Our Blog
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Wave Period: Why Time Between Waves Matters
Introduction Two boats leave port on the same morning. Both check the forecast showing 5-foot seas. One returns early, crew exhausted and boat taking a beating. The other completes a comfortable passage with minimal drama. What made the difference? Wave period—the measurement most recreational mariners ignore and every professional watches closely. Wave period is the…
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Swell vs Wind Waves: The Critical Difference
Introduction You’re checking the marine forecast before an offshore passage. The display shows “Total Wave Height: 6 feet.” Sounds manageable, right? But when you arrive at the departure point, the reality is different than expected. Sometimes those 6-foot seas are comfortable long-period swells rolling underneath the boat. Other times, they’re steep, chaotic wind waves that…
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Weather Favorites: Building Your Personal Monitoring Network
I check weather at seven different locations before leaving the dock. Not because I’m paranoid, but because coastal weather changes dramatically over just 20 nautical miles. That headwind at the harbor entrance? It might be a perfect beam reach by the time you round the point. Mariner Studio’s Weather Favorites system lets you monitor all…
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How to Check Weather for a Distant Port
What You’ll Learn After reading this guide, you’ll be able to: Quickly find weather data for any port or anchorage worldwide Evaluate arrival conditions days or weeks in advance Identify weather patterns along your entire route Make informed go/no-go decisions before departing Set up monitoring systems for multiple destination ports Before You Begin What You’ll…
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How Tides Actually Work: Moon, Sun, and Gravity
Introduction You’re sitting in the cockpit an hour before dawn, watching the harbor slowly drain. The boat settles lower against the dock pilings. Charts on your navigation table show you need 8 feet under the keel to clear the bar, and right now you have 12. But in three hours, you’ll have just 6 feet.…
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Spring Tides vs Neap Tides: Planning Around the Cycle
The tide table shows high water at 8.7 feet. But is that good or bad for your passage? The answer depends entirely on whether you’re in a spring tide or neap tide period—and most recreational mariners don’t even check. Spring tides and neap tides represent the extremes of tidal range variation, driven by the gravitational…
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Moon Phase Integration: How Lunar Cycles Affect Marine Weather
You’re planning a dawn departure. The forecast looks promising—light winds, clear skies, good visibility. But there’s something else you should know: tonight is a new moon. That single fact affects your passage in ways most recreational mariners overlook. The moon phase influences tidal range, nighttime visibility, wildlife activity, and even your psychological readiness for overnight…
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7-Day Forecasts vs Hourly: When to Use Each
7-Day Forecasts vs Hourly: When to Use Each | Mariner Studio body { font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, ‘Segoe UI’, Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, sans-serif; line-height: 1.8; color: #333; max-width: 800px; margin: 0 auto; padding: 20px; background-color: #f8f9fa; } article { background: white; padding: 40px; border-radius: 8px; box-shadow: 0 2px 8px rgba(0,0,0,0.1); } h1 { color: #1e3c72;…
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Humidity at Sea: Understanding Relative Humidity
Introduction It was 0500 on a July morning in Chesapeake Bay, and the forecast called for clear skies and light winds—perfect conditions for an early transit up to Baltimore. The air temperature was 72°F, and relative humidity read 94%. Those numbers meant something specific: fog was about to form. By 0530, visibility had dropped to…
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Wind Gust Prediction: When Gusts Matter More
Introduction The forecast called for sustained winds of 15 knots as we prepared to transit Long Island Sound from New London to Port Jefferson. Fifteen knots is manageable for tug and barge operations—routine work we do every week. But buried in the details was a gust forecast of 28 knots, and that changes everything. Sustained…