Coast and sea

Shipping forecast and gale warnings

The general synopsis at midnight

High Viking 1032 expected Forties 1033 by midnight tonight. Low Trafalgar 1009 expected southeast FitzRoy 1007 by same time

Issued at: 04:05 (UTC) on Tue 28 Apr 2026.

For the period 06:00 (UTC) on Tue 28 Apr 2026 to 06:00 (UTC) on Wed 29 Apr 2026.

Shipping forecast and gale warnings map

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Shipping forecast and gale warnings explained

Viking

Wind: Variable 4 or less.
Sea state: Slight, occasionally moderate later in far northwest.
Weather: Drizzle.
Visibility: Good, occasionally poor.

North Utsire

Wind: Northerly or northwesterly 2 to 4, increasing 4 or 5.
Sea state: Slight.
Weather: Drizzle.
Visibility: Good, occasionally poor.

South Utsire

Wind: Northerly or northwesterly 2 to 4, increasing 4 or 5.
Sea state: Slight, occasionally smooth at first and moderate later.
Weather: Drizzle.
Visibility: Good, occasionally poor.

Forties

Wind: Variable 4 or less, but northerly or northeasterly 3 or 4 in southeast.
Sea state: Slight, occasionally moderate at first in southeast.
Weather: Fair.
Visibility: Good.

Cromarty

Wind: Variable, mainly southeast, 4 or less.
Sea state: Smooth or slight.
Weather: Fair.
Visibility: Good.

Forth

Wind: Northeast 2 to 4, becoming variable 3 or less.
Sea state: Slight, occasionally smooth in west.
Weather: Fair.
Visibility: Good.

Tyne

Wind: Northeast 3 to 5.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Showers at first.
Visibility: Good.

Dogger

Wind: Northeast 3 to 5.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Showers at first.
Visibility: Good.

Fisher

Wind: Variable 4 or less becoming northwest 3 to 5.
Sea state: Smooth or slight, becoming slight or moderate.
Weather: Fair.
Visibility: Good.

German Bight

Wind: Northeast 4 to 6, occasionally 3.
Sea state: Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth in east.
Weather: Fair.
Visibility: Good.

Humber

Wind: Northeast 4 to 6.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Showers at first.
Visibility: Good.

Thames

Wind: Northeast 4 to 6, increasing 6 or 7.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Rain, fair later.
Visibility: Good, occasionally moderate.

Dover

Wind: Northeast 4 to 6, increasing 6 or 7.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Rain, fair later.
Visibility: Good, occasionally moderate.

Wight

Wind: Northeast 4 to 6, increasing 6 or 7.
Sea state: Slight or moderate, becoming moderate or rough.
Weather: Rain, fair later.
Visibility: Good, occasionally moderate.

Portland

Wind: Northeast 4 to 6, increasing 6 or 7.
Sea state: Slight or moderate, becoming moderate or rough later.
Weather: Rain or showers, perhaps thundery later.
Visibility: Good, occasionally poor.

Plymouth

Wind: Northeast 4 to 6, increasing 6 or 7.
Sea state: Slight or moderate, becoming moderate or rough later.
Weather: Rain or showers, perhaps thundery later.
Visibility: Good, occasionally poor.

Biscay

Wind: Northeasterly 4 to 6, but cyclonic in southeast.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Thundery showers.
Visibility: Good, occasionally poor.

Trafalgar

Forecast issued: 23:15 (UTC) on Mon 27 Apr 2026

Wind: Northerly at first in west, otherwise cyclonic 4 to 6, but 7 or gale 8 at first in southeast.
Sea state: Moderate or rough becoming slight or moderate.
Weather: Thundery showers, fog patches.
Visibility: Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

FitzRoy

Wind: Northeasterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7, but cyclonic in southeast.
Sea state: Moderate or rough.
Weather: Thundery showers.
Visibility: Good, occasionally poor.

Sole

Wind: Northeast 4 to 6.
Sea state: Moderate, becoming rough later in southeast.
Weather: Showers.
Visibility: Good.

Lundy

Wind: Northeast 4 to 6.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Showers.
Visibility: Good.

Fastnet

Wind: Northeast 4 to 6.
Sea state: Slight or moderate.
Weather: Showers.
Visibility: Good.

Irish Sea

Wind: East or northeast 3 to 5.
Sea state: Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate later.
Weather: Fair.
Visibility: Good.

Shannon

Wind: East or northeast 3 to 5.
Sea state: Moderate.
Weather: Fair.
Visibility: Good.

Rockall

Wind: In northwest, southerly or southeasterly 3 to 5. In southeast, easterly or southeasterly 2 to 4.
Sea state: In northwest, moderate or rough. in southeast, moderate.
Weather: In northwest, drizzle. In southeast, mainly fair.
Visibility: Moderate or good.

Malin

Wind: Variable becmoing easterly or southeasterly, 2 to 4.
Sea state: Moderate, but smooth or slight in southeast.
Weather: Mainly fair.
Visibility: Moderate or good.

Hebrides

Wind: In southeast, variable 4 or less, becoming southerly 2 to 4. In northwest, southerly or southwesterly 4 or 5.
Sea state: In southeast, slight or moderate. in northwest, moderate or rough.
Weather: In southeast, fog patches. In northwest, drizzle.
Visibility: In southeast, good, occasionally very poor. In northwest, moderate or good.

Bailey

Wind: Southerly or southwesterly 4 or 5, but 6 in northwest.
Sea state: Moderate or rough, becoming rough or very rough.
Weather: Drizzle.
Visibility: Moderate or good.

Fair Isle

Wind: South or southwest 2 to 4, occasionally 5 later.
Sea state: Slight or moderate, occasionally rough later in far west.
Weather: Fog patches.
Visibility: Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

Faeroes

Wind: Southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state: Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough later in west.
Weather: Drizzle.
Visibility: Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Southeast Iceland

Wind: Southwesterly 5 to 7.
Sea state: Moderate or rough becoming rough or very rough.
Weather: Rain.
Visibility: Moderate or 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.