Coast and Sea

Shipping forecast and gale warnings

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The general synopsis at 1800

Low Iberia 1007 expected FitzRoy 1010 by 1800 Wednesday. New highs expected Forties 1021 and Malin 1020 by same time

Issued at: 23:15 (UTC) on Tue 23 Jun 2026.

For the period 00:00 (UTC) on Wed 24 Jun 2026 to 00:00 (UTC) on Thu 25 Jun 2026.

Shipping forecast and gale warnings map

Shipping forecast and gale warnings explained

Viking

Wind: Southerly or southwesterly veering westerly or northwesterly, 3 to 5.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

North Utsire

Wind: Southerly or southwesterly veering westerly or northwesterly, 3 to 5.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

South Utsire

Wind: Variable 2 to 4 becoming northwesterly 4 to 6.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

Forties

Wind: Variable 2 to 4.
Sea state: Slight, occasionally moderate at first.
Weather: Showers.
Visibility: Good.

Cromarty

Wind: Variable, mainly southeast later, 2 to 4.
Sea state: Slight occasionally smooth.
Weather: Showers.
Visibility: Good.

Forth

Wind: Variable, mainly southeast later, 2 to 4.
Sea state: Slight occasionally smooth.
Weather: Showers.
Visibility: Good.

Tyne

Wind: Variable, mainly southeast later, 2 to 4.
Sea state: Slight occasionally smooth.
Weather: Showers.
Visibility: Good.

Dogger

Wind: Southwest veering northeast, becoming variable, 3 or 4.
Sea state: Slight, occasionally smooth later.
Weather: Showers, fog patches later.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor later.

Fisher

Wind: Southwest 2 to 4 veering northwest 4 to 6.
Sea state: Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth in southeast.
Weather: Showers, fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

German Bight

Wind: South or southeast, becoming variable, then northeast, 2 to 4.
Sea state: Smooth or slight.
Weather: Fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

Humber

Wind: South or southeast, becoming variable, then northeast, 2 to 4.
Sea state: Smooth or slight.
Weather: Fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

Thames

Wind: Southeast becoming variable, 2 to 4, becoming northeast 4 or 5 later.
Sea state: Smooth or slight.
Weather: Fair.
Visibility: Good.

Dover

Wind: Southeast becoming variable, 2 to 4, becoming northeast 4 or 5 later.
Sea state: Smooth or slight.
Weather: Fair.
Visibility: Good.

Wight

Wind: Variable 2 to 4, becoming northeast 4 or 5 later.
Sea state: Smooth or slight.
Weather: Fair.
Visibility: Good.

Portland

Wind: Variable, mainly northwest veering northeast, 2 to 4, becoming east 4 or 5 later.
Sea state: Smooth or slight.
Weather: Fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

Plymouth

Wind: Variable, mainly northwest veering northeast, 2 to 4, becoming east 4 or 5 later.
Sea state: Mainly slight.
Weather: Fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

Biscay

Wind: East or northeast 2 to 4 becoming cyclonic 3 to 5.
Sea state: Slight, occasionally smooth near french coast.
Weather: Showers, fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

Trafalgar

Wind: Cyclonic 2 to 4, occasionally 5 later.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Thundery showers, fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

FitzRoy

Wind: Cyclonic 2 to 4, occasionally 5.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Thundery showers, fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

Sole

Wind: Northeast 3 to 5, becoming cyclonic 4 to 6.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Thundery showers, fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor.

Lundy

Wind: Northwesterly 2 to 4, veering easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5.
Sea state: Smooth or slight.
Weather: Fog patches at first, showers later.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor at first.

Fastnet

Wind: Northwesterly 2 to 4, veering easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5.
Sea state: Slight, becoming moderate later except in southeast.
Weather: Fog patches at first, showers later.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor at first.

Irish Sea

Wind: Northwesterly 2 to 4, veering easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5 in south, but becoming variable in north.
Sea state: Smooth or slight.
Weather: Fog patches at first, showers later.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor at first.

Shannon

Wind: Variable 2 to 4, becoming northeast 4 to 6 later.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Thundery showers.
Visibility: Good, occasionally poor.

Rockall

Wind: Southwesterly 4 or 5, becoming variable 4 or less in southeast.
Sea state: Moderate.
Weather: Showers.
Visibility: Good.

Malin

Wind: Southwesterly 2 to 4, becoming variable 4 or less.
Sea state: Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth in southeast.
Weather: Showers, fog patches at first.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor at first.

Hebrides

Wind: Southwesterly 4 or 5.
Sea state: Moderate.
Weather: Showers.
Visibility: Good.

Bailey

Wind: Southwest 5 or 6.
Sea state: Moderate or rough.
Weather: Showers.
Visibility: Good.

Fair Isle

Wind: Southwest 4 or 5.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Drizzle with fog patches then showers.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor at first.

Faeroes

Wind: Southwest 4 or 5.
Sea state: Slight or moderate, becoming moderate or rough.
Weather: Drizzle with fog patches then showers.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very poor at first.

Southeast Iceland

Wind: Cyclonic 3 to 5, becoming southwesterly 5 or 6.
Sea state: Moderate, occasionally rough later.
Weather: Drizzle, fog patches.
Visibility: Good, occasionally very 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.