Introduction

For surfers who want real-time wave and wind information, ItsGoingOff relays data from the wave buoys to your mobile phone. The buoys measure wave height, wave period, wind strength and direction every hour. Wave buoy info is available via ItsGoingOff for each of the locations shown on the map and is updated hourly.

Please note that the wave buoy data that is sent to your mobile via the ItsGoingOff service is taken from NWS (National Weather Service), where it is stated that such material is not subject to copyright protection. If you would like to view the full disclaimer, please click here.

How to Obtain Wave Buoy Information

ItsGoingOff members can request wave buoy info at any time (if they have enough credits) by texting "BUOY" followed by a space, followed by the first four letters the buoy name (eg. "BUOY CHAN" or "BUOY K2" for the channel buoy or the K2 buoy, respectively) to (+44) 07950 080100. To find out more about messages on demand, click here.

Alternatively, you can schedule messages to arrive at particular times or on a regular basis. To find out more about setting up regular messages, click here.

How to Understand the Wave Buoy Data

Your forecast will contain the most recent four hours of data of: Wave Height (in metres) - defined as the significant wave height, which is a scientific term equal to the average height of the highest third of the waves. Wave Period - the time, in seconds, between wave crests
Wind Speed - wind speed in m/s Wind Direction - the direction in which the wind is blowing from

An example of buoy data from the Channel
buoy, as it will appear on your mobile.
The standard text message can only be 160 characters long on most mobiles, so we have had to use abbreviations. Wave buoy messages are given in the format

BUOY NAME date time1:wav=wave height, wave period, wnd=wind speed, wind direction