On-Line Chart Viewer

[knottybuoyz]

Hey Frank

I hear what you're sayin'. Don't know how much or any of the fancy schmancy features would be intended for shipboard use. More than likely it'll remain in the domain of the academics & technogeeks to impress management. Careful consideration is given to all new technologies that are introduced to the bridges of our ships nowadays. There were a few accidents in the 70's & 80's that spawned studies of that exact point of attention of the watchkeepers being drawn away by technological distractions.

I'm sure the consumer software developers will grasp at all the features that are developed by governments to fill out their product lines. The marketers will be sure to overemphasize the need to have all that stuff in your navigation systems.

Rick

[Amgine]

S/V Elusive: The Canadian charts of the 50s are published under Crown Copyright, which retains an exclusive copyright for 50 years. So, charts 1956 and older are effectively in the public domain.

The ENC system is not really a chart; it's a database of objects and their locations. That's why when you zoom in and out of them different levels of detail "appear" or "disappear". What I'm planning is something a bit different, which is simply a reasonably high resolution scan of an old, out of date chart that can be scaled (that's the tough part). They're not at all competitive, and the raster charts are really not at all in the same league of desirable. Given my druthers I'd far prefer to have ENC systems, but the CG dataset is trapped in this licensing deal.

(By the way, this may explain the several survey missions I've seen out here on the west coast in the past year or so. Any newly-collected data by the CG will not be a part of the NDI licensed dataset.)

[knottybuoyz]

Bill Gate's online maps. MS Virtual Earth.

Live Local Search TerraServer-USA

Looks like they've ported Mappoint to the web. Haven't looked around much on these sites, have used Mappoint before offline, but wonder how it fairs up against Mapquest.

[Amgine]

Well, it fails the initial useability test: the first click on the map does *not* recenter but simply zooms.

I'm prejudiced against MS, so I won't even think about reviewing it.

[barniclebobca]

I,m new to alot of this tech. so be patient with me please? I would like to sail from Van. Isl. south to Mex. end of Sept.No problem there. Suspect its all down wind especially if I plan on staying 200 miles out.(persona non gratta usa)Its the return trip in April or May that has me concerned. Do I need to go to Hawaii then head east?? Are the winds much different that far from the coast??? Appreciate someone,s know how that has done this stuff. Bob

[GordMay]

Unfortunately, the Atlas of Pilot Charts of the South Atlantic Ocean and the North Pacific Ocean (NGA Pubs 105 and 108, respectively) are not yet available for download, as they are still awaiting digital conversion.

However, partial scans of the North Pacific Pilot Charts are available at:
North Pacific Pilot Charts

Specifically:

APRIL: North Pacific Pilot Charts, April

MAY: North Pacific Pilot Charts, May

See the NGA's Atlas of Pilot Charts:
Maritime Safety Information

Pilot Charts depict averages in prevailing winds and currents, air and sea temperatures, wave heights, ice limits, visibility, barometric pressure, and weather conditions at different times of the year. The information used to compile these averages was obtained from oceanographic and meteorologic observations over many decades during the late 18th and 19th centuries.

The Atlas of Pilot Charts set is comprised of five volumes, each covering a specific geographic region. Each volume is an atlas of twelve pilot charts, each depicting the observed conditions for a particular month of any given year.

The charts are intended to aid the navigator in selecting the fastest and safest routes with regards to the expected weather and ocean conditions. The charts are not intended to be used for navigation.

[MABell]

I recall there being a program available (about $100) that would show you average wind (direction and strength) and wave (direction and heigth) for anywhere in the world. Not actuals - but averages for planning. Haven't been able to find it yet, but will keep looking.

[Amgine]

Barniclebobca: You're probably in my neighborhood.

The theoretical "best route" for an early spring return from the west coast of Mexico is: West to Hawai`i, north passing westward of the northern Pacific high, curving gradually eastward as you pass north of the center of the high.

The northern Pacific high is mobile, but does have seasonal ranges - generally moving north in the summer and south in the winter - so you will need to keep track of where it is.

In April-May the northern Pacific still has the possibility of serious weather. There's probably no "best time" to head north though. This route is the traditional sailing route; there are advocates of the "motor through the high" route, rock-hopping up the coast route, and the "ship the boat, fly home" route, which is probably cheapest in the long run but not half so much adventure.

[AKflyer]

Here's another take on online nautical charts. This one's geo-referenced to Google Maps, and allows you to change the opacity of the nautical chart overlay, so you can see the satellite terrain imagery below. Unfortunately, haven't had very good results with printing out sections. Also, no guarantee on map currency, as far as I can tell. Kinda nice for planning purposes, though, for me.

NOAA (http://demo.geogarage.com/noaa/)