Maritime Weather Forecast
Live atmospheric and marine conditions for any global position — current wind Beaufort, sea state, wave height, swell period, and a 7-day outlook from open-source meteorological APIs.
Understanding Maritime Weather Data for Vessel Operations
Weather data in the context of vessel operations is not merely a forecasting convenience — it is a safety-critical input that informs cargo securing, passage planning, crew scheduling, and — increasingly — cybersecurity risk assessment. The convergence of real-time meteorological APIs with vessel management systems means that the same data pipelines that drive a bridge display can, if inadequately secured, become an attack surface for adversaries seeking to manipulate navigational situational awareness.
This page draws on the same open-meteo atmospheric and marine APIs used in commercial maritime planning tools, but presents the data in a transparent, accessible format. Understanding what your bridge weather system is fetching — and from where — is the first step in assessing whether that data channel meets IACS UR E26 requirements for network segmentation and data integrity verification.
The Beaufort Scale — Operational Reference
The Beaufort scale, developed by Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort in 1805, remains the primary wind classification system referenced in SOLAS, COLREGS, and flag state weather routing requirements. Every deck officer should be able to read a Beaufort number and immediately infer expected wave height, spray conditions, and vessel motion characteristics without referencing additional tables.
| BFT | Description | km/h | Knots | Approx. Wave Ht. | Vessel Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Calm | <1 | <1 | Glassy | Ideal conditions |
| 1–2 | Light air / breeze | 1–11 | 1–6 | 0.1–0.3 m | Ripples; no significant sea |
| 3 | Gentle breeze | 12–19 | 7–10 | 0.6–1.0 m | Slight sea; comfortable |
| 4 | Moderate breeze | 20–28 | 11–16 | 1.0–1.5 m | Moderate sea; some spray |
| 5 | Fresh breeze | 29–38 | 17–21 | 1.5–2.5 m | Small waves forming crests |
| 6 | Strong breeze | 39–49 | 22–27 | 2.5–4.0 m | Larger waves; foam crests; increased motion |
| 7 | Near gale | 50–61 | 28–33 | 4.0–5.5 m | Sea heaps up; heavy spray; cargo securing review |
| 8 | Gale | 62–74 | 34–40 | 5.5–7.5 m | High waves; restricted visibility; course alteration likely |
| 9 | Severe gale | 75–88 | 41–47 | 7.0–10.0 m | High rolling; possible cargo shift; master's discretion |
| 10 | Storm | 89–102 | 48–55 | 9.0–12.5 m | Very high waves; survival conditions |
| 11–12 | Violent storm / Hurricane | >103 | >56 | >14 m | Exceptional conditions; heave-to or seek shelter |
Douglas Sea Scale — Significant Wave Height Classification
While Beaufort describes wind conditions, the Douglas sea state scale classifies the actual state of the sea surface in terms of wave height. Both are reported in the standard IMO ship reporting format and are routinely used in P&I club incident investigations to determine whether a vessel was operating within the parameters of its stability documentation and weather routing agreement.
- State 0 (Glassy): Under 0.1 m — negligible swell, no sea state impact on operations.
- State 1–2 (Rippled to Wavelets): 0.1–0.5 m — no operational impact for ocean-going vessels.
- State 3 (Slight): 0.5–1.25 m — small-craft advisory level; ferry and high-speed craft watch.
- State 4 (Moderate): 1.25–2.5 m — increased motion; open hatch assessment recommended.
- State 5 (Rough): 2.5–4.0 m — heavy weather procedures; deck watch conditions apply.
- State 6–7 (Very Rough to High): 4.0–9.0 m — reduced speed likely; master's weather diversion decision window.
- State 8 (Very High): >9.0 m — exceptional sea state; survival mode; MAYDAY readiness.
Weather Data in Maritime Cybersecurity Context
Weather API calls from bridge systems represent one of the most frequently overlooked vectors in maritime network security audits. A modern ECDIS or voyage management system may make dozens of API calls per hour to external meteorological services — each call traversing the vessel's satellite uplink without inspection or authentication verification. Under IACS UR E26.3, all external data feeds interfacing with navigation systems are classified as remote access connections and must be subject to access control review.
The practical implication is that a threat actor positioned as a man-in-the-middle between a vessel's satellite terminal and a weather API endpoint could substitute fabricated meteorological data — presenting calm conditions when a storm is approaching, or false routing recommendations that place a vessel in piracy-risk waters. While this type of attack is currently theoretical rather than documented in the IMO cyber incident database, the technical prerequisites are identical to those used in GPS spoofing incidents, which have been confirmed in the Black Sea region as early as 2017.
Operators should verify that their weather data feeds use HTTPS with certificate validation, and that the source IPs are consistent with known provider infrastructure. This page uses open-meteo.com directly over HTTPS — a practice consistent with IACS UR E26 data integrity requirements for non-safety-critical display systems.
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