A gale warning is an alert issued by national

weather forecasting Weather forecasting is the application of science and technology forecasting, to predict the conditions of the Earth's atmosphere, atmosphere for a given location and time. People have attempted to predict the weather informally for millennia a ...

agencies around the world in an event that maritime locations currently or imminently experiencing winds of

gale A gale is a strong wind; the word is typically used as a descriptor in nautical contexts. The U.S. National Weather Service defines a gale as sustained surface winds moving at a speed of between 34 and 47 knots (, or ).Beaufort scale. Gale warnings (and gale watches) allow mariners to take precautionary actions to ensure their safety at sea or to seek safe anchorage and ride out the storm on land. Though usually associated with deep

low-pressure area In meteorology, a low-pressure area, low area or low is a region where the atmospheric pressure is lower than that of surrounding locations. Low-pressure areas are commonly associated with inclement weather (such as cloudy, windy, with possible ...

s, winds strong enough to catalyze a gale warning can occur in other conditions too, including from

anticyclone An anticyclone is a weather phenomenon defined as a large-scale circulation of winds around a central region of high atmospheric pressure, clockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and counterclockwise in the Southern Hemisphere as viewed from abov ...

s, or high-pressure systems, in the continental interior. The winds are not directly associated with a tropical cyclone.

Usage in the United States

Maritime

In the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, the

National Weather Service The National Weather Service (NWS) is an Government agency, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government that is tasked with providing weather forecasts, warnings of hazardous weather, and other weathe ...

issues gale warnings for marine areas (oceans, sounds, estuaries, and the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes in the mid-east region of North America that connect to the Atlantic Ocean via the Saint Lawrence River. There are five lakes ...

) experiencing, or about to experience, winds within the range of to . In United States maritime warning flag systems, two red pennants indicate a gale warning; the use of one such flag denotes a

small craft advisory A small craft advisory is a type of wind warning issued by the National Weather Service in the United States. In Canada a similar warning is issued by Environment Canada. It is issued when winds have reached, or are expected to reach within 12 ho ...

. The National Weather Service issues a

storm warning At sea, a storm warning is a warning issued by the National Weather Service of the United States when winds between 48 knots (89 km/h, 55 mph) and 63 knots (117 km/h, 73 mph) are occurring or predicted to occur soon. The wi ...

for higher winds of to at sea. In the event of a tropical cyclone, however, a

tropical storm warning Tropical cyclone warnings and watches are alerts issued by national weather forecasting bodies to coastal areas threatened by the imminent approach of a tropical cyclone of tropical storm or hurricane intensity. They are notices to the local popul ...

replaces both the gale warning and the storm warning. In this situation, the storm warning maritime flag is also used in lieu of the gale warning pennants, regardless of the intensity of the tropical storm.

Land

The

issues a similar high wind warning (

Specific Area Message Encoding Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME) is a protocol used for framing and classification of broadcast emergency warning messages. It was developed by the United States National Weather Service for use on its NOAA Weather Radio (NWR) network, and w ...

code: HWW) for high winds on land. The criteria vary from place to place; however, in most cases, the warning applies to winds of to for at least 1 hour; ''or'' any gusts of to on land. It is more severe than a ''wind advisory'', but not as severe as an ''

extreme wind warning An extreme wind warning ( SAME code EWW) is an alert issued by the National Weather Service for areas that will experience sustained surface winds 100 knots (115 mph, 185 km/h, 51 m/s) or greater within one hour, due to a lan ...

'', which is generally issued if hurricane-force winds are expected. The high wind warning is not issued if a

blizzard warning A blizzard warning ( SAME code: BZW) is a hazardous weather statement issued by Weather Forecast Offices (WFO) of the National Weather Service (NWS) in the United States, which indicates heavy snowfall accompanied by sustained winds or frequent gu ...

winter storm warning A winter storm warning ( SAME code: WSW) is a hazardous weather statement issued by Weather Forecast Offices (WFO) of the National Weather Service (NWS) in the United States to alert the public that a winter storm is occurring or is about to occur ...

severe thunderstorm warning A severe thunderstorm warning ( SAME code: SVR) is a severe weather warning product issued by regional offices of weather forecasting agencies throughout the world to alert the public that severe thunderstorms are imminent or occurring. A sev ...

dust storm warning A dust storm warning (SAME code: DSW) is issued by the National Weather Service in the United States when blowing dust is expected to frequently reduce visibility to or less, generally with winds of or more. Beginning November 1, 2018, the Natio ...

, or

tornado warning A tornado warning ( SAME code: TOR) is a severe weather warning product issued by regional offices of weather forecasting agencies throughout the world to alert the public when a tornado has been reported or indicated by weather radar within the ...

covers the phenomenon. This should not be confused with the extreme wind warning tag, which denotes wind speeds of 115 mph or greater, and is most often seen in powerful hurricanes.

Usage in the United Kingdom

In the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, the

Met Office The Meteorological Office, abbreviated as the Met Office, is the United Kingdom's national weather service. It is an executive agency and trading fund of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and is led by CEO Penelope E ...

issues gale warnings, and radio broadcasts them four times a day at fixed times on 198 kHz in the

Shipping Forecast The Shipping Forecast is a BBC Radio broadcast of weather reports and forecasts for the seas around the coasts of the British Isles. It is produced by the Met Office and broadcast by BBC Radio 4 on behalf of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency. ...

, part of the broadcast output of

BBC Radio 4 BBC Radio 4 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that replaced the BBC Home Service in 1967. It broadcasts a wide variety of spoken-word programmes, including news, drama, comedy, science and history from the BBC' ...

. If a considerable time will intervene before the next Shipping Forecast, forecasters may issue an extra gale warning, read between programmes. The Meteorological Office issues warnings for sea areas surrounding the United Kingdom for all predictions of winds of Beaufort scale Force 8 or greater, the forecasts extending as far north as

Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...

and as far south as southern

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

Robert FitzRoy Vice-Admiral Robert FitzRoy (5 July 1805 – 30 April 1865) was an English officer of the Royal Navy and a scientist. He achieved lasting fame as the captain of during Charles Darwin's famous voyage, FitzRoy's second expedition to Tierra de ...

developed the first weather forecasting and storm warning system. On 1 September 1860 weather reports began to be collected at the

Meteorological Office The Meteorological Office, abbreviated as the Met Office, is the United Kingdom's national weather service. It is an executive agency and trading fund of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and is led by CEO Penelope ...

in London via electric telegraph and on 5 February 1861 the first storm warning was issued. After his death in 1865 the storm warning service was discontinued due to the ongoing debate about its scientific accuracy but the increased loss of life caused a public outcry and a campaign in press and in parliament saw the restoration of storm warnings in 1867. The service continues to this day and is now known as the iconic

Usage in Ireland

Met Éireann Met Éireann (; meaning " Met of Ireland") is the state meteorological service of Ireland, part of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage. History The history of modern meteorology in Ireland dates back to 8 October 1860, wh ...

, the

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

meteorological office, issues an area forecast for the

Irish Sea The Irish Sea or , gv, Y Keayn Yernagh, sco, Erse Sie, gd, Muir Èireann , Ulster-Scots: ''Airish Sea'', cy, Môr Iwerddon . is an extensive body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Ce ...

and warnings for sea areas around Ireland with headlands of Ireland (e.g.

Fair Head The Great Cliff , photo = Fair Head - geograph.org.uk - 817076.jpg , photo_width = , photo_caption = Fair Head's distinctive ''organ pipe'' dolerite columns, as taken from the Rathlin Island– Ballycastle ferry , map = UK Northern Ireland ...

Malin Head Malin Head ( ga, Cionn Mhálanna) is the most northerly point of mainland Ireland, located in the townland of Ardmalin on the Inishowen peninsula in County Donegal. The head's northernmost point is called Dunalderagh at latitude 55.38ºN. It is ...

Mizen Head Mizen Head ( ga, Carn Uí Néid) is traditionally regarded as the most southerly point of mainland Ireland. It is at the end of the Mizen Peninsula in the district of Carbery in County Cork. Geography Mizen Head is one of the extreme points ...

, Carnsore Point) defining stretches of coast.

Usage in Canada

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

, the

Meteorological Service of Canada The Meteorological Service of Canada (MSC; french: Service météorologique du Canada – SMC) is a division of Environment and Climate Change Canada, which primarily provides public meteorological information and weather forecasts and warnings o ...

branch of the

Environment and Climate Change Canada Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC; french: Environnement et Changement climatique Canada),Environment and Climate Change Canada is the applied title under the Federal Identity Program; the legal title is Department of the Environment ...

issues a similar gale warning for lakes, oceans, and other marine areas within the country.

Usage in the Philippines

In the

Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...

, the

Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration Pagasa may refer to: * ''Pagasa'' (genus), an insect genus in the family Nabidae * PAGASA, an acronym for the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration *"May Pagasa", a pen-name of José Rizal José Prot ...

(PAGASA) branch of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) issues gale warnings during weather disturbances (including

typhoon A typhoon is a mature tropical cyclone that develops between 180° and 100°E in the Northern Hemisphere. This region is referred to as the Northwestern Pacific Basin, and is the most active tropical cyclone basin on Earth, accounting for a ...

s) within the

Philippine Area of Responsibility The Philippine Area of Responsibility (PAR) is an area in the Northwestern Pacific where PAGASA, the Philippines' national meteorological agency, monitors weather occurrences. Significant weather disturbances, specifically tropical cyclones tha ...

(PAR).

Example

The following is an example of a Gale Warning issued by the National Weather Service office in North Webster, Indiana.

URGENT - MARINE WEATHER MESSAGE
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE NORTHERN INDIANA
901 PM EDT WED OCT 29 2014

LMZ043-046-300915-
/O.CON.KIWX.GL.W.0014.141031T1200Z-141101T0900Z/
NEW BUFFALO MI TO ST JOSEPH MI-MICHIGAN CITY IN TO NEW BUFFALO MI-
901 PM EDT WED OCT 29 2014

...GALE WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 8 AM FRIDAY TO 5 AM EDT
SATURDAY...

* WINDS...NORTHWEST 15 TO 25 KNOTS WITH GUSTS TO 30 KNOTS BY
  DAYBREAK FRIDAY...VEERING NORTH TO 35 KNOT GALES WITH GUSTS TO
  45 KNOT GALES FRIDAY. NORTH WINDS DIMINISHING TO 20 TO 30
  KNOTS WITH GUSTS TO 35 KNOT GALES LATE FRIDAY NIGHT.

* WAVES..5 TO 8 FEET LATE THURSDAY NIGHT...BUILDING TO 14 TO 20
  FEET FRIDAY...SUBSIDING TO 8 TO 12 FEET LATE FRIDAY NIGHT.

PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...

A GALE WARNING MEANS WINDS OF 34 TO 47 KNOTS ARE IMMINENT OR
OCCURRING. OPERATING A VESSEL IN GALE CONDITIONS REQUIRES
EXPERIENCE AND PROPERLY EQUIPPED VESSELS. IT IS HIGHLY
RECOMMENDED THAT MARINERS WITHOUT THE PROPER EXPERIENCE SEEK SAFE
HARBOR PRIOR TO THE ONSET OF GALE CONDITIONS.

&&

$$

STAY TUNED TO NOAA WEATHER RADIO FOR FURTHER DETAILS OR
UPDATES...OR CHECK OUR WEB SITE AT WEATHER.GOV/IWX/?N=MARINE

References

External links

Meteorological Service of Canada
{{SevWea nav Weather warnings and advisories Seas Winds

Usage in the United States

Maritime

Land

Usage in the United Kingdom

Usage in Ireland

Usage in Canada

Usage in the Philippines

Example

See also

References

External links