Coast and Sea

Shipping forecast and gale warnings


The general synopsis at midday

High Fair Isle 1032, slow moving, declining 1031 by midday tomorrow. Low FitzRoy 1012 expected 100 miles west of FitzRoy with little change by same time

Issued at: .

For the period to .

Shipping forecast and gale warnings map


Viking

Wind
North 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

North Utsire

Wind
Northerly or northwesterly 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good occasionally moderate.

South Utsire

Wind
Northerly or northwesterly 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good occasionally moderate.

Forties

Wind
North or northeast 2 to 4.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, becoming mainly slight.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Cromarty

Wind
East or northeast 2 to 4.
Sea state
Slight.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Forth

Wind
East or northeast 2 to 4.
Sea state
Slight.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Tyne

Wind
Northeast 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good.

Dogger

Wind
Northeast 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good.

Fisher

Wind
Variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Slight, occasionally smooth later in far east.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate, but poor later.

German Bight

Wind
North or northeast 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, becoming slight, occasionally smooth later in east.
Weather
Thundery showers at first in far east.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Humber

Wind
Northeast 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Thames

Wind
Northeast 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Dover

Wind
Northeast 5 to 7, decreasing 3 to 5 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers at first, perhaps thundery.
Visibility
Moderate or good.

Wight

Wind
Northeast 5 to 7, decreasing 3 to 5 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers at first, perhaps thundery.
Visibility
Moderate or good.

Portland

Wind
East or northeast 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first, decreasing 3 or 4 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers at first, perhaps thundery.
Visibility
Good occasionally moderate.

Plymouth

Wind
East or northeast 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first, decreasing 3 or 4 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, but rough at first in west.
Weather
Showers at first, perhaps thundery.
Visibility
Good occasionally moderate.

Biscay

Wind
Variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Slight in south, slight or moderate at first in north.
Weather
Thundery showers later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate later.

Trafalgar

Wind
Westerly or southwesterly 3 to 5 in north, variable 2 to 4 in south, becoming northwesterly 4 or 5 later in far southeast.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

FitzRoy

Wind
Cyclonic 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate in southeast, otherwise moderate, but occasionally rough at first in far north.
Weather
Thundery showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Sole

Wind
East or northeast 3 to 5.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming moderate.
Weather
Thundery showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Lundy

Wind
East or northeast 3 to 5, occasionally 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate becoming smooth or slight later.
Weather
Thundery showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Fastnet

Wind
East or northeast 3 to 5.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Thundery showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Irish Sea

Wind
East or northeast 3 to 5, occasionally 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate becoming smooth or slight later.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good.

Shannon

Wind
East or northeast 3 to 5.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Thundery showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Rockall

Wind
Easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5, becoming variable 2 to 4 later except in south.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Malin

Wind
Easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first in southeast, becoming variable 2 to 4 later except in south.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Hebrides

Wind
Easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Bailey

Wind
Variable 2 to 4, but southwesterly 4 or 5 in far north.
Sea state
Moderate, but slight or moderate in south.
Weather
Fog patches, drizzle.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

Fair Isle

Wind
Variable 2 to 4, but easterly 3 to 5 in southwest.
Sea state
Slight in southeast, otherwise slight or moderate.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Faeroes

Wind
In southeast, variable 2 to 4. In northwest, southwesterly 3 to 5.
Sea state
In southeast, slight or moderate. in northwest, moderate.
Weather
In southeast, mainly fair. In northwest, occasional drizzle.
Visibility
In southeast, good, occasionally moderate. In northwest, good, occasionally moderate.

Faeroes

Wind
In southeast, variable 2 to 4. In northwest, southwesterly 3 to 5.
Sea state
In southeast, slight or moderate. in northwest, moderate.
Weather
In southeast, mainly fair. In northwest, occasional drizzle.
Visibility
In southeast, good, occasionally moderate. In northwest, good, occasionally moderate.

Southeast Iceland

Wind
Southwesterly 3 to 5, but 5 to 7 in north.
Sea state
Moderate, occasionally rough in north.
Weather
Occasional drizzle.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

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.

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