The RYA has been involved in a weather related initiative - the availability of coastal station reports or actuals on NAVTEX - which is close to producing a result with the co-operation of HM Coastguard (HMCG) and the Met Office.
Expert opinions are fairly evenly divided on the importance and weight that sailors attach to forecasts and actuals . The problem is of course that those who want actuals can not get them at regular intervals during the day on either the BBC, MRCC weather broadcasts or for that matter on NAVTEX 518 kHz.
The national NAVTEX channel (490 kHz) is under used as there are 4 spare slots per day from the Niton (ID Code I), Portpatrick (ID Code C) and Cullercoats (ID Code U) transmitters. Currently these stations only broadcast Inshore Waters Forecasts plus a national 3 day outlook. The proposition therefore is to broadcast reports from a number of coastal stations relevant to each transmitter from around the UK.
On or about the 01 June 2007 HMCG and the Met Office started a trial on the Niton transmitter using the Station (B1) character India (I) and the message (B2) character Victor (V but note that some sets interpret this as rig reports ) to broadcast actuals along the south coast. It is an aim of the trial to determine exactly what can be included in each slot without overrunning the time available and how often each station can be broadcast. Station reports from the following will be included initially, but the list could well be refined as the trial continues: Sandettie, Greenwich LV, Solent (MRSC), Bournemouth (Hurn), Guernsey A/P, Jersey A/P, Isle of Portland, Channel LV, Plymouth, Culdrose, Seven Stones, St. Mawgan and Roches Point.
Reports will be broadcast on the next available time slot and as the trial develops (and be patient because it will take time to build up), it is hoped that further station reports can be added provided that reports are available at regular intervals throughout the day.
If successful, and if sailors find these useful, it is intended to extend these broadcasts to Cullercoats and Portpatrick. In parallel, the Met Office will soon be putting pages of marine actuals on its website for quick and easy download. There will be one page each for the East, South and West coasts of Britain and one for open ocean buoy data. This data will be updated hourly.
There have been many reports from yachtsmen who have experienced NAVTEX reception problems, particularly around western Scotland. HMCG are working to alleviate reception problems. However it is hoped that a better solution can be found using the new Faeroes NAVTEX station, an extra broadcast from Reykjavik, the current Portpatrick transmission and the powerful Malin Head transmission and that reception in this area will be greatly improved.
However, it must be must emphasised that NAVTEX is designed for use from the fairway buoy out to about 200 to 250 NM out to sea. It is not particularly good at receiving the signal if you are tucked up a creek or are somewhere surrounded by umpteen hundred masts and tall buildings in a marina or yacht harbour. In harbour or within telephone contact of the land, there are many other sources of weather information available.
Constructive feed back can be reported to the RYA using the "email the trial" link at the top of the page or to
navtex490@rya.org.uk . It would help us if reports could include:
- The position of the vessel when data from Niton was received
- Day or night (0600- 1800 or 1800- 0600)
- Type of set fitted onboard
- Usefulness of the data
- If you found the data broadcast on NAVTEX 490 kHz contributed to safety at sea.
The RYA has been involved in a weather related initiative - the availability of coastal station reports or actuals on NAVTEX - which is close to producing a result with the co-operation of HM Coastguard (HMCG) and the Met Office.
Expert opinions are fairly evenly divided on the importance and weight that sailors attach to forecasts and actuals . The problem is of course that those who want actuals can not get them at regular intervals during the day on either the BBC, MRCC weather broadcasts or for that matter on NAVTEX 518 kHz.
The national NAVTEX channel (490 kHz) is under used as there are 4 spare slots per day from the Niton (ID Code I), Portpatrick (ID Code C) and Cullercoats (ID Code U) transmitters. Currently these stations only broadcast Inshore Waters Forecasts plus a national 3 day outlook. The proposition therefore is to broadcast reports from a number of coastal stations relevant to each transmitter from around the UK.
On or about the 01 June 2007 HMCG and the Met Office started a trial on the Niton transmitter using the Station (B1) character India (I) and the message (B2) character Victor (V but note that some sets interpret this as rig reports ) to broadcast actuals along the south coast. It is an aim of the trial to determine exactly what can be included in each slot without overrunning the time available and how often each station can be broadcast. Station reports from the following will be included initially, but the list could well be refined as the trial continues: Sandettie, Greenwich LV, Solent (MRSC), Bournemouth (Hurn), Guernsey A/P, Jersey A/P, Isle of Portland, Channel LV, Plymouth, Culdrose, Seven Stones, St. Mawgan and Roches Point.
Reports will be broadcast on the next available time slot and as the trial develops (and be patient because it will take time to build up), it is hoped that further station reports can be added provided that reports are available at regular intervals throughout the day.
If successful, and if sailors find these useful, it is intended to extend these broadcasts to Cullercoats and Portpatrick. In parallel, the Met Office will soon be putting pages of marine actuals on its website for quick and easy download. There will be one page each for the East, South and West coasts of Britain and one for open ocean buoy data. This data will be updated hourly.
There have been many reports from yachtsmen who have experienced NAVTEX reception problems, particularly around western Scotland. HMCG are working to alleviate reception problems. However it is hoped that a better solution can be found using the new Faeroes NAVTEX station, an extra broadcast from Reykjavik, the current Portpatrick transmission and the powerful Malin Head transmission and that reception in this area will be greatly improved.
However, it must be must emphasised that NAVTEX is designed for use from the fairway buoy out to about 200 to 250 NM out to sea. It is not particularly good at receiving the signal if you are tucked up a creek or are somewhere surrounded by umpteen hundred masts and tall buildings in a marina or yacht harbour. In harbour or within telephone contact of the land, there are many other sources of weather information available.
Constructive feed back can be reported to the RYA using the "email the trial" link at the top of the page or to
navtex490@rya.org.uk . It would help us if reports could include:
- The position of the vessel when data from Niton was received
- Day or night (0600- 1800 or 1800- 0600)
- Type of set fitted onboard
- Usefulness of the data
- If you found the data broadcast on NAVTEX 490 kHz contributed to safety at sea.