Coast and sea
General situation
A complex and slow moving area of low pressure centred over or close to the United Kingdom will dominate through the weekend. Winds largely light with fog patches and showers.
Issued at:
For coastal areas up to 12 miles offshore for the period to
Inshore waters forecast and strong winds map
Cape Wrath to Rattray Head including Orkney (1)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, occasionally 4 at first.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate in north.
- Weather
- Fog patches.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming south or southeast 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate in north.
- Weather
- Fog patches at first in north.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first in north.
Rattray Head to Berwick upon Tweed (2)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming north or northeast 2 to 4 for a time.
- Sea state
- Slight.
- Weather
- Fog patches.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming northeast 2 to 4, veering east later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Fog patches at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first.
Berwick upon Tweed to Whitby (3)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- North or northwest 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Slight.
- Weather
- Fog patches.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- North or northeast 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Slight.
- Weather
- Fog patches at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first.
Whitby to Gibraltar Point (4)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- North or northwest 3 or 4, occasionally 5 at first.
- Sea state
- Slight.
- Weather
- Fog patches, showers for a time.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- North or northeast 3 or 4.
- Sea state
- Slight.
- Weather
- Fog patches.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Gibraltar Point to North Foreland (5)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable, mainly northerly or northwesterly, 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Showers, perhaps thundery, fog patches.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northerly or northeasterly 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Fog patches.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
North Foreland to Selsey Bill (6)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable, mainly westerly or southwesterly, 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Showers, perhaps thundery, fog patches in east.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor in east.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4, becoming northerly or northeasterly 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Fog patches.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Selsey Bill to Lyme Regis (7)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming west or southwest 2 to 4 for a time.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Showers, perhaps thundery.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming north or northeast 3 to 5 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Fog patches, showers for a time, perhaps thundery.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Lyme Regis to Lands End including the Isles of Scilly (8)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming northerly 3 or 4 for a time in west.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate at first in west, otherwise smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Showers, perhaps thundery.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming northeasterly 3 or 4 later in east.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Showers, perhaps thundery, becoming fair later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Lands End to St Davids Head including the Bristol Channel (9)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable, becoming mainly northerly or northeasterly in west, 2 to 4, occasionally 5 later in west.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate at first in far southwest.
- Weather
- Fog patches, showers, perhaps thundery.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4, becoming easterly 3 to 5 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Shower, perhaps thundery.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
St Davids Head to Great Orme Head, including St Georges Channel (10)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable becoming north or northeast later, 2 to 4, occasionally 5 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Fog patches, showers for a time, perhaps thundery.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- North or northeast veering east later, 2 to 4, occasionally 5 at first.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Great Orme Head to the Mull of Galloway (11)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 2 to 4, becoming northerly or northwesterly 3 to 5 for a time.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate later in west.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Variable becoming easterly later, 2 to 4, occasionally 5 later in north.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Isle of Man (12)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northerly or northwesterly 2 to 4, occasionally 5 in west.
- Sea state
- Smooth o rls, occasionally moderate in west.
- Weather
- Fog patches at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poole harbour rain at times first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- North or northwest 2 to 4, occasionally 5 at first in west, veering east later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough (13)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northerly or northwesterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 in north.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, becoming slight or moderate for a time.
- Weather
- Fog patches at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northerly or northwesterly 3 to 5, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Showers for a time.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Mull of Galloway to Mull of Kintyre including the Firth of Clyde and North Channel (14)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northwesterly 4 to 6 in North Channel, otherwise variable 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate later in North Channel.
- Weather
- Fog patches at first, showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northwesterly 3 to 5 at first in North Channel, otherwise variable 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Mull of Kintyre to Ardnamurchan Point (15)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- North or northwest 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate in west, smooth or slight in east.
- Weather
- Showers later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- North or northwest 2 to 4, becoming variable 3 or less later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate at first in west.
- Weather
- Showers at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
The Minch (16)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northerly becoming variable, 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming north or northeast 2 to 4 for a time.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Showers at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Ardnamurchan Point to Cape Wrath (17)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northerly becoming variable, 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming north or northeast 2 to 4 for a time.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Shetland Isles (18)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- North or northwest 2 or 3, becoming variable 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers fog patches at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first.
For Coastal areas up to 60 nautical miles from Lerwick, Shetland (18)
Valid Saturday 18 May 2024 at 0600 UTC until Saturday 18 May 2024 at 1800 UTC
General situation
Shetland lies between 2 high pressure systems with light winds.
Forecast
- Wind
- Variable 2 or 3, veering west or northwest 3 or 4.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fog patches becoming mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Poor or very poor becoming good.
Outlook for 12 Hours from 1800 UTC on Saturday 18 May until 0600 UTC on Sunday 19 May
- Wind
- West or northwest 3 or 4, becoming variable 2 or 3 later in the east.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Mainly fair, occasional fog patches later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor or very poor later.
Channel Islands (19)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 1 to 3, becoming north to northwest 2 to 4 for a time this afternoon.
- Sea state
- Smooth locally slight, with a low and diminishing swell.
- Weather
- Patchy rain mid-channel by mid-morning, moving westwards, clearing soon after midday local mist and a risk of fog patches overnight.
- Visibility
- Good, locally poor or perhaps very poor at times.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Variable 1 to 3, becoming east to northeast 2 to 4 by dusk Sunday.
- Sea state
- Smooth locally slight later.
- Weather
- Local mist and a risk of fog patches, clearing by midday.
- Visibility
- Good, locally poor or perhaps very poor at times.
The inshore waters forecast information
Forecasts for UK inshore waters are issued four times a day and cover a period of 24 hours from 0000, 0600, 1200 and 1800 UTC.
The coastal waters around the British Isles are divided into 19 areas which extend up to 12 nautical miles offshore.
The forecast contains details of wind direction and force, sea state, weather and visibility.
Strong coastal winds (force 6 or more) are displayed for the first 24 hours of the inshore waters forecast.
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.
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