page_title: Marine weather forecasting
section_title: Weather ships
hierarchical_section_title: Marine weather forecasting / Observing platforms / Weather ships
context_page_description: Marine weather forecasting is the process by which mariners and meteorological organizations attempt to forecast future weather conditions over the Earth's oceans. Mariners have had rules of thumb regarding the navigation around tropical cyclones for many years, dividing a storm into halves and sailing through the normally weaker and more navigable half of their circulation. Marine weather forecasts by various weather organizations can be traced back to the sinking of the Royal Charter in 1859 and the RMS Titanic in 1912.
  The wind is the driving force of weather at sea, as wind generates local wind waves, long ocean swells, and its flow around the subtropical ridge helps maintain warm water currents such as the Gulf Stream. The importance of weather over the ocean during World War II led to delayed or secret weather reports, in order to maintain a competitive advantage. Weather ships were established by various nations during World War II for forecasting purposes, and were maintained through 1985 to help with transoceanic plane navigation.
context_section_description: The idea of a stationary weather ship was proposed as early as 1921 by Météo-France to help support shipping and the coming of transatlantic aviation.  Established during World War II, a weather ship, or ocean weather vessel, was a ship stationed in the ocean as a platform for surface and upper air meteorological observations for use in weather forecasting.   They were used during World War II but had no means of defense, which led to the loss of several ships and many lives.   They were primarily located in the north Atlantic and north Pacific oceans, reporting via radio.  In addition to their weather reporting function, these vessels aided in search and rescue operations, supported transatlantic flights, acted as research platforms for oceanographers,  monitored marine pollution, and aided weather forecasting both by weather forecasters and within computerized atmospheric models. Research vessels remain heavily used in oceanography, including physical oceanography and the integration of meteorological and climatological data in Earth system science.
  The establishment of weather ships proved to be so useful during World War II that the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) had established a global network of 13 weather ships by 1948, with seven operated by the United States, one operated jointly by the United States and Canada, two supplied by the United Kingdom, one maintained by France, one a joint venture by the Netherlands and Belgium, and one shared by the United Kingdom, Norway, and Sweden.  This number was eventually negotiated down to nine.  The agreement of the use of weather ships by the international community ended in 1985.
caption: Weather buoy operated by the NOAA National Data Buoy Center
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