METAREAs forecast and warning program: chapter 2

2.0 The METAREAS Marine Forecast and Warning Program

Marine forecast and warning service to METAREAs XVII and XVIII encompasses national waters in Canada’s northern and Arctic maritime regions, as well as international waters within the Arctic Ocean extending to the North Pole.

MSC’s METAREAs Marine Forecast & Warning Program is tailored to ensure compliance with the relevant international standards for this type of service. METAREAs marine forecast bulletins are issued twice-daily at regularly scheduled times during the Arctic shipping season, and consist of a detailed description of expected marine weather conditions over a two-day period. Marine weather parameters of paramount interest to mariners such as wind, visibility, waves, and sea ice conditions are included in the METAREAs marine forecast bulletins.

To supplement the marine forecast information, a technical marine synopsis describing the significant synoptic weather systems affecting the METAREAs district is included with the METAREAs marine forecast bulletin.

In addition, MSC will alert mariners to potentially hazardous marine weather conditions such as storms or freezing spray within the METAREAs by placing appropriate warnings in effect for the affected marine areas. These warnings are included in the METAREAs marine forecast bulletins to indicate areas where potentially hazardous marine weather conditions are expected or occurring.

Marine warnings are placed in effect immediately upon the need becoming apparent, based on the expected or observed marine weather conditions. This may at times require updated METAREAs forecast bulletins to be issued outside the regularly scheduled issue times.