Coast and Sea

Shipping forecast and gale warnings


The general synopsis at midday

New low expected Bailey 988 by midday tomorrow

Issued at: .

For the period to .

Shipping forecast and gale warnings map


Viking

Wind
Southerly 4 or 5, increasing 6 for a time.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fog patches, thundery showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally very poor.

North Utsire

Wind
Southerly 4 or 5, increasing 6 for a time.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fog patches, thundery showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally very poor.

South Utsire

Wind
Southerly 4 or 5, increasing 6 for a time.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fog patches, thundery showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally very poor.

Forties

Wind
South veering southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers, thundery for a time.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Cromarty

Wind
South veering southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Forth

Wind
South veering southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Tyne

Wind
South veering southwest 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight.
Weather
Showers, thundery for a time.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Dogger

Wind
South veering southwest 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight, occasionally moderate.
Weather
Showers, thundery for a time.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Fisher

Wind
Variable, becoming southwest later, 3 or 4.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Fog patches, thundery showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally very poor.

German Bight

Wind
Variable, becoming southwest later, 3 or 4.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Fog patches, thundery showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally very poor.

Humber

Wind
Southeast veering southwest 3 or 4, increasing 5 for a time.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Showers, thundery at first.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Thames

Wind
Variable 3 or 4 becoming southwest 4 or 5, occasionally 6 later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers, thundery at first.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Dover

Wind
Variable 3 or 4 becoming southwest 4 or 5, occasionally 6 later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers, thundery at first.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Wight

Wind
Variable 3 or 4 becoming southwest 4 or 5, occasionally 6 later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers, thundery at first.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Portland

Wind
Variable 3 or 4 becoming southwest 4 or 5, occasionally 6 later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers, thundery at first.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Plymouth

Wind
Southwesterly veering westerly 4 or 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally rough later.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Biscay

Wind
In northwest, southwesterly veering westerly 4 or 5. In southeast, variable becoming north 3 or 4, occasionally 5 later.
Sea state
In northwest, slight or moderate, occasionally rough later. in southeast, slight or moderate.
Weather
In northwest, showers. In southeast, thundery showers.
Visibility
In northwest, good, occasionally moderate. In southeast, good, occasionally poor.

Biscay

Wind
In northwest, southwesterly veering westerly 4 or 5. In southeast, variable becoming north 3 or 4, occasionally 5 later.
Sea state
In northwest, slight or moderate, occasionally rough later. in southeast, slight or moderate.
Weather
In northwest, showers. In southeast, thundery showers.
Visibility
In northwest, good, occasionally moderate. In southeast, good, occasionally poor.

Trafalgar

Wind
West 2 to 4, veering northwest 3 to 5.
Sea state
Moderate, occasionally slight in far southeast.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

FitzRoy

Wind
In south, cyclonic becoming northerly 4 or 5, occasionally 6 later in southeast. In north, southwesterly veering westerly 4 to 6.
Sea state
In south, moderate, becoming rough later. in north, moderate or rough.
Weather
In south, occasional rain. In north, occasional rain.
Visibility
In south, good, occasionally poor. In north, good, occasionally poor.

FitzRoy

Wind
In south, cyclonic becoming northerly 4 or 5, occasionally 6 later in southeast. In north, southwesterly veering westerly 4 to 6.
Sea state
In south, moderate, becoming rough later. in north, moderate or rough.
Weather
In south, occasional rain. In north, occasional rain.
Visibility
In south, good, occasionally poor. In north, good, occasionally poor.

Sole

Wind
Southwesterly veering westerly 4 to 6.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, occasionally very rough in west.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Lundy

Wind
Southwesterly veering westerly 4 to 6.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Fastnet

Wind
Southwesterly veering westerly 4 to 6.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Irish Sea

Wind
Southerly or southwesterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 at first in west.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally rough at first in northwest.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Shannon

Wind
Southwest 5 to 7.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming very rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

Rockall

Gale warning
Issued:

Southwesterly gale force 8 expected later

Wind
South or southwest 6 to gale 8.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming very rough or high.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Malin

Wind
South 4 to 6 veering southwest 5 to 7, perhaps gale 8 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate becoming rough or very rough.
Weather
Rain or showers, thundery at first.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Hebrides

Wind
South 4 to 6 veering southwest 5 to 7, perhaps gale 8 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate becoming rough or very rough.
Weather
Rain or showers, thundery at first.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Bailey

Wind
Cyclonic 5 or 6, occasionally 7 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming rough or very rough.
Weather
Rain.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Fair Isle

Wind
Cyclonic becoming south 4 to 6, occasionally 7 later.
Sea state
Moderate, becoming rough or very rough later, except in east.
Weather
Occasional rain, fog patches.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

Faeroes

Wind
Cyclonic becoming south 4 to 6, occasionally 7 later.
Sea state
Moderate, becoming rough or very rough later.
Weather
Occasional rain, fog patches.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

Southeast Iceland

Gale warning
Issued:

Northeasterly gale force 8 expected later

Wind
Cyclonic 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 in northwest.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Occasional rain, fog patches.
Visibility
Moderate, 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.

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