bailey
- Wind
- Southwest 6 to gale 8, veering west or northwest 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, occasionally high at first in northwest.
- Weather
- Rain at first.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor at first.
Faeroes
- Wind
- Southwesterly 6 to gale 8, veering westerly or northwesterly 4 to 6 later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Southeast Iceland
- Wind
- Southwesterly 6 to gale 8, veering westerly or northwesterly 4 to 6 later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, occasionally high at first.
- Weather
- Squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
East Northern Section
In north
- Wind
- Westerly or southwesterly 5 to 7, veering northwesterly 4 to 6, then backing westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5 later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, occasionally high at first in east, becoming moderate or rough later.
- Weather
- Occasional rain at first in east.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate at first in east.
In south
- Wind
- Cyclonic becoming westerly or southwesterly then backing southerly or southeasterly later in southwest, 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, becoming moderate or rough later.
- Weather
- Rain or showers at first in east and later in far west.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally poor at first in east and occasionally moderate later in far west.
West Northern Section
In north
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4 at first in west, otherwise westerly or northwesterly 4 to 6, backing southerly or southwesterly 3 to 5, becoming cyclonic 4 to 6 later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, becoming moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Mainly fair, then rain later in south.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor later in south.
In south
- Wind
- Westerly or southwesterly becoming cyclonic, 4 to 6, occasionally 7 later in east.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Mainly fair, then rain or drizzle, fog patches later in west.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor later in west.
East Central Section
In north
- Wind
- Cyclonic 5 to 7, becoming variable 2 to 4 later in east and becoming southerly or southeasterly 4 to 6 later in west.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, becoming moderate or rough later.
- Weather
- Rain at first in east, then mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate at first in east.
In south
- Wind
- Southwesterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first in northwest, becoming variable 2 to 4 for a time in north.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Occasional rain, fog patches developing in southeast.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor in southeast.
West Central Section
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4 at first in southeast, otherwise cyclonic becoming southerly or southwesterly later, 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 in west and later in northeast.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Fair then rain, fog patches developing in northeast.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor in northeast.
Denmark Strait
- Storm warning
-
Issued:
Northerly or northeasterly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 or violent storm force 11 at times in the east of Denmark Strait north of 67 north and in the northwest of north Iceland, moderating by 120900UTC in Denmark Strait and by 121200UTC in north Iceland.
In east
- Wind
- Northerly or northwesterly gale 8 to storm 10, occasionally violent storm 11 in north, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, becoming rough or very rough later.
- Weather
- Rain, sleet or snow, becoming mainly fair later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or poor, occasionally very poor, becoming good later.
In west
- Wind
- Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Occasional rain at first, good, occasionally moderate at first.
- Visibility
North Iceland
- Storm warning
-
Issued:
Northerly or northeasterly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 or violent storm force 11 at times in the east of Denmark Strait north of 67 north and in the northwest of north Iceland, moderating by 120900UTC in Denmark Strait and by 121200UTC in north Iceland.
In northwest
- Wind
- Northerly or northeasterly gale 8 to storm 10, occasionally violent storm 11 in northwest, decreasing 6 to gale 8 later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Rain, sleet and snow.
- Visibility
- Moderate or poor, occasionally very poor. Light icing for a time later in far northwest with temperatures around ms03.
In rest of the area
- Wind
- Cyclonic 6 to gale 8, becoming westerly or southwesterly 5 to 7 later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Occasional rain or showers and sleet or snow at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first.
Norwegian Basin
- Wind
- Southerly or southwesterly, veering westerly later, 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 later in east.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Rain and showers until later in west and later in east.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor until later in west and later in east.
Outlook for the following 24 hours
Gales are expected in West Northern Section, north Iceland and Norwegian Basin, with gales possible in Bailey, Southeast Iceland and East Northern Section.
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.