Coast and sea
General situation
A slow moving complex low centred to the south and west of the United Kingdom will maintain a generally easterly flow and bring outbreaks of rain to southern parts, thundery at first.
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
- East or northeast 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- East or northeast 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Rattray Head to Berwick upon Tweed (2)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- North or northeast 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- North or northeast, 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first.
- Sea state
- Mainly moderate.
- Weather
- Mainly fair, showers later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Berwick upon Tweed to Whitby (3)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- North or northeast 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate later.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- North or northeast, becoming cyclonic later, 3 or 4.
- Sea state
- Moderate.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate.
Whitby to Gibraltar Point (4)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- North or northeast 3 to 5, becoming cyclonic 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers later.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate later.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Cyclonic becoming southwest later, 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Thundery showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Gibraltar Point to North Foreland (5)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northerly or northeasterly becoming cyclonic, then southwesterly later, 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, becoming slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers, perhaps thundery, fog patches later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Westerly or southwesterly 4 to 6, decreasing 3 or 4 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or thundery showers, fog patches.
- Visibility
- Moderate, occasionally very poor.
North Foreland to Selsey Bill (6)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Cyclonic 3 to 5, becoming westerly or southwesterly 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate, occasionally rough for a time off shore.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, thundery at times, fog patches later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor later.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Westerly or southwesterly 4 to 6, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Showers and fog patches at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally very poor at first.
Selsey Bill to Lyme Regis (7)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- West or southwest 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, thundery at times.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- West or southwest 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or showers at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor at first.
Lyme Regis to Lands End including the Isles of Scilly (8)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- West or northwest 4 to 6, backing west or southwest 3 to 5 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, thundery at times.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- West or southwest backing east later, 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or showers at first.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor at first.
Lands End to St Davids Head including the Bristol Channel (9)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- West or northwest 4 to 6, backing southwest 3 to 5 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight at first in Bristol Channel, otherwise slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or showers, thundery at times.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- West or southwest 3 to 5, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
St Davids Head to Great Orme Head, including St Georges Channel (10)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- North or northwest 4 to 6, becoming cyclonic 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or showers developing, perhaps thundery for a time.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Cyclonic becoming west or southwest, 3 to 5.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Rain or showers.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good, occasionally poor.
Great Orme Head to the Mull of Galloway (11)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 4 to 6, becoming variable 3 or less in south.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 4 to 6 Faeroes in north, otherwise variable 2 to 4, becoming cyclonic 3 to 5 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate in north.
- Weather
- Showers.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally poor.
Isle of Man (12)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Northwest 3 or 4 veering northeast 4 or 5 occasionally 6.
- Sea state
- Slight, becoming slight of moderate.
- Weather
- Fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northeast 4 or 5 occasionally 6 decreasing 3 or 4, then becoming variable 3 or less.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate, becoming smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough (13)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- East or northeast 4 to 6.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- East or northeast 4 to 6, becoming variable 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate at first.
- Weather
- Showers.
- 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
- Easterly or northeasterly 4 to 6, occasionally 7 until later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate later in North Channel.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 4 to 6, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate at first in North Channel.
- Weather
- Mainly fair, showers later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Mull of Kintyre to Ardnamurchan Point (15)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 in south.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate later in far south.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Northeasterly 3 to 5, becoming variable 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate at first in far south.
- Weather
- Mainly fair, showers later.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
The Minch (16)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- East or northeast 4 to 6, occasionally 3 at first.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 4 to 6, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Ardnamurchan Point to Cape Wrath (17)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- East or northeast 4 to 6, occasionally 3 at first.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- Easterly or northeasterly 4 to 6, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
Shetland Isles (18)
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- East or northeast 2 to 4.
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate.
- Weather
- Mainly fair.
- Visibility
- Moderate or good.
For Coastal areas up to 60 nautical miles from Lerwick, Shetland (18)
Strong wind warning
Valid Thursday 02 May 2024 at 0600 UTC until Thursday 02 May 2024 at 1800 UTC
General situation
A mainly easterly flow will persist over Shetland waters.
Forecast
- Wind
- East or northeast 3 or 4
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate
- Weather
- Fair
- Visibility
- Good
Outlook for 12 Hours from 1800 UTC on Thursday 02 May until 0600 UTC on Friday 03 May
- Wind
- East or northeast 3 or 4
- Sea state
- Slight or moderate
- Weather
- Fair
- Visibility
- Good
Channel Islands (19)
Strong winds are forecast
24 hour forecast:
- Wind
- West to northwest 4 to 5, occasionally 6 in the north of the area until around dusk, backing west to southwest 3 to 4 overnight.
- Sea state
- Moderate to rather rough, decreasing slight to moderate by the evening, then slight to smooth with a low swell later.
- Weather
- Rain and drizzle, mainly in the north and east, perhaps locally heavy mid-channel at first, soon clearing.
- Visibility
- Good, occasionally moderate, locally poor for a time at first.
Outlook for the following 24 hours:
- Wind
- West to southwest 3 to 4, becoming variable 1 to 3 in the south of the area by midday Friday, then generally southeast 2 to 4 later.
- Sea state
- Smooth or slight, with a low swell.
- Weather
- Fair or fine.
- Visibility
- Good or very good.
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.
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.