Weather Data - Real Time, Historical, and Forecasts
Weather data has a number of uses within a maritime context, but ultimately it can be used to provide context for both previous activities and future decision making. An example of this could be using it in understanding why a vessel should/did pick a particular route, or what kind of conditions were in place prior to an incident.
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Maritime weather data provides environmental information that supports both historical analysis and operational decision-making.
It captures a range of meteorological and oceanographic variables relevant to vessel navigation, safety, fuel consumption, and incident investigation.
Fields typically included within weather datasets:
Air Temperature
Wind Speed and Direction
Swell Height and Period
Atmospheric Pressure
Cloud Cover
Humidity
Water Pressure
Wave Height
Coverage
Weather data can cover:
Global or regional geographic scales
Various timeframes, depending on the dataset type:
Historical (multi-year archives)
Real-time (current conditions)
Forecast (short- and medium-range predictions)
Sources
Weather data can be gathered from a number of different sources including:
Satellite sensors
Buoy networks and offshore weather stations
Numerical weather prediction models (e.g. NOAA models)
Methodology
Weather datasets typically fall into three categories:
Historic Weather Data
Archive of past conditions across specific regions or globally
Used for post-event analysis, trade route evaluation, or long-term trend assessments
Real-Time Weather Data
Delivered as live or near-live feeds
Supports vessel routing, fuel optimisation, and safety-related decisions during operations
Forecast Weather Data
Predictive models estimating conditions for upcoming days
Used for route planning, risk mitigation, and supply chain scheduling
Why This Data?
Weather is a key operational and risk factor in maritime activities:
Enables better voyage planning to minimise fuel costs and delays
Provides post-incident context for insurance claims or safety investigations
Supports risk monitoring by alerting stakeholders to potential hazards (e.g. hurricanes, high winds)