Coast and sea

Shipping forecast and gale warnings

The general synopsis at 0600

Low Southeast Iceland 982 moving north into the Norwegian Sea. Low 200 miles west of FitzRoy 1002 becoming complex with centres Irish Sea 1012 and Trafalgar 1011 by 0600 Wednesday.

Issued at: .

For the period to .

Shipping forecast and gale warnings map

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Viking

Gale warning
Issued:

Southeasterly gale force 8 in severe gale force 9 soon

Wind
Southeast 7 to severe gale 9 veering west 4 or 5, later 2 or 3.
Sea state
Rough or very rough becoming moderate.
Weather
Rain clearing to showers.
Visibility
Moderate or poor becoming good.

North Utsire

Gale warning
Issued:

Southeasterly gale force 8 in severe gale force 9 soon

Wind
Southeast 7 to severe gale 9 veering west 4 or 5, later 2 or 3.
Sea state
Rough or very rough becoming moderate.
Weather
Rain clearing to showers.
Visibility
Moderate or poor becoming good.

South Utsire

Gale warning
Issued:

Southeasterly gale force 8 in severe gale force 9 soon

Wind
Southeast 7 to severe gale 9 veering west 4 or 5, later 2 or 3.
Sea state
Rough or very rough becoming moderate.
Weather
Rain clearing to showers.
Visibility
Moderate or poor becoming good.

Forties

Wind
West or southwest 4 to 6 becoming variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally rough at first.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Good.

Cromarty

Wind
West or southwest 4 to 6 becoming variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally rough at first.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Good.

Forth

Wind
Southwest becoming cyclonic, 4 to 6, but variable 3 for a time.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair then rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good.

Tyne

Wind
Southwest becoming cyclonic, 4 to 6, but variable 3 for a time.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair then rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good.

Dogger

Wind
Southwest becoming cyclonic, 4 to 6, but variable 3 for a time.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Fair then rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good.

Fisher

Wind
South or southeast 4 to 6 becoming variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain, fog patches.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

German Bight

Wind
South or southeast 4 to 6 becoming variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain, fog patches.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.

Humber

Wind
South or southwest 4 to 6, occasionally 3 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Thames

Wind
South or southwest 4 to 6, occasionally 3 later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Dover

Wind
South or southwest 4 to 6, occasionally 3 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Wight

Wind
South or southwest 4 to 6, occasionally 3 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Portland

Wind
South or southwest 4 to 6, occasionally 3 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Plymouth

Wind
South or southwest 4 to 6, occasionally 3 later.
Sea state
Moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Biscay

Wind
Variable 2 to 4, occasionally easterly 5 in south.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor in south.

Trafalgar

Forecast issued:

Wind
North or northwest 3 to 4, becoming cyclonic 5 to 7 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good.

FitzRoy

Wind
Cyclonic 4 to 6, becoming northerly 6 or 7 in west, perhaps gale 8 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, becoming very rough in west.
Weather
Rain or showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good.

Sole

Wind
Cyclonic becoming northerly or northwesterly 4 to 6, occasionally 3 at first.
Sea state
Rough.
Weather
Rain or showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Lundy

Wind
Cyclonic becoming northerly or northwesterly 4 to 6, occasionally 3 at first.
Sea state
Moderate.
Weather
Rain or showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Fastnet

Wind
Cyclonic becoming northerly or northwesterly 4 to 6, occasionally 3 at first.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Rain or showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Irish Sea

Wind
Cyclonic becoming northerly or northwesterly 4 to 6, occasionally 3 at first.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Rain or showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Shannon

Wind
Cyclonic becoming northerly or northwesterly 4 to 6, occasionally 3 at first.
Sea state
Rough.
Weather
Rain or showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Rockall

Wind
Variable 2 to 4, becoming southwesterly 5 or 6 later in northwest.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

Malin

Wind
Variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

Hebrides

Wind
West 5 to 7 backing southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Rough or very rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

Bailey

Gale warning
Issued:

Northwesterly severe gale force 9 decreasing gale force 8 imminent

Wind
West 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 at first.
Sea state
Rough or very rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

Fair Isle

Wind
West 5 to 7 backing southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Rough or very rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

Faeroes

Gale warning
Issued:

Southeasterly gale force 8 imminent, veering northwesterly and increasing severe gale force 9 soon

Wind
West or northwest 7 to severe gale 9 backing southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Rough or very rough, occasionally high at first.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

Southeast Iceland

Gale warning
Issued:

Westerly gale force 8 increasing severe gale force 9 soon

Wind
West or northwest 7 to severe gale 9 backing southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Rough or very rough, occasionally high at first.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

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.