Shipping Forecast sea areas

[AndrewB]

Last month was the 80th anniversary of the Shipping Forecast. The present format using sea areas was introduced 55 years ago in 1949, and recently I came across an old map from the Radio Times showing the original areas. Although the names are familiar, there have been a good many small changes.

As a little quiz for other Shipping Forecast geeks, without checking the present map can you say:

(a) Which three areas have been renamed?
(b) Which four areas have been added?
(c) Which areas are still exactly the same?



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[Twister_Ken]

Without spending too many seconds, I can't see a Trafalgar, not any Fisher or Utsires on the old map, and Iceland has now been subdivided (I think?). Heligoland seems to have gone the way of Hilversum on steam radios and become German Bight.

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[Twister_Ken]

Whoops - Fitzroy

Fitzroy also joined the party only a year or two back.

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[tome]

I think Iceland has become SE Iceland.

Many of the changes came about as a result of North Sea oil activities, and rationalising sea areas to run along parallels of latitude rather than corner co-ordinates. Sole became smaller when Finisterre was renamed Fitzroy to make it coincide with continental sea-areas.

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[Evadne]

Renamed: Heligoland = German Bight
Iceland = SE Iceland
Finisterre = Fitzroy.
Added: Viking, N & S Uitsire .. err I admit defeat at that point, I don't pay attention to the North Sea areas any more but Dogger still looks the wrong shape.


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[AndrewB]

Unchanged areas.

Despite the continuity of names, surprisingly few areas seem to be exactly the same. These are Thames, Dover, Wight, Portland, Irish Sea, Rockall, Malin, Bailey, Faeroes. SE Iceland is the same area with a different name.

Those that have changed are Viking (new), North Utsire (new), South Utsire (new), Forties, Cromarty, Forth, Tyne, Dogger, Fisher, German Bight (renamed), Humber, Plymouth, Biscay, Fitzroy (renamed), Trafalgar (new), Sole, Lundy, Fastnet, Shannon, Hebrides, Fair Isle.

As you say the biggest changes are around the oil fields, particularly Forties and Dogger. Forties has moved southward, only a small part of the original Forties is in the present area of the same name.

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