WindPlot

Xaxero’s WindPlot is an easy-to-use yet powerful GRIB viewer that will display most available GRIB types.
 

Reads a Grib file and displays the data graphically.

Used by thousands of sailors today.
 

Value added features include World Wide bathymetric charts on the CD.
Now Supports SCATTS data !
 

Included on the CD is an ocean depth and land elevation database.

Linux and Windows Versions Available
 

This new program uses computer models of the world's weather that can be downloaded over the Internet.  This data should be used with great caution and only used in conjunction with other methods of weather information. Use of this feature is strictly at the risk of the user.

You can add in files available via e-mail or the web to superimpose wind information.

The data  can be as small as 3 k compressed and is simple to download via a wireless link.

These files are commonly referred to as GRIB files. They are primarily used to disseminate output data from very complex computer models of the world's weather.

The GRIB file is an extremely flexible and all encompassing format that is beyond the scope of this document. Suffice to say that WindPlot reads in a very small subset of that data that pertains to surface wind velocity and direction.

Publicly available data is put out primarily by the USA NOAA service.

NOAA has several computer models that it uses for forecasting but only two of these models are relevant to this software. The two models are "Global Forecasting System GFS" and "MMAB Operational Wave Model (wwave3)".

GFS is extremely complex. The program models virtually every aspect of global meteorology. The wind data output from this model has quite often been suspect. More preferable is the (MMAB or wwave3). This a computer model designed to predict wave height, direction, and time period. In order to compute this data, it forecasts the surface speed and direction. Practical experience with this data set has shown it is extremely accurate in a marine environment in most cases.

Internet download sites where relevant GRIB files can be downloaded from are:

www.globalmarinenet.net(MMAB)
www.navcenter.com(MMAB)
www.raymarine.com (GFS)
www.saildocs.com (GFS)

For a dealer near you.