The Weather Maps layer on the Live Map will provide you with 26 weather layers which will help you ensure the safety of a vessel and her crew, as well as being able to optimise a vessel’s sailing routes forecast.

In this article, you will learn about how you can make use of the Weather layer and all the functionalities that come with it through the following:

In order to enable the weather layer on the Live Map, you can click on the wind icon on the Live Map ToolBar as shown below:

If any layer of the Weather Maps is enabled, as well as the Route Forecast option, you will be able to move the weather maps timeline slider, and a ghost vessel will be shown at the expected position of the vessel at each time step.

The Sea Meteogram is a pop-up that will appear as soon as you click on any sea area on the Live Map. There you can find a handful of useful information, in the form of straightforward graphs, such as the wind speed, the wave height and wave period in the area selected.

Now, let's take a closer look at the different layers that you can use with Weather:

By default, the first option when you enable the Weather Maps layer is Wind barbs.

Note: All registered MarineTraffic members have access to the Wind barbs layer, as well as a 24-hour wind forecast. However, members that have purchased the Professional and Enterprise Plan can get wind forecasts for up to 7 days!

Once you have activated the Wind barbs option and have selected your desired wind forecast time frame, wind barbs will appear on the Live Map.

Note II: Same with the vessel icons, you may need to zoom in enough in order to be able to see them.

The wind barbs have different colours and point to different directions. This way you are instantly able to get a picture of the overall wind conditions in any given area.

In the picture below, you can see the respective wind speed values in knots (1 knot = 1.15mph)

The direction the barb is pointing to denotes the wind direction.

For example, the barb that is shown below represents a 35kn NE wind.

Spend some time getting accustomed to this feature and you will be able to easily identify wind conditions in no time!

Note III: Wind forecasts are model-based and not real-time observations sent by the ships. The maximum resolution of the weather data is 0.2 degrees (approximately 12 NM).

Below you can find the knots conversion to the Beaufort scale and other wind speed-related information.

​Beaufort Wind Force Scale - Specifications and Equivalent Speeds

The lag effect between the wind getting up and the sea increasing should be borne in mind.

*These values refer to well-developed wind waves of the open sea.

Source: Met Office

This layer combines 2 important pieces of information, the wind speed and the wind direction. The different colours on the map represent the speed measured in kn (Knot) while the wind direction is represented by an arrow pointing to the direction in which the wind blows.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the kn.

This layer displays the speed of wind gusts at 10 m above ground. It is expressed in kn (Knot) and visualised with colours.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the kn.

This layer will show you all the current storms around the Globe, their intensity, range and dates. You may also see the meter on the left-hand side which indicates the Peak gust and the symbols used to represent the storm on this layer.

This layer combines 2 important pieces of information, wave height and the wave direction. The different colours on the map represent the height measured in m (Metre) while the direction is represented by an arrow pointing to the direction.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the m.

This layer displays the wind waves, with different colours on the map that represent the height measured in m (Metre). Wind waves are defined as surface waves that occur on the surface of bodies of water and are caused by the local wind.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the m.

This layer displays the time period of wind waves with different colours on the map that represent the time measured in s (Second). More specifically, the period of wind waves is the time in seconds between two waves.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the s.

This layer displays the ocean currents, with different colours on the map that represent their speed measured in kn (Knot) and arrows that show the direction.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the kn.

This layer displays the swell waves, with different colours on the map that represent the height measured in m (Metre). Swells waves are generated by wind associated with the oceans, and have travelled long distances.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the m.

This layer displays the time period of swell waves with different colours on the map that represent the time measured in s (Second). More specifically, the period of swell waves is the time in seconds between two waves.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the s.

This layer displays the distance at which an object can be clearly seen. This horizontal visibility is visualised with colours measuring in m (Metre).

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the m.

This layer displays the temperature at the indicated time. Like all temperature layers, it is expressed in degrees °C (Celsius) and visualised with colours.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the °C.

This layer also displays the temperature at °C (Celsius) at the indicated time and can be visualized with colours. However, it refers to the sea temperature.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the temperature in °C.

This layer displays the salinity of the sea in g/kg at the indicated time.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the g/kg.

This layer displays the amount of ice in a region at the indicated time.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the m².

This layer displays the highest temperature that occurred in the last 24 hours. Like all temperature layers, it is expressed in degrees °C (Celsius) and visualised with colours.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the °C.

This layer displays the lowest temperature that occurred in the last 24 hours. Like all temperature layers, it is expressed in degrees °C (Celsius) and visualised with colours.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the °C.

This layer combines 2 important pieces of information, the cloud cover and the precipitation in the indicated time period of 3 hours. Precipitation is displayed with colours, while the clouds are shaded in gray, in accordance with the density.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the mm.

This layer displays the density of the cloud cover. Grey means denser, while white means less dense.

There is no metric bar for this layer.

This layer displays the precipitation within the indicated time period of 3 hours. Precipitation is the deposition of water to the Earth's surface, in the form of rain, snow, ice or hail. All precipitation quantities are expressed in mm (Millimetre) that is here displayed with colours.The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the mm.

This layer displays the probability of precipitation amounts greater than 0.1 mm. The probability is shown by colours in % (Percentage) and can be defined as the frequency with which precipitation occurs, in this case in 20 different forecast calculations that provide the final estimation.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the %.

This layer displays the total amount of fallen snow accumulated on the surface in the last 24 hours. It is expressed in cm (Centimetre) and visualised with colours.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the cm.

This layer displays the relative humidity in % (Percentage) and is visualized with colours. The relative humidity describes the amount of water that is carried by the air, and it affects the development of clouds and precipitation metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the %.

This layer displays the division of weather related risk conditions of the previous 24 hours. Each of this weather event is visualised with a specific colour:

This layer displays the air pressure at sea level in hPa (Hectopascal), visualised with isobars and colours. Air pressure affects a number of natural phenomena, such the oxygen availability, cloud formation and thunderstorms.

The metric bar in this layer (left-hand side) shows the colour variation that indicates the hPa.
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- In collaboration with Meteoblue

- Available with the Weather Maps add-on. -