Coast and sea
The general synopsis for UK
At 031200UTC, low 56 north 20 west 978 expected 56 north 14 west 980 by 041200UTC. New lows expected 52 north 38 west 967 and 65 north 05 west 999 by same time. Lows 58 north 38 west 974 and 59 north 11 west 987 both lose their identities by that time.
Issued at: .
For the period to .
High seas forecast and storm warnings map
Sole
- Wind
- Cyclonic 7 to severe gale 9, becoming northwest 6 to gale 8, then decreasing 4 to 6 later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Squally showers or rain.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Shannon
- Wind
- Cyclonic, 6 to gale 8, occasionally severe gale 9 at first.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, occasionally rough at first in east.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally poor.
Rockall
- Wind
- Cyclonic, 6 to gale 8.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, occasionally rough at first in east.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally poor.
Bailey
- Wind
- Cyclonic becoming mainly southeasterly later, 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 in north.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Faeroes
- Wind
- Cyclonic at first, otherwise southeast, 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, becoming rough or very rough later in west.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Good.
Southeast Iceland
- Wind
- Cyclonic mainly northeasterly 6 to gale 8, occasionally 5 in south.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Rain or squally wintry showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
East Northern Section
- High seas storm warning
-
Issued:
At 031200UTC, low 58 north 38 west 974 losing its identity. Westerly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 at times in southwest quadrant of low between 100 and 200 miles of low centre until 032100UTC. At 031200UTC, low 56 north 20 west 978 expected 56 north 14 west 980 by 041200UTC. Westerly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 at times in southwest quadrant of low between 50 and 100 miles of low centre from 032200UTC until 040300UTC. New low expected 52 north 38 west 967 by 041200UTC. Westerly or southwesterly winds will reach storm force 10 or violent storm force 11 from 100 to 400 miles in the southern semi circle at first and later in the southwest quadrant from 040900UTC.
In north
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 6 to gale 8, occasionally 5 later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, occasionally rough at first.
- Weather
- Rain or squally showers, wintry at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
In south
- Wind
- Cyclonic 6 to gale 8, but increasing severe gale 9 or storm 10 for a time in the southeast, decreasing 4 to 6 later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, occasionally rough at first in east, and very high at first in southwest.
- Weather
- Rain or squally showers, wintry at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
West Northern Section
- High seas storm warning
-
Issued:
At 031200UTC, low 58 north 38 west 974 losing its identity. Westerly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 at times in southwest quadrant of low between 100 and 200 miles of low centre until 032100UTC. At 031200UTC, low 56 north 20 west 978 expected 56 north 14 west 980 by 041200UTC. Westerly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 at times in southwest quadrant of low between 50 and 100 miles of low centre from 032200UTC until 040300UTC. New low expected 52 north 38 west 967 by 041200UTC. Westerly or southwesterly winds will reach storm force 10 or violent storm force 11 from 100 to 400 miles in the southern semi circle at first and later in the southwest quadrant from 040900UTC.
In north
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 6 to gale 8, occasionally severe gale 9 at first in northwest.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, becoming very rough later.
- Weather
- Wintry showers in east, rain and snow until later in west.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
- Wind
- Cyclonic 6 to gale 8, but severe gale 9 or storm 10 at first in southwest, decreasing 4 to 6, occasionally 7 later in north and southeast.
- Sea state
- High or very high, becoming very rough or high, then mainly very rough later.
- Weather
- Rain or wintry showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
East Central Section
- Wind
- Westerly or northwesterly 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 in north, becoming cyclonic 7 to gale 8 later in west.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, occasionally very high at first in far north.
- Weather
- Squally wintry showers, thundery rain later in west.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
West Central Section
- High seas storm warning
-
Issued:
At 031200UTC, low 58 north 38 west 974 losing its identity. Westerly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 at times in southwest quadrant of low between 100 and 200 miles of low centre until 032100UTC. At 031200UTC, low 56 north 20 west 978 expected 56 north 14 west 980 by 041200UTC. Westerly winds are expected to reach storm force 10 at times in southwest quadrant of low between 50 and 100 miles of low centre from 032200UTC until 040300UTC. New low expected 52 north 38 west 967 by 041200UTC. Westerly or southwesterly winds will reach storm force 10 or violent storm force 11 from 100 to 400 miles in the southern semi circle at first and later in the southwest quadrant from 040900UTC.
- Wind
- Westerly or northwesterly 5 to 7 in south, but 7 to severe gale 9 in north, becoming cyclonic 7 to severe gale 9, but storm 10 or violent storm 11 in west and southwest later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, occasionally very high at first in north and later in southwest.
- Weather
- Squally wintry showers, then thundery rain.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, becoming moderate or poor, occasionally good.
Denmark Strait
- Wind
- Northeasterly 6 to gale 8, occasionally severe gale 9 until later in far southwest, decreasing 5 at times later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, occasionally high at first in southwest, and moderate at times in north.
- Weather
- Rain and snow, fair at times later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor. Occasional light to moderate icing in west within 50 miles of ice edge with temperatures ms03 to ms06.
North Iceland
In north
- Wind
- Northerly or northeasterly, occasionally variable, 2 to 4, increasing 5 at times later in south.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Snow showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
In south
- Wind
- Northeasterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 in far south and later in east.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Rain and snow.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Norwegian Basin
- Wind
- Cyclonic mainly easterly or southeasterly, 4 to 6, but 7 or gale 8 at first in southeast, decreasing 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Rough, becoming moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, squally at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for following 24 hours
Violent storm force 11 expected in West Central Section. Storm force 10 expected in East Central Section. Severe gales expected in Sole, Shannon and Rockall. Gales expected in all other areas except 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.