F3 Light Vessel
United Kingdom
Last wave reading:
Now at the buoy
Significant wave height at the buoy
4.9 ft
1.5 m
- Dominant period
- —
- Direction
- no direction
This reading came without the swell and wind-wave split, so the numbers are for the whole sea.
Waves: 4.9 ft. Holding steady over the last 6 hours.
Significant wave height is the average of the biggest third of waves at the buoy. It is not surf height at a beach.
Trend at the buoy
Height at the buoy
- Total (significant height)
Period
- Dominant period
Hourly means of the buoy's readings. Arrows point the way the waves travel.
Model vs the buoy
- Buoy, hourly
- Model, past days
- Model forecast
Over the last 2 days, the model ran 55% high against the buoy.
| Day | Height | Peak period | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fri, Nov 13 | 6.1 ft | 6.4 s | N |
| Sat, Nov 14 | 3.3 ft | 8.4 s | N |
| Sun, Nov 15 | 6.8 ft | 5.7 s | SW |
| Mon, Nov 16 | 7.0 ft | 5.3 s | W |
| Tue, Nov 17 | 6.0 ft | 5.9 s | ENE |
| Wed, Nov 18 | 5.8 ft | 5.9 s | NE |
| Thu, Nov 19 | 3.5 ft | 6.8 s | W |
ECMWF WAM wave model via Open-Meteo, nearest model cell (51.250°N, 2.000°E). Both lines are significant wave height at sea, the same measure the buoy reports. Model output, not a Quiver beach forecast.
Nearby buoys
- Sandettie Lightship5.6 ftStale · 21 km
- Westhinder Buoy7.0 ftLive · 34 km
- Goodwin Sands wave buoy3.0 ft · 4 sLive · 36 km
- Trapegeer Buoy4.4 ftLive · 42 km
- South Knock WaveNet Site3.3 ft · 8.3 sLive · 47 km
- Nieuwpoort Buoy4.3 ftLive · 49 km
Other readings
- Water temperature
- 58°F (14.2°C)
- Pressure
- 1012.8 hPa
Reported Nov 13, 6:00 AM GMT.
How to read this buoy
F3 Light Vessel is a fixed station on a pier, platform or shore, not a floating buoy. Its waves are shaped by the nearby coast and seabed.
Biggest hourly reading in that record: 5.9 ft on Nov 12.
- Station id
- 62170
- Operator
- UK Met Office
- Program
- International Partners
- Position
- 51.240°N, 2.000°E
- Type
- Fixed station
- Local time zone
- Europe/London
- Swell split
- Yes, swell and wind waves reported
Source: NOAA National Data Buoy Center (NDBC); station operated by UK Met Office. Licence: Public domain (US government work). Station page at the source.
Not for navigation. Readings can be late, missing or wrong; check official marine forecasts before going to sea.
Buoy terms
- Significant height
- The average of the biggest third of waves the buoy measured. Sets in the surf zone can be bigger or smaller.
- Dominant period
- Seconds between the waves carrying the most energy. Longer period means more power and more bend around points.
- Swell vs wind waves
- Swell was made by distant wind; wind waves were made nearby. The buoy splits its spectrum at a cutoff period to report each.
- Direction
- Where waves come from, in degrees true. 270° is from the west.
