Coast and sea
General situation
A weakening front clears south across the southern United Kingdom with a ridge building east across the area on Monday. A high then will move east over Irish Sea on Tuesday as another front affects the northwest United Kingdom.
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)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Westerly 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 later in north.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, but rough in northwest, occasionally very rough later in far north.
- Weather
- Squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Westerly 6 to gale 8, veering northwesterly 4 to 6, backing westerly 3 or 4, then southeasterly 3 to 5 later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough becoming moderate, in northwest, slight or moderate, occasionally rough, in southeast.
- Weather
- Squally showers at first, occasional rain later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate later.
Rattray Head to Berwick upon Tweed (2)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- West 4 or 5, occasionally 6 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate in north, becoming slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- West veering northwest, 5 or 6, occasionally 7 near Rattray Head, becoming variable 4 or less later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally rough in north, becoming smooth or slight later.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Berwick upon Tweed to Whitby (3)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- West or northwest 3 or 4, increasing 5 or 6.
- Sea state
- Mainly slight.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- West or northwest 5 or 6, veering north 3 or 4, becoming variable 3 or less, then southwest 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Whitby to Gibraltar Point (4)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable, mainly north, 4 or less, becoming northwest 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Mainly slight.
- Weather
- Occasional rain or drizzle becoming fair.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northwest 4 or 5, veering north 3 or 4, becoming variable 3 or less later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Gibraltar Point to North Foreland (5)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming northerly or northwesterly 3 or 4.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Occasional rain or drizzle becoming fair later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate until later.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northerly or northwesterly 3 or 4, occasionally 5 in north.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, becoming slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
North Foreland to Selsey Bill (6)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Westerly 3 or 4, veering northerly or northeasterly 4.
- Sea state
- Smooth, occasionally slight later.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northerly or northeasterly 4, occasionally 5 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Selsey Bill to Lyme Regis (7)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northwest 3 or 4, veering north 2 or 3, then northeast 4.
- Sea state
- Mainly smooth.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northeast 4, occasionally 5 at first.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Lyme Regis to Lands End including the Isles of Scilly (8)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- West or northwest 3 or 4, veering north or northeast 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, but moderate in far west.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- North or northeast 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, but moderate in far west.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Lands End to St Davids Head including the Bristol Channel (9)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- West 4 or 5, veering northwest 3 or 4, occasionally 5 near saint david's head, veering northeast 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Slight, occasionally moderate in west.
- Weather
- Occasional drizzle becoming fair later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northeast 4 or 5, veering east 3 or 4.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, but moderate in southwest.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
St Davids Head to Great Orme Head, including St Georges Channel (10)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- West 3 or 4, veering northeast 4 or 5, backing north 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate later in southwest.
- Weather
- Occasional rain or drizzle becoming fair later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- North 3 or 4, becoming variable 3 or less later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Great Orme Head to the Mull of Galloway (11)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northeast 2 to 4, backing northwest 4 or 5.
- Sea state
- Smooth becoming mainly slight.
- Weather
- Occasional rain or drizzle, becoming fair.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northwest 4 or 5, decreasing 2 or 3, backing west or southwest 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight becoming smooth later.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Isle of Man (12)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming northwest 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northwest 4 or 5, becoming variable 2 or 3.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough (13)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming northwest 4 or 5.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, but moderate, occasionally rough at first, in north.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northwest 4 or 5, becoming variable 3 or less, then southwest 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate in north.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Mull of Galloway to Mull of Kintyre including the Firth of Clyde and North Channel (14)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Variable 3 or less, becoming northwesterly 4 or 5.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate near Mull of Kintyre.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northwesterly 4 or 5, becoming variable 3 or less, then southwesterly 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate at first near Mull of Kintyre.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Mull of Kintyre to Ardnamurchan Point (15)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- West or northwest 4 or 5.
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, but slight in shelter.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- West or northwest, backing southwest later, 4 or 5, decreasing 3 for a time.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, occasionally rough at first in northwest.
- Weather
- Showers at first, occasional rain later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate later.
The Minch (16)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Westerly 5 or 6, occasionally 7 in north.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, but rough in north.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Westerly 5 or 6, veering northwesterly 3 or 4, backing southeasterly 5 or 6, veering southwesterly 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, but rough at first in north, occasionally smooth north of skye.
- Weather
- Showers at first, occasional rain later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate later.
Ardnamurchan Point to Cape Wrath (17)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Westerly 5 or 6, occasionally 7 in north.
- Sea state
- Rough.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Westerly 5 or 6, veering northwesterly 3 or 4, backing southeasterly 5 or 6, veering southwesterly 4 or 5 later.
- Sea state
- Rough becoming moderate.
- Weather
- Showers at first, occasional rain later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate later.
Shetland Isles (18)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- West, veering northwest, 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 later.
- Sea state
- Rough or very rough, but moderate in shelter east of Shetland.
- Weather
- Squally showers.
- Visibility
- Good.
For Coastal areas up to 60 nautical miles from Lerwick, Shetland (18)
Valid Monday 16 Sep 2019 at 0000 UTC until Monday 16 Sep 2019 at 1200 UTC
General situation
A broad west to northwest airstream covers Shetland and surrounding waters.
Forecast
- Wind
- West 5 or 6
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough
- Weather
- Showers
- Visibility
- Good
Outlook for 12 Hours from 1200 UTC on Monday 16 Sep until 0000 UTC on Tuesday 17 Sep
- Wind
- West or northwest 5 to 7, occasionally gale 8 later
- Sea state
- Moderate or rough, becoming very rough in west
- Weather
- Showers
- Visibility
- Good
Channel Islands (19)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- North to northwest 2 to 4, backing northwest 3 to 4 around midday, then veering northerly 2 to 4 by midnight.
- Sea state
- Smooth, occasionally slight.
- Weather
- Occasional mist with patchy drizzle spreading southwards Monday evening, local fog patches forming later, mainly in the north and west of the area.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate to poor at times during the evening, locally very poor later.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northerly 2 to 4, veering northeast by dawn, increasing 4 to 5 by midday, perhaps locally 6 in the north and west of the area, veering easterly later.
- Sea state
- Smooth to slight, becoming slight occasionally moderate later, with a low swell.
- Weather
- Occasional mist and patchy drizzle, with fog patches at first, gradually clearing southwest to becoming fair or fine by early afternoon.
- Visibility
- Moderate, occasionally poor, locally very poor at first, becoming mainly good from midday.
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.
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.