All our courses are engaging, interactive and fun! Whether formal training or simply looking to brush up, we take online learning to the next level.
Sailing EssentialsFreeA free course great for anyone who spends time on the water.
Essential Navigation & SeamanshipRYA course for beginners. Learn charts, tides, pilotage, and core seamanship with simple practice tasks.
Day Skipper TheoryMost PopularRYA course for inshore skippers. Plan day passages using chartwork, tides, weather, and COLREGs.
Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster® TheoryComing SoonRYA course for advanced navigation and passage planning, secondary ports, tidal streams, and offshore weather.
SRC (VHF) Marine Radio CourseRYA Short Range Certificate radio course. Study online, then take the practical exam with an RYA assessor.Are you looking for something nautical related? Our directory is an extensive list of courses and places associated with the marine industry. Hop over and search now.
We believe every day’s a school day on a boat! That’s why we built Nautical Know-How, dedicated to answering your questions. Even better, if it can’t answer your question immediately, you can request it, and we’ll add it to our knowledge base.
Nautical Terms & TerminologyUnderstanding the language of the marine world is like trying to learn a pirate’s secret code while juggling fish. Let us explain why a sheet isn’t for your bed, why “heave ho” doesn’t mean throw up (most of the time), and why “dead reckoning” is surprisingly less ominous than it sounds.
Why do we have tides?Have you ever wondered what causes the tides? Check out this video, which introduces the forces that create the tides we experience on Earth.
What causes our weather?A video introducing the drivers behind our weather, part of our RYA Day Skipper & RYA Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster® Offshore theory courses.
Buoyage FlashcardsFlashcards designed to help remember the buoys in the IALA system. If you want to learn them in detail, our module ‘Getting in and out of harbour‘, covers the IALA system and different buoys used.
Interactive Rule Book (COLREGs / IRPCS)Whether you’re a novice sailor or a seasoned skipper, we can help you navigate the IRPCS confidently and clearly. Our easy-to-use, easy-to-understand, plain English rule book with helpful interpretations of what each rule means.
The Salty Sea BlogFrom salty old sea dogs to fresh-faced deckhands, this blog is for anyone who finds peace, adventure, and a bit of mischief on the water. So hoist the main, set your course, and let’s sail into the stories, lessons, and musings that make life on the sea so irresistible.Marine navigation has its own secret language, and let’s face it—half of it sounds like someone making things up after too much grog. You’ve got your ‘dead reckoning,’ which isn’t nearly as ominous as it sounds, and ‘bearing,’ which has nothing to do with polar bears but everything to do with pointing the right way. Don’t even get us started on ‘knots’—why measure speed like you’re tying a shoelace? And then there’s ‘fix (not for your engine) and ‘DR’ (spoiler: it’s not a doctor). If you’re baffled, don’t worry—we’re here to help you decipher this nautical code so you can sound like a pro, not a landlubber who’s lost their compass.
A radio beacon that transmits essentially equally in all horizontal directions for direction-finding or identification. A receiver with an automatic direction finder can determine the relative bearing of an NDB signal and combine it with heading to obtain a bearing to or from the beacon. Marine radiobeacons historically supported coastal navigation, while NDBs remain more…
Electronic chart systems intended for certain small commercial vessels that do not carry type-approved ECDIS. In the UK context, Small Vessel Electronic Chart System standards address equipment and official chart-data arrangements for eligible coded or regulated vessels, including functional, display, update and backup expectations set by the applicable authority. Eligibility and carriage treatment depend on…
The IHO framework for creating interoperable digital maritime data-product specifications. S-100 is based on the ISO 19100 family of geographic-information standards and provides registries, feature catalogues, portrayal, metadata and exchange mechanisms. Product specifications built on it include S-101 electronic navigational charts, S-102 bathymetric surfaces and S-104 water levels. S-100 is a framework rather than a…
An intergovernmental organisation that coordinates international hydrography and standards for nautical charts and marine geospatial information. The IHO develops specifications, guidance and capacity-building programmes to improve the consistency and availability of hydrographic data and services. National hydrographic offices remain responsible for surveying and publishing official products in their jurisdictions. Its standards include the S-57 framework…
A depositional landform built where a river delivers sediment into a sea, lake or other relatively still body of water. As flow slows, sediment is deposited and the river may divide into distributary channels. Delta shape and growth depend on sediment supply, waves, tides, currents, sea level and human alteration. For navigation, deltas may contain…
A measured line with a drag device used to determine a vessel’s speed through the water. In the traditional chip log, a sector-shaped board was streamed astern while the line paid out. Knots spaced at calibrated intervals were counted during a timed period, giving speed directly in knots. The reading was speed through the water,…
The United States armed service responsible for maritime safety, security and stewardship, with military and law-enforcement functions. Its missions include search and rescue, aids to navigation, vessel safety, marine environmental protection, port and waterway security, law enforcement, defence readiness and ice operations. It normally operates within the Department of Homeland Security and may serve under…
A certificated member of a ship’s deck department who performs navigational watches and deck-management duties. Depending on rank, a deck officer may plan and monitor passages, keep bridge watches, supervise cargo, stability, mooring, safety equipment, maintenance and personnel, and carry out duties delegated by the master or chief mate. Certification, rank and permitted duties are…
The meridian defined as 0° longitude from which east and west longitude are measured. The internationally adopted reference passes through the Airy Transit Circle at Greenwich for historical mapping purposes, while modern geodetic reference systems realise zero longitude through Earth-centred coordinate frameworks that differ slightly from the historic line on the ground. Longitude is measured…
A unit of length equal to 5,280 feet, or exactly 1,609.344 metres. It is the standard land mile used in the United Kingdom and United States and may appear in inland-navigation distances, local regulations or non-marine publications. A statute mile is shorter than a nautical mile, which is exactly 1,852 metres. Units must be identified…
If you belive the Earth is flat, you're about to fall of the end...
If you belive the Earth is flat, you're about to fall of the end...
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