Comprehensive Marine Weather data all in one handy weather app? Yes, please! The NOAA NDBC Buoy Live Marine app seems to have it all.
There’s the basics: live, constantly updated data from the NOAA for the buoy you’re interested in. But there’s more. There’s also a forecast, with weather predictions for up to a week out. There’s an archive of past data, so that you can keep track of general trends in wind direction and speed. And it’s easy to navigate to other, nearby buoys, in case your preferred buoy does not have regularly updated data from the NOAA.
Data is available for more than a thousand buoys in Canada, the United States, the Caribbean, and the UK, as well as 7 in the open ocean. If you’re planning a surfing vacation to Indonesia, you’re on your own. But yachting in the English channel, fishing in Alaska, or surfing out at California’s Long Beach? This app has you covered.
Instant Weather: Live Data From the Buoy
Live data from the buoy includes such data as wind direction, speed, and wind gusts; wave height, period and wave direction, and sea level pressure. There’s also info on pressure tendency, dew point, and the temperature of both water and air. It is important to realize that not all marine weather data is available for every buoy, as the app is limited to information uploaded by the individual buoys. If your buoy does not have updated, comprehensive data, you can always go to the ‘nearest tab’ and choose from among three or four close-by buoys that might have more complete information.
Every station includes basic data on sunrise, sunset, and moon phases. Some stations have comprehensive forecast data; otherwise offer only a minimal summary. But a comprehensive map forecast from the National Digital Forecast Database is available in-app, and is useful for big picture understanding or to fill in gaps from incomplete buoy information.
