Seamanship & Navigation - Ocean Navigator

05 Dec

Sailor Lost at Sea During ARC Rally

Theresa NicholsonBoat Accidents, Cruising Rallies, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Sailing, Racing News, Sailboat Racing, Seamanship & Navigation

Second vessel abandoned after taking on water. The Atlantic Rally for Cruisers community, along with the extended sailing community, is mourning the loss of Swedish sailor Dag Eresund, who was lost overboard from Volvo 70 racing yacht Ocean Breeze on Monday. A mayday call went out at 2:30 UTC on December 2 from Ocean Breeze, sailing approximately 1,300 nautical miles east of Bermuda in challenging conditions with winds gusting more than 30 knots. A search was initiated by the vessel. The U.S. Maritime Rescue Coordination Center (MRCC) in Norfolk, Va., (MRCC) put out an emergency alert to all shipping for…

19 Nov

Imray to Phase out Chart Publishing

Eric ColbyElectronic charting, Navigation, Ocean Navigator, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Sailing, Seamanship & Navigation

On November 18, longtime British navigation chart publisher Imray announced that it is starting a gradual shutdown of chart publishing operations. The company said the decision reflects the growing shift toward digital nautical navigation. Imray will continue to serve the maritime community with pilot books, cruising guides and the “Explore with Imray” digital product. Chart production and support, including Imray Notices to Mariners, will continue through the 2025 season. Beyond that, new editions will cease. Imray says the lead time will provide an opportunity for captains to acquire paper charts while they are still available. The company is one of…

14 Nov

Tips for Snowbirds Heading South

Eric ColbyNewsletter, Seamanship & Navigation

With the 2024 hurricane season in our wake, many sailors and trawler owners from the Northeast are either en route or preparing to head south for the winter. Whether you’re a veteran or newcomer to navigating the eastern seaboard of the United States, it never hurts to brush up on the basics. We talked to veteran Ocean Navigator contributor Ann Hoffner from her home in Sorrento, Maine, and to John Hines, an instructor at the Offshore Sailing School, for some tips on making sure the trip is a successful one. You would think that prepping your boat and gear for…

14 Nov

New Safety Products Coming at METSTRADE Show

Eric ColbyOcean Voyaging, Offshore Safety, Offshore Sailing, Power Voyaging, Sailboat Racing, Seamanship & Navigation

ACR Electronics will introduce its new ResQFlare PRO and Ocean Signal will launch its rescueME EDF2 distress light at the METSTRADE international trade show for the recreational boating industry in Amsterdam Nov. 19 to 21. Nominated for a DAME Design Award in the Safety and Security category, the ResQFlare PRO distress light represents a step forward in distress signal technology. ACR said the light exceeds U.S. Coast Guard requirements and combines electronic and optical technologies to give the ResQFlare improved functionality compared to pyrotechnic flares. The buoyant electronic visual distress signaling device delivers a more powerful SOS distress alert system…

15 Oct

TCarta Hopes to Improve Safety with Satellite Data

Eric ColbyBoat & Gear News, Electronic charting, Home Page Hero, Industry & Company News, Nav Problems, Navigation, Seamanship & Navigation

One of many challenges when entering a new harbor is not knowing accurate depths. Recent occurrences of groundings off the coasts of Oman, Greenland and Fiji were under investigation in early October and the underlying causes were complicated. One common thread is a lack of current bathymetric data in coastal areas, particularly those outside established shipping lanes. Denver-based TCarta Marine uses earth observation satellites to provide accurate water depth measurements for near-shore areas. “The risk of such accidents can be significantly reduced with up-to-date bathymetric data produced from satellite imagery,” TCarta president Kyle Goodrich said in a statement. In many…

10 Oct

Real-Time Ocean Data Enhances Hurricane Forecasting Accuracy

Eric ColbyOcean Navigator, Ocean Voyaging, Seamanship & Navigation

Sofar Ocean, a maker of ocean-data capturing sensors, has partnered with the National Mesonet Program, KBR and Synoptic Data PBC to supply real-time ocean sensor data to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Hurricane Center. The collaboration provides the NHC with ocean temperatures and atmospheric data, improving early warning systems for extreme weather events. Sofar’s spotter buoys are deployed around the world and deliver data on wave activity, wind sea surface temperature and atmospheric pressure. The buoys are airdropped into the paths of hurricanes 24 to 48 hours before they make landfall, giving forecasters more insight into the conditions…

10 Oct

PredictWind Unveils New Weather Forecasting Feature

Eric ColbyNavigation, Ocean Navigator, Ocean Voyaging, Offshore Sailing, Seamanship & Navigation

PredictWind, a marine weather forecasting service based in Auckland, N.Z., has introduced a new Climate Data feature. The company says the new element can empower sailors and mariners to make more informed decisions about the best times to travel by offering month-to-month insights into average, wind, wave and weather conditions for any location worldwide. “This historical data is unique,” said PredictWind founding director Jon Bilger in a statement. “We have used phenomenal amounts of computing power to collate and average the data for the entire world in 30 km resolution.” The Climate Data feature provides users with rolling averages of…

21 Sep

Close Quarters Maneuvering

Eric ColbyNewsletter, Seamanship & Navigation

When veteran cruiser and sailing instructor Andy Cross is approaching a dock, he already has a plan on how to complete the landing smoothly. “Many times, people who are on the dock want to help and I’ll say, ‘No thank you, we’re good.’” Even for experienced cruisers and sailors, entering a marina or dockage for the first time presents challenges. Any serious athlete talks about making sure he or she has a good foundation and that starts with having the basics covered. Golfers practice before they play a round. Professional baseball players still hit off a tee. Basketball players hoist…

26 Mar

Sailing from Panama to San Diego

Bill MorrisNewsletter, Seamanship & Navigation

Most Pacific sailors and published cruising guides will tell you there are two ways back to Southern California from Panama: a motor bash 3,400 miles along the coast of Central America and then up along Baja, or out to Hawaii, over the Pacific High to San Francisco, and then down the coast, rounding Point Conception (a.k.a. Little Cape Horn). But there is a third way back: a sail from Panama to California via Clipperton Island with very little motoring. Jimmy Cornell’s directions in World Cruising Routes take you directly from Panama out beyond Clipperton Island, and then north until arriving…

23 Jan

Windvane self-steering maintenance

Bill MorrisSeamanship & NavigationSeamanship

by Bill Morris No matter how hard the wind blows, a windvane self-steering system is your vessel’s round-the-clock helmsman. So it makes good sense to maintain the vane gear in top condition at all times. Performing the following procedures will keep your windvane steering system functioning properly with fewer hassles and will aid you in making major repairs in the unlikely event that something goes awry while under sail. Inspection Your predeparture checklist starts with checking all fasteners, which should be snug, particularly at the mounting brackets. Large rings of brown rust around bolt heads or nuts indicate a loose…