Coast and sea

Shipping forecast and gale warnings

The general synopsis at 0600

Low Iceland 990, moving rather quickly northeast, expected Norwegian Sea 975 by midday tomorrow. High FitzRoy 1038, slow moving, declining 1033 by same time

Issued at: .

For the period to .

Shipping forecast and gale warnings map

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Viking

Wind
Southerly or southwesterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

North Utsire

Wind
Southerly or southwesterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

South Utsire

Wind
Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5.
Sea state
Rough becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Forties

Wind
Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5, increasing 5 to 7 later.
Sea state
Rough at first in northeast, otherwise slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Cromarty

Wind
Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5, increasing 5 to 7 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Forth

Wind
Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5, increasing 5 to 7 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Tyne

Wind
Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Dogger

Wind
West or northwest 3 to 5, backing southwest 3 or 4 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional drizzle, fog patches.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

Fisher

Wind
West or northwest 3 to 5, backing southwest 3 or 4 later.
Sea state
Rough becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional drizzle, fog patches.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

German Bight

Wind
West or northwest 3 to 5, backing southwest 3 or 4 later.
Sea state
Rough at first in north, otherwise slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional drizzle, fog patches.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

Humber

Wind
West or northwest 3 to 5, backing southwest 3 or 4 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional drizzle, fog patches.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

Thames

Wind
Variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Moderate at first in northeast, otherwise smooth or slight.
Weather
Occasional rain, fog patches later.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor and very poor later.

Dover

Wind
Variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Occasional rain, fog patches later.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor and very poor later.

Wight

Wind
Northwest 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Portland

Wind
Northwest 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Plymouth

Wind
Northwest 3 to 5.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain, fog patches at first.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor and very poor at first.

Biscay

Wind
North or northwest 3 to 5.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain, fog patches at first.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor and very poor at first.

Trafalgar

Forecast issued:

Wind
Northerly or northeasterly 4 to 6, backing northerly or northwesterly 3 to 5 in southeast.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, occasionally slight in southeast.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Good.

FitzRoy

Wind
In south, northeasterly 4 to 6. In north, variable 2 to 4 becoming westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5.
Sea state
In south, rough becoming moderate or rough. in north, rough becoming moderate or rough.
Weather
In south, mainly fair. In north, occasional drizzle.
Visibility
In south, good occasionally moderate. In north, good, occasionally poor.

Sole

Wind
Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5.
Sea state
Rough becoming moderate or rough.
Weather
Occasional drizzle.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Lundy

Wind
Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional drizzle.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Fastnet

Wind
Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Occasional drizzle.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Irish Sea

Wind
Southwesterly 3 to 5, increasing 5 to 7 later in far north.
Sea state
Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate.
Weather
Occasional drizzle.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Shannon

Wind
Southwesterly becoming cyclonic 5 to 7.
Sea state
Rough or very rough, becoming rough later.
Weather
Drizzle then squally rain, showers later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Rockall

Wind
Southwesterly becoming cyclonic 5 to 7.
Sea state
Rough or very rough, becoming rough later.
Weather
Drizzle then squally rain, showers later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Malin

Wind
Southwesterly becoming cyclonic 5 to 7.
Sea state
Rough or very rough, becoming rough later.
Weather
Drizzle then squally rain, showers later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Hebrides

Gale warning
Issued:

Southwesterly gale force 8 expected soon

Wind
Southwesterly becoming cyclonic 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 until later.
Sea state
Rough or very rough, becoming rough later.
Weather
Drizzle then squally rain, showers later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Bailey

Gale warning
Issued:

Gale now ceased but southwesterly gale force 8 expected soon

Wind
Southwest 6 to gale 8, veering northwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Very rough becoming rough later.
Weather
Squally rain then wintry showers.
Visibility
Good occasionally poor.

Fair Isle

Gale warning
Issued:

Southwesterly gale force 8 expected soon

Wind
Southwesterly 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 in west, veering northerly or northwesterly 4 to 6 later.
Sea state
Rough or very rough in west, moderate or rough in east.
Weather
Occasional rain, squally for a time.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Faeroes

Gale warning
Issued:

Gale now ceased but southwesterly gale force 8 expected soon

Wind
Southwesterly 6 to gale 8, veering westerly or northwesterly 5 to 7.
Sea state
Rough or very rough.
Weather
Rain then wintry showers.
Visibility
Good occasionally poor.

Southeast Iceland

Gale warning
Issued:

Gale now ceased but southwesterly gale force 8 expected soon, increasing severe gale force 9 later

Wind
Southwesterly 6 to gale 8, occasionally severe gale 9 at first, veering westerly or northwesterly 5 to 7.
Sea state
Very rough or high becoming rough or very rough.
Weather
Wintry showers.
Visibility
Good occasionally poor.

Shipping forecast information

The shipping forecast is issued four times a day at 2300, 0500, 1100, 1700 UTC and covers a period of 24 hours from 0000, 0600, 1200 and 1800 UTC respectively.

The waters around the British Isles are divided into 31 sea areas shown on the map.

The forecast contains details of gale warnings in force, a general synopsis and sea-area forecasts containing wind direction and force, sea state, weather and visibility.

Gale warnings are issued as required throughout the day (for winds of Gale Force 8 or more).

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.