Coast and sea
General situation
High pressure, centred near Iceland, will bring an easterly flow across the United Kingdom. Light or moderate winds for most areas on Monday will then strengthen, becoming fresh to strong especially in the south on Tuesday and Wednesday, with gales in the far southwest. Some showers are expected at first, mainly in the north and east, otherwise mainly fair conditions will dominate.
Issued at:
For coastal areas up to 12 miles offshore for the period to
Inshore waters forecast and strong winds map
Cape Wrath to Rattray Head including Orkney (1)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first in northwest.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight at first in Moray Firth, otherwise slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers until later.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally moderate.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northeasterly 2 to 4, becoming variable 2 or 3 for a time in southeast.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate at first in north, otherwise slight, occasionally smooth in Moray Firth.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Rattray Head to Berwick upon Tweed (2)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 2 or 3, becoming east 3 to 5, backing northeast 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, becoming slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers until later.
- Visibility
- Good occasionally moderate.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northeast 3 or 4.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Berwick upon Tweed to Whitby (3)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- East or northeast 2 or 3, increasing 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight, becoming moderate later.
- Weather
- Showers until later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- East or northeast 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Whitby to Gibraltar Point (4)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- East or northeast 2 to 4, increasing 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Slight, becoming moderate later.
- Weather
- Showers until later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- East or northeast 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Gibraltar Point to North Foreland (5)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northeasterly 3 or 4, increasing 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Slight, occasionally smooth at first, becoming moderate later.
- Weather
- Showers until later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Moderate, occasionally slight later.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
North Foreland to Selsey Bill (6)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later.
- Sea state
- Slight, becoming slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers in east.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 5 or 6, occasionally 4 at first.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Selsey Bill to Lyme Regis (7)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- East or southeast 3 to 5, backing east or northeast 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- East 4 to 6, backing east or northeast 5 to 7 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate becoming moderate or rough.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Lyme Regis to Lands End including the Isles of Scilly (8)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Easterly or southeasterly 4 to 6, increasing 6 or 7 later in southwest.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, becoming moderate or rough later in west.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Easterly 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 in far south.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough later in far west.
- Weather
- Fair, then occasional rain later in far southwest.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate later in far southwest.
Lands End to St Davids Head including the Bristol Channel (9)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Easterly 3 to 5, increasing 5 or 6 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, but smooth or slight until later in north.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Easterly 4 or 5 at first in far north, otherwise 5 to 7.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally rough near Lands End.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
St Davids Head to Great Orme Head, including St Georges Channel (10)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4, becoming easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 later in south.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, becoming slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Great Orme Head to the Mull of Galloway (11)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming east or northeast 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Smooth, becoming slight at times.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- East or northeast 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate later in west.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Isle of Man (12)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming east or northeast 4 or 5.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, becoming slight occasionally moderate later.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- East or northeast 4 or 5, increasing 5 or 6 for a time.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough (13)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4, becoming east 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate in far north and also later in far south.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- East 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Slight occasionally moderate.
- Weather
- Showers at first.
- Visibility
- Good.
Mull of Galloway to Mull of Kintyre including the Firth of Clyde and North Channel (14)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4, becoming easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Smooth, but slight at times in the North Channel.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 in south.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, becoming slight or moderate in North Channel.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Mull of Kintyre to Ardnamurchan Point (15)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northeasterly veering easterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later in west.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth in sheltered east.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate later.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5, increasing 6 at times in south.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth in sheltered east.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
The Minch (16)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northeasterly veering easterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 in north.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight in central areas, slight or moderate elsewhere.
- Weather
- Showers until later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- East or northeast 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, but slight or moderate at first near entrances.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Ardnamurchan Point to Cape Wrath (17)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northeasterly veering easterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 in north.
- Sea state
- Moderate.
- Weather
- Showers until later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- East or northeast 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Shetland Isles (18)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- East 3 to 5, backing north or northeast 3 or 4.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers at first.
- Visibility
- Good.
For Coastal areas up to 60 nautical miles from Lerwick, Shetland (18)
Strong wind warning
Valid Monday 20 Apr 2026 at 1200 UTC until Tuesday 21 Apr 2026 at 0000 UTC
General situation
High pressure will continue to build from the north.
Forecast
- Wind
- East or southeast 3 to 5 becoming variable 2 to 4
- Sea state
- Moderate, but slight east of shetland and rough in west at first
- Weather
- Showers in south at first otherwise fair
- Visibility
- Good
Outlook for 12 Hours from 0000 UTC on Tuesday 21 Apr until 1200 UTC on Tuesday 21 Apr
- Wind
- Variable becoming north or northeast 2 to 4
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate
- Weather
- Fair
- Visibility
- Good
Channel Islands (19)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- East to northeast 4 to 5, increasing 5 to 6 by dusk.
- Sea state
- Slight to moderate, increasing rather rough in the northwest after midnight.
- Weather
- Fair or fine.
- Visibility
- Good or very good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- East to northeast 5 to 6, increasing 6 to 7 after dusk, backing east 5 to 6 later.
- Sea state
- Slight in the far southeast, moderate to rather rough elsewhere, increasing rough in the far north by evening.
- Weather
- Fair or fine.
- Visibility
- Good or very good.
The inshore waters forecast information
Forecasts for UK inshore waters are issued four times a day and cover a period of 24 hours from 0000, 0600, 1200 and 1800 UTC.
The coastal waters around the British Isles are divided into 19 areas which extend up to 12 nautical miles offshore.
The forecast contains details of wind direction and force, sea state, weather and visibility.
Strong coastal winds (force 6 or more) are displayed for the first 24 hours of the inshore waters forecast.
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.
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