Similar to the latter part of last week, high pressure conditions will also prevail over the North Sea in the upcoming days. This will lead to unusually calm and constant weather for November, and consequently work-favourable conditions in the area. Nonetheless, it remains important to consult up-to-date weather reports, particularly regarding wave heights in the northern parts of the North Sea.
Currently, a high pressure area is situated over central Europe. As the system remains lingering over central and eastern Europe, the North Sea will also stay under its influence in the coming days. A low pressure area will develop over the Atlantic and will interfere with the high pressure conditions over the North Sea on Wednesday. This will lead to increased southerly winds over the North Sea on Thursday and Friday (20-25 kts), along with the potential passage of a weak frontal trough over the northern regions.
These southerly winds will increase significant wave heights (Hs) in the northern parts of the North Sea (figure 1), where locally values of 3 m are reached, hence possibly exceeding critical operational thresholds. In contrast, the central and southern parts of the North Sea are anticipated to remain calm. Over the weekend, the high pressure area regains full control over the North Sea, reducing both Hs and wind speeds again.
Next to the southerly winds, there are low risks of fog formation over the North Sea in the coming days, which will be a second reason to remain monitoring the conditions at your site. This fog has a patchy character and is not expected to be widespread, but only occurs locally.
Looking ahead to next week, the high pressure seems to persist over the European mainland. Despite increasing uncertainty due to the longer term of the forecast, the outlook remains promising for offshore work.
Figure 1: North Sea Weather: Calm conditions under high pressure
