Coast and sea
The general synopsis for UK
At 271200UTC, low 51 north 08 west 957 expected 57 north 21 west 966 by 281200UTC. Lows 51 north 29 west 963 and 61 north 30 west 983 losing their identities. New low 48 north 39 west 962 expected by same time, moving rapidly east
Issued at: .
For the period to .
High seas forecast and storm warnings map
Sole
- Wind
- Southwest, becoming cyclonic later, 6 to gale 8.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally poor.
Shannon
- Wind
- Cyclonic 7 to severe gale 9, becoming southeast 4 to 6, then cyclonic later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Rockall
- Wind
- Cyclonic 7 to severe gale 9, becoming south or southeast 5 to 7.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Bailey
- High seas storm warning
-
Issued:
At 271200UTC, low 51 north 08 west 957 expected 57 north 21 west 966 by 281200UTC. Winds are expected to just reach storm force 10 in the northeastern quadrant within 250 and 350 miles of the centre until 280000UTC. New low 48 north 39 west 962 expected by same time, moving rapidly southeast. Winds are expected to reach violent storm force 11 in the southwestern quadrant within 50 and 250 miles of the centre after 281200UTC. Winds are also expected to reach storm force 10 in the southern semicircle within 50 and 400 miles of the centre after 280500UTC. Finally, winds are also expected to reach storm force 10 in the far northeast of East Northern Section, just to the southwest of Iceland, from 280000UTC until 281900UTC.
- Wind
- Easterly or southeasterly gale 8 or severe gale 9, occasionally storm 10 at first, decreasing 6 to gale 8 later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Faeroes
- Wind
- Easterly or southeasterly gale 8 or severe gale 9, decreasing 6 to gale 8 later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, becoming rough or very rough later.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Southeast Iceland
- Wind
- Easterly or southeasterly gale 8 or severe gale 9, decreasing 6 to gale 8 later.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
East Northern Section
- High seas storm warning
-
Issued:
At 271200UTC, low 51 north 08 west 957 expected 57 north 21 west 966 by 281200UTC. Winds are expected to just reach storm force 10 in the northeastern quadrant within 250 and 350 miles of the centre until 280000UTC. New low 48 north 39 west 962 expected by same time, moving rapidly southeast. Winds are expected to reach violent storm force 11 in the southwestern quadrant within 50 and 250 miles of the centre after 281200UTC. Winds are also expected to reach storm force 10 in the southern semicircle within 50 and 400 miles of the centre after 280500UTC. Finally, winds are also expected to reach storm force 10 in the far northeast of East Northern Section, just to the southwest of Iceland, from 280000UTC until 281900UTC.
- Wind
- Cyclonic, mainly easterly or northeasterly, 7 to severe gale 9, occasionally storm 10 until later in far northeast.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, thundery in south.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
West Northern Section
- Wind
- Cyclonic, mainly northeasterly, 7 to severe gale 9.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, but sleet or snow in far northwest and thundery showers later in southeast.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor and very poor in far northwest.
East Central Section
In north of area
- Wind
- Cyclonic 4 to 6, occasionally 7 in north.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high, becoming rough or very rough later.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
In south of area
- Wind
- Cyclonic 7 to severe gale 9, becoming westerly or southwesterly 4 to 6 for a time.
- Sea state
- High or very high becoming very rough or high later.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
West Central Section
- High seas storm warning
-
Issued:
At 271200UTC, low 51 north 08 west 957 expected 57 north 21 west 966 by 281200UTC. Winds are expected to just reach storm force 10 in the northeastern quadrant within 250 and 350 miles of the centre until 280000UTC. New low 48 north 39 west 962 expected by same time, moving rapidly southeast. Winds are expected to reach violent storm force 11 in the southwestern quadrant within 50 and 250 miles of the centre after 281200UTC. Winds are also expected to reach storm force 10 in the southern semicircle within 50 and 400 miles of the centre after 280500UTC. Finally, winds are also expected to reach storm force 10 in the far northeast of East Northern Section, just to the southwest of Iceland, from 280000UTC until 281900UTC.
In area north of 50 north
- Wind
- Cyclonic 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high becoming rough or very rough.
- Weather
- Wintry thundery showers, rain later in southeast.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally poor.
In rest of area
- Wind
- Cyclonic 7 to severe gale 9, becoming westerly or southwesterly 4 to 6, then cyclonic, mainly westerly, gale 8 to storm 10, occasionally violent storm 11 later in southwest.
- Sea state
- Very rough or high becoming high or very high later.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, thundery at first in east.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally poor becoming moderate occasionally poor.
Denmark Strait
- Wind
- Northeasterly 7 to severe gale 9, decreasing 6 or 7 later in far east.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, but high in far southwest.
- Weather
- Occasional rain, sleet and snow.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor. Light or moderate icing within 100 miles of the greenland coast, mainly near the ice, with temperatures ms02 to ms05. Occasional severe icing near the ice edge at first with temperatures ms06 to ms09.
North Iceland
In north of area
- Wind
- Cyclonic 46, occasionally 7 at first in north.
- Sea state
- Moderate.
- Weather
- Occasional snow.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good occasionally very poor.
In south of area
- Wind
- Easterly 5 to 7.
- Sea state
- Rough, occasionally very rough in far south.
- Weather
- Wintry showers.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally poor. Light or moderate icing in far northwest, close to the ice edge, with temperatures ms04 to ms07.
Norwegian Basin
- Wind
- Easterly or southeasterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 in far southwest.
- Sea state
- Moderate in east, rough in west.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for following 24 hours
Violent storms are expected in West Central Section. Storms are expected in East Central Section. Severe gales are expected in Sole, East Northern Section, West Northern Section and Denmark Strait. Gales are expected in Shannon, Rockall, Bailey and Southeast Iceland.
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.