Winds of the Earth - Website

[Steve_C]

I found this link that visualizes the winds for the whole planet. Its modeled on a supercomputer and updated every 3 hours. If you click on a location it displays coordinates and wind speed in the lower right corner. If you click on the actual wind speed it will toggle thru the various unit, ie km/hr, mph, etc..

Be sure to view on a large monitor with a good connection for best results. It works OK on my wife's Ipad, but is far more impressive on my 24" monitor with a high speed connection.

You can also look at currents, wave height and direction, relative humidity and wind at different elevations. Really incredible modeling.

https://earth.nullschool.net/

[DDabs]

Cool site, similar to windyty.com

[zeehag]

difference is that earth wind doesnt predict, as does windy ty . windy ty had a hurricane last year plotted to san diego. as these are so very accurate....not-- i use many different sites to accrue information for sailing and weather. passage weather, so far, has been most accurate of all i have seen and used.
earth wind is fun to play with.

[tuffr2]

At what elevation are these wind patterns? I have seen clouds move from land toward the ocean while wind at the surface were opposite.

Sent from my SM-G360V using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

[Steve_C]

Originally Posted by tuffr2

At what elevation are these wind patterns? I have seen clouds move from land toward the ocean while wind at the surface were opposite.

Sent from my SM-G360V using Cruisers Sailing Forum mobile app

Click on the "Earth" in the lower left and you can select the elevation. default seems to be sea level.

[Omatako]

Originally Posted by zeehag

difference is that earth wind doesnt predict, as does windy ty .. . . . .

It does predict. You have the ability to advance the picture for up (I think) seven days and you can do it in varying sized steps. Open the menu by clicking the Earth button bottom left, then click the Control line 5th from the top. The single arrow moves you forward 3 hours, the double arrow, a full day. Check the top line for the selected date/time.

Any prediction going out beyond seven days is a crap-shoot anyway.

FYI, I recently paid for and used Predictwind to plan an ocean voyage and was rather disappointed by the quality of the predictions. The weather we experienced was nothing like the predictions. The Nullschool predictions which I have been using for a few years now, has historically been better.

[robert sailor]

Originally Posted by Omatako

It does predict. You have the ability to advance the picture for up (I think) seven days and you can do it in varying sized steps. Open the menu by clicking the Earth button bottom left, then click the Control line 5th from the top. The single arrow moves you forward 3 hours, the double arrow, a full day. Check the top line for the selected date/time.

Any prediction going out beyond seven days is a crap-shoot anyway.

FYI, I recently paid for and used Predictwind to plan an ocean voyage and was rather disappointed by the quality of the predictions. The weather we experienced was nothing like the predictions. The Nullschool predictions which I have been using for a few years now, has historically been better.

All these weather sites that can be downloaded use GRIB files for their basic information, the rest is just how the GRIB information is presented. Often this info is reasonably accurate but for a better prediction of weather you need the human touch of a meteorologist.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by robert sailor

All these weather sites that can be downloaded use GRIB files for their basic information, the rest is just how the GRIB information is presented. Often this info is reasonably accurate but for a better prediction of weather you need the human touch of a meteorologist.

Exactly, these are really cool presentations of primarily the GFS GRIB models.

[Omatako]

Originally Posted by robert sailor

All these weather sites that can be downloaded use GRIB files for their basic information, the rest is just how the GRIB information is presented. Often this info is reasonably accurate but for a better prediction of weather you need the human touch of a meteorologist.

With respect, the interpretation of available data on "these weather sites" is not being done by the local blacksmith. It is the result of the "human touch of a meteorologist". It just that the human touch of one is going to be better/worse than another and hence the disparity in the on-going quality of the forecasting of one against another.

And, more than seven days is still going to a crapshoot despite the human touch. This stuff all depends on standard prediction models but it still requires a bit of hocus pocus mixed with generous dollop of luck.

In my experience the Nullschool predictions are consistently better than the NZ Metservice daily forecasting which is pure "human touch of a meteorologist". And it's much easier to understand

[nhschneider]

We use all the routine weather sites when we're planning a passage, passageweather.com, windyty.com, buoyweather.com, etc. However, when we were planning the passage from Madagascar to South Africa in the dead of winter, we chose to enlist the help of Bob McDavitt, a famous New Zealand meteorologist. The route he did for us was by far the most accurate of any site and even though we were in daily contact with the Sam Net, a South African-based HF ham net for cruisers in the area, McDavitt's weather route for us was spot on, despite the fact that he was forecasting almost 10 days out - in an area that's notorious for sudden and sometimes catastrophic changes. McDavitt stayed in close touch with us throughout the passage and at one point chided us into 'not dawdling' and make a bee-line for Richards Bay. We completed the 1,500-mile non-stop passage in 10 days, arriving on the 4th of July.

Fair winds and calm seas.

[Delancey]

Great site, has been posted here many times since it was new almost three years ago. Useful for developing a big picture sense of how weather works on a global scale. I find the MSLP (mean sea level pressure) overlay the most informative in this respect.

https://earth.nullschool.net/#curren...e/orthographic

Really though, not super prescise. Went back after a North Atlantic passage and studied what the daily wind map showed vs. what the logbook read. Not always the same. Sometimes off by 30kts.

I also like the SST (sea surface tempurature) overlay on the ocean currents.

https://earth.nullschool.net/#curren...70.70,9.30,545

[Don C L]

I had not seen that site, thanks for posting it!

[Delancey]

SST overlay

[Omatako]

Originally Posted by nhschneider

We use all the routine weather sites when we're planning a passage, passageweather.com, windyty.com, buoyweather.com, etc. However, when we were planning the passage from Madagascar to South Africa in the dead of winter, we chose to enlist the help of Bob McDavitt, a famous New Zealand meteorologist. The route he did for us was by far the most accurate of any site and even though we were in daily contact with the Sam Net, a South African-based HF ham net for cruisers in the area, McDavitt's weather route for us was spot on, despite the fact that he was forecasting almost 10 days out - in an area that's notorious for sudden and sometimes catastrophic changes. McDavitt stayed in close touch with us throughout the passage and at one point chided us into 'not dawdling' and make a bee-line for Richards Bay. We completed the 1,500-mile non-stop passage in 10 days, arriving on the 4th of July.

Fair winds and calm seas.

You were lucky. Our last experience with a McDavitt forecast was exactly the opposite and placed us in a life-threatening situation.

I have studiously avoided anything Bob has had to say since then.

[Paul L]

Originally Posted by Omatako

With respect, the interpretation of available data on "these weather sites" is not being done by the local blacksmith. It is the result of the "human touch of a meteorologist". It just that the human touch of one is going to be better/worse than another and hence the disparity in the on-going quality of the forecasting of one against another.

And, more than seven days is still going to a crapshoot despite the human touch. This stuff all depends on standard prediction models but it still requires a bit of hocus pocus mixed with generous dollop of luck.

In my experience the Nullschool predictions are consistently better than the NZ Metservice daily forecasting which is pure "human touch of a meteorologist". And it's much easier to understand

Are you saying that windyty or earth.nullschool site have forecast human touch? I don't think so. They are both just visualizations of GRIB data.