Ship Observation Entry Form

Welcome to the Voluntary Observing Ship data entry page. Thank you for taking the time to submit your observation. The data you enter here plays a major important role in producing accurate weather and wave forecasts. Your observation is included in the computer models that create weather and wind forecasts. The more initial data in the model, the better the forecast; especially over the data sparse open waters of the Great Lakes.

If you need to make a correction to your observation, click on the back button after you transmitted your observation and make the final correction and retransmit your observation.

Your ship's radio callsign (which is also your login ID here) must be registered with DMAWDS in order to send an observation.

Note: Any element in red denotes mandatory observed entry.

What is the radio call sign (ID) of your ship? (NOTE: USE LETTERS AND NUMBERS ONLY. NO SPACES.)

What is your DMAWDS password?

Day of the month in UTC:

Actual Time of Observation to the Nearest Whole Hour in UTC:

What is the latitude in tenths of a degree (example: 42.8)?

What is the longitude in tenths of a degree (example: 82.1)?

Enter the wind speed to the nearest knot (example: 12)?

Enter the wind direction in degrees (example: 90, 270):

Enter the wave height in feet (example: 6, 12)?

Enter the wave period in seconds (example: 5, 12)?

Enter the air temperature. Be sure to check units below. (example: 4, 75)?

Fahrenheit

Celsius

Enter the dew point. Be sure to check units below. (example: 2, 80)?

Fahrenheit

Celsius

Enter the pressure. Be sure to check units below. (example: 30.15 for inches, 990 or 1020 for millibars)?

Inches

Millibars

Enter the code for the pressure tendency:

0 -- Increasing, then decreasing.
1 -- Increasing, then steady.
2 -- Increasing, then increasing more slowly.
3 -- Increasing, steadily or unsteadily.
4 -- Steady.
5 -- Decreasing, then increasing.
6 -- Decreasing, then steady, or Decreasing, then decreasing more slowly.
7 -- Decreasing steadily, or unsteadily.
8 -- Steady or increasing, then decreasing, or decreasing, then decreasing more rapidly.

Enter the 3 hour change in pressure in tenths of mb (example: 2.2)?

Enter the code for visibility:

Enter the lake water temperature. Be sure to check units below. (example: 2, 54)?

Fahrenheit

Celsius

Enter the observed present weather:

Enter the past weather by selecting the proper codes (W1W2). Do not put a space in between the codes (example: '14' not '1 4')?

9 -- Thunderstorm(s) with or without precipitation
8 -- Shower(s)
7 -- Snow, or rain and snow mixed
6 -- Rain
5 -- Drizzle
4 -- Fog, ice fog, or thick haze (visibility less than 1/2 nautical mile
3 -- Sandstorm, duststorm, or blowing snow
2 -- Cloud cover more than 1/2 throughout period
1 -- Cloud cover more than 1/2 for part of period, and 1/2 or less for another part of period
0 -- Cloud cover 1/2 or less throughout period

Enter the total cloud cover in octas (0-9)?

Enter the amount of low and mid clouds present in octas (0-9)?

Enter the code for the height of the lowest cloud base (0-9)?

Enter the code for low clouds (0-9)?

Enter the code for mid clouds (0-9)?

Enter the code for high clouds (0-9)?

Enter the ship's true course code (0-9)?

Enter the ship's average speed code (0-9)?

To submit your observation, click on this button and you're done.