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Whatever craft you sail, currents can have a significant effect on your transit times across an ocean, particularly where the major ocean currents such as the Kuroshio and Gulf Stream flow. However, the beginning and end of most ocean crossings transit coastal waters, where there can be strong tides. Understanding how and why each type of current forms and where they occur increases the likelihood of a successful passage - whether it be a 'just-in-time' arrival on a ship or a podium finish in a yacht race.

Credit: NASA

Due to high demand we have released a limited edition high resolution tidal model for Narragansett bay and Rhode island Sound in time for the Rolex New York Yacht Club Race Week.  The region covered includes all racing areas in the Bay and to the South at 110 m resolution at 60 minute intervals.

Data is available as GRIBs or PDF images like the ones below, for the North and South race areas.

We are very excited to release our new model of Long Island Sound in time for the Vineyard Race this Friday. With a resolution of 110m the model covers the race area in incredible detail, showing for the first time how the tidal currents flow around key locations across the course.

For anyone that wants to start out using meteorological data for a planned application, it can seem daunting to look through all the different sources to try and figure out which one is best for your circumstances. A wide variety of options includes government-funded models, models from research institutions and also commercial and private institutes. So which is the best model?

Suppose you're familiar with oceanography and some of the more treacherous shipping routes of the world. In that case, you'll know about the challenges for the shipping industry that the Strait of Gibraltar poses. This narrow passage that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea has many elements that contribute to the complexity of tides and currents in this area, and this article explores how it all works.

There’s no denying that the ongoing demand for shipping organisations to respond to overcapacity, environment responsibility and profit margins with streamlined services that afford integrated and end-to-end logistics is increasing.

Each year the Sydney-Hobart yacht race seems to get bigger and bigger, this year for the 75th anniversary 163 boats are registered to compete, the largest cohort since 1994. Who will get line honours? Which boats will win the different classifications? And which boat will claim overall victory? In all classifications the winner will be determined by a combination of skilled sailing, and a bit of luck.

How tricky currents play a part in the closing stages of the Rolex Sydney to Hobart Race

The last few miles of a Sydney to Hobart race has often determined the ultimate winner. Capricious, shifty wind and 'bullets' - gusts that come screaming down the steep hillsides lining the course are often to blame. Not to mention the notorious night time 'shut-down' - where the wind disappears entirely.

The role of currents here has been overlooked - most likely because little information has been publicly available. This is set to change thanks to a new hydrodynamic model produced by the Coastal Environmental Modelling Team at CSIRO which Tidetech will be making available for the Sydney, Melbourne and Launceston to Hobart races this year as part of a package of Grib files and analyses.

Tide and current data will be available to users of DNV GL’s Veracity web service after Hobart-Australia-based metocean data specialist Tidetech joined Veracity.
Tidetech will make its metocean data available to Veracity users as data or via an API, enabling shipowners and managers to optimise their fleet operations, save fuel and increase vessel efficiency. Tidetech is the only provider high resolution forecast modelling of coastal tides and currents, including in critical locations such as the Malacca Strait and English Channel where there is a significant influence of tidal currents.