weather information

great site!
we're just beginning to prepare for retirement cruising.
how do you get weather information?
- voice
- text
- graphic
other?
thanks in advance.

[Talbot]

some idea of your location would be a great help for this.

Best way is to have a HF receiver (obviously an SSB is more than satisfactory) like the Nasa Target HF/3M
Use an Active aerial (unless again you have a full SSB aerial system)
and connect the output from the receiver to a laptop. The set comes with the correct software to enable you to pick up weatherfaxes from all round the world.

BTW I have no connection with this company, merely showing you the items from their web site cause it was convenient, and they are very good prices in UK.

[Wahoo Sails]

I'm using an often overlooked unit, Furuno NX 300, paperless Navtex .. tied to my laptop, for text output.

L S/V Eva Luna
Bob

[GordMay]

FAQ’s from the National Weather Servicve (NWS):
http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/marine/faq.htm

Includes answers to the following question:
Frequently Asked Questions About NOAA/NWS Marine Products and Services

1. Where can I find a marine forecast on the Internet?
Go the National Weather Service's Marine Forecasts webpage. This page also provides links to Marine Forecast Offices and Centers which provide links to their products, as well as additional regionally focused information such as buoy observations and tide predictions.

The Marine Forecasts - Products Via Internet webpage provides details on where to find marine related weather products, publications and information on the Internet. This webpage also provides links to Foreign Meteorological Services and Computer Generated Model Guidance which includes data which is outside the area of U.S. marine forecast responsibility.


2. How can I get a marine forecast or buoy observation over the phone?
Most National Weather Service offices keep an updated recording of the forecasts they produce and can be accessed by phone. To find the phone number of the office near you, check your telephone directory under "United States Government, Commerce Department, National Weather Service." A listing of Weather Service Offices with marine recordings is also available. Current buoy and C-MAN observations may also be obtained by phone via NDBC's "Dial-A-Buoy"service.


3. How can I get a marine forecast or buoy observation via E-mail?
To get started in using the NWS FTPMAIL service, follow these simple directions to obtain the FTPMAIL "help" file, or see: http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/fax/ftpmail.txt.

Send an e-mail to: ftpmail@weather.noaa.gov
Subject line: Put anything you like
Body: help

A webpage describing several different e-mail "robots" similar in concept to FTPMAIL, including some with advanced features such as allowing retrieval of NWS marine GRIB files, simple webpages, and allowing products to be retrieved on a scheduled, recurring basis may be found at: http://weather.noaa.gov/pub/fax/robots.txt


4. Where can I get information on current marine weather conditions and the tide?
Listen to NOAA Weather Radio, see the webpage of your local Weather Forecast Office, or the National Data Buoy Center (NDBC). Current buoy and C-MAN observations may also be obtained by phone via NDBC's "Dial-A-Buoy" service.

Tide predictions, current predictions, and Real-Time water level measurements are available from the National Ocean Service's CO-OPS webpage

11. How can I access the Internet or exchange E-mail while at sea?
The Marine Forecasts - Products Via Internet webpage provides information on how mariners may access the Internet and exchange E-mail via radio, cellular, and satellite technologies.
... and much more

HTH,
Gord

PS: Watch for “Good Old Boat” magazine’s article on “How to Read a Surface Weather Map” in their November 2005 issue (about a year from now)

thanks guys!
looks like we've got some major spending to do - ssb, weather-fax, computer - $$$
will be leaving florida next fall - cruising bahamas & then down island.
i'm pretty out of date - no cruising since mid-80's - so your help is appreciated.

expect to have assured income about $2000/month - any thots on budgets?

[sv_makai]

When we left the US we used the VHF in the Bahamas and a SSB reciver to listen to the marine ssb and ham weather nets. They provide excellent daily forecasts.

The reciver was inexpensive and there are several avaliable. We have now purchased a used ICOM m7000 for the cost of our reciever. The dual use we determined is important. Look around many peole are upgrading and used radios can be purchased inexpensively.

With an open mareine ssb you can receive weather faxes, Ham, marine ssb, and email. I would recommend the Tx/Rx after an experiecnce we had.

[GordMay]

Sirius Satellite Radio plans to create a new marine weather service for boaters.

Sirius has an agreement with WSI Corp., a Massachusetts-based provider of weather services and forecasts, to provide Sirius with a full suite of marine weather content for the new service, which is expected to begin late this year.

The service will include a variety of graphical and text information, including water surface temperatures, lightning strikes, coast-to-coast U.S. and Canadian weather radar, storm tracking, winds and wave heights. This new service will be the first premium SIRIUS data service, and pricing will be announced later this year.

Sirius says it will broadcast the marine weather data at the highest level of quality and data resolution, resulting in more detailed mapping of critical weather information. SIRIUS also plans to introduce a new data receiver for use in conjunction with this service.

WSI: http://www.wsi.com/
http://www.wsi.com/corporate/newsroo...ses/102903.asp
Sirius: http://www.sirius.com/