marine weather

North Sea weather: Workable conditions over the North Sea

High pressure dominates the entire North Sea region, bringing generally workable conditions. Toward the end of the week, this high is expected to weaken, allowing low pressure systems to gradually influence the area. However, current weather models do not indicate the development of any deep or intense lows at this stage.

Read time 1 min

8 April 2025

By Alice Lentink

Figure 1: Wave heights over the North Sea according to GFS weather model: Thursday, 10 - Sunday, 13 April.

The weather over the North Sea has been dominated by high pressure for the past few days. Combined with good visibility, this has resulted in generally workable conditions, which are expected to continue through Wednesday.

A deep low currently situated over the Barents Sea is moving eastward. On its western flank, strong gales are generating high-energy northerly waves. These are forecast to reach the northern North Sea as swell early on Thursday.

At the same time, the high pressure system is gradually shifting its center toward the UK, making room for Atlantic low-pressure systems to track eastward via the Norwegian Sea later this week and into the weekend. This could lead to periods of strong west to northwesterly winds in the northern North Sea. The high pressure over the UK is expected to weaken over the weekend.

Conclusion

Overall, weather conditions will be generally favourable for offshore operations throughout the period. However, it is important to closely monitor daily weather forecasts, as low-pressure areas may deepen more than expected. Please review your forecast carefully and stay safe!

We plan to post this weather briefing on our Infoplaza for Marine Weather Operations LinkedIn page as well. This is also the place where we will share other insightful marine weather articles, so be sure to follow us to never miss an update.