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.Signals and communication in the marine world are like a game of charades with the ocean as your stage. Picture a crew furiously waving flags screaming, “We’re out of snacks!” while another ship squints, trying to decode whether that’s a distress call or just terrible semaphore skills. Horns blast at decibels high enough to wake Poseidon, with meanings ranging from “I’m turning left” to “Move it or lose it!” And let’s not forget Morse code—nothing says “urgent message” like blinking a flashlight at a seagull for hours. Meanwhile, the VHF radio crackles with static and a dozen accents yelling about the weather, leaving everyone more confused than enlightened. It’s a symphony of organised chaos where somehow, miraculously, no one crashes into an iceberg. Usually.
The Global Maritime Distress and Safety System used for automated alerting and coordinated maritime safety communication. GMDSS combines terrestrial and satellite equipment and services, including DSC, EPIRBs, NAVTEX and safety-information broadcasts. The equipment required depends on the vessel and sea area, and operators must use the correct distress, urgency and safety procedures.
A group of signal flags displayed together to communicate a coded maritime message. Flags in a signal hoist are read in the prescribed order, normally from the top down, and may represent a single-letter signal, a multi-flag group or a message qualified by numeral pennants or substitutes. Meanings depend on the applicable code or racing…
The standard pattern of signal and gap lengths used to make Morse characters intelligible. A dot lasts one time unit and a dash three; elements within a character are separated by one unit, characters by three units and words by seven units. Consistent timing matters whether Morse is sent by sound, light or radio because…
A Morse, radio or visual signal used to control the handling of communications rather than form part of the message itself. Procedural signals indicate actions such as starting or ending a transmission, requesting repetition, correcting an error or acknowledging receipt. They must be distinguished from ordinary letters and message text and used in accordance with…
A World Meteorological Organization data format for compact exchange of gridded meteorological and oceanographic fields. GRIB files may contain forecast wind, pressure, precipitation, temperature, waves, currents or other parameters on a defined grid at stated times and levels. GRIB2 provides richer metadata and encoding than GRIB1. A GRIB viewer turns model fields into charts but…
Four coverage-based areas—A1, A2, A3 and A4—used to determine GMDSS radiocommunication carriage and alerting arrangements. A1 is within continuous VHF DSC coverage of a coast station; A2 extends beyond A1 within continuous MF DSC coverage; A3 lies beyond A1 and A2 within recognised mobile-satellite service coverage; A4 is the remaining area. They are not a…
A standardised set of English phrases for safety-related ship-to-ship, ship-to-shore and onboard communication. The IMO adopted the SMCP to reduce misunderstanding across language barriers. It covers routine navigation, pilotage, berthing and onboard operations as well as distress, urgency and emergency situations. The phrases support clear communication but do not replace competent English, correct radio procedure…
Standard words or phrases with prescribed meanings used to control and clarify a radio exchange. Prowords such as “This is”, “Over”, “Out”, “Say again”, “Received” and “Correction” reduce ambiguity and shorten routine procedure when used under the relevant service rules. Their precise meanings depend on the communications system. They should not be improvised or combined…
A modulation method in which the instantaneous frequency of a carrier varies in accordance with the information signal. Marine VHF radiotelephony uses frequency modulation with channel spacing and deviation defined by the applicable standards. FM can reject amplitude noise effectively but still requires adequate signal strength and compatible receiver settings. It does not describe digital…
A modulation method in which the amplitude of a radio-frequency carrier varies in accordance with the information signal. Conventional AM transmits a carrier and two sidebands, while single-sideband marine HF and MF voice suppresses the carrier and one sideband for greater power and bandwidth efficiency. AM is susceptible to amplitude noise and fading. Marine radio…
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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