Coast and sea

Shipping forecast and gale warnings

The general synopsis at 0600

Low northern Faeroes 988 moving away northwards

Issued at: .

For the period to .

Shipping forecast and gale warnings map

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Viking

Wind
Southerly or southeasterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 in northeast, decreasing 3 at times in southwest.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Rain or showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

North Utsire

Wind
Southerly or southeasterly 4 to 6, decreasing 3 at times.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Rain or showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

South Utsire

Wind
Southerly or southeasterly 4 to 6, increasing 7 at times.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Rain or showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Forties

Wind
Southerly or southeasterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 in northeast.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Cromarty

Wind
Southerly or southeasterly 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight or moderate becoming smooth or slight.
Weather
Showers, perhaps thundery.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Forth

Wind
South or southeast 3 to 5, becoming variable 3 or less for a time later.
Sea state
Slight, occasionally smooth.
Weather
Showers, perhaps thundery.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Tyne

Wind
South or southeast 3 to 5, becoming variable 3 or less for a time later.
Sea state
Slight, occasionally smooth.
Weather
Showers, perhaps thundery.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Dogger

Wind
South or southeast 2 increasing 3 to 5, then becoming variable 3 or less for a time later.
Sea state
Slight, occasionally smooth.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Fisher

Wind
East or southeast 4 to 6, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Rain for a time.
Visibility
Good, becoming moderate or poor for a time.

German Bight

Wind
Variable 2 to 4, becoming cyclonic 3 to 5 for a time.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Rain for a time, mainly in east.
Visibility
Good, becoming moderate or poor for a time in east.

Humber

Wind
Variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Showers, perhaps thundery.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Thames

Wind
Variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Showers, perhaps thundery.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Dover

Wind
Variable 2 to 4.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Wight

Wind
In east, variable 2 to 4. In west, southwesterly 2 to 4 backing southerly 4 to 6.
Sea state
In east, smooth or slight. in west, slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers, then rain later in west.
Visibility
In east, good, occasionally moderate. In west, good, occasionally moderate at first and poor later.

Portland

Wind
Southwesterly 2 to 4 backing southerly 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers, then rain later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate at first and poor later.

Plymouth

Wind
Southwesterly 2 to 4 backing southerly 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate in east and north, moderate or rough in west and south.
Weather
Showers, then rain later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate at first and poor later.

Biscay

Wind
Westerly or northwesterly backing southerly or southwesterly, 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later in north.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Showers then rain.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate at first and poor later.

Trafalgar

Forecast issued:

Wind
North or northwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Rough or very rough becoming moderate or rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Moderate or good.

FitzRoy

Wind
South or southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Rough in west, moderate or rough in east.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Sole

Wind
South or southwest 4 to 6.
Sea state
Rough in west, moderate or rough in east.
Weather
Occasional rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Lundy

Wind
South or southwest 3 to 5 backing south or southeast 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers then rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor later.

Fastnet

Wind
South or southwest 3 to 5 backing south or southeast 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally rough in southwest.
Weather
Showers then rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor later.

Irish Sea

Wind
South or southwest 3 to 5 backing south or southeast 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth in north.
Weather
Showers then rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor later.

Shannon

Wind
South or southeast, becoming cyclonic for a time, 4 to 6.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Showers then rain.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Rockall

Wind
South or southwest 3 to 5, backing southeast 4 to 6 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Showers, then rain later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Malin

Wind
South or southwest 3 to 5, backing southeast 4 to 6 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, becoming slight or moderate in east.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Hebrides

Wind
South or southwest 3 to 5, backing southeast 4 to 6 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough, becoming slight or moderate in east.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Bailey

Wind
South or southwest 3 to 5, backing southeast 4 to 6 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Fair Isle

Wind
Southwest backing south or southeast, 4 to 6, occasionally 3 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers, perhaps thundery at first.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Faeroes

Wind
Southwest backing south or southeast, 4 to 6, occasionally 3 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Southeast Iceland

Wind
Cyclonic mainly southeasterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

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.