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.Nautical weather terminology is like a secret language designed to keep landlubbers guessing. Why say ‘storm’s brewing’ when you can declare there’s a ‘cyclonic gale on the Beaufort scale’? And don’t even get us started on terms like ‘sea state 5’—is that a weather warning or a new action movie? Mariner-speak turns clouds into ‘cumulonimbus monstrosities’ and drizzle into ‘light spindrift.’ Meanwhile, the rest of us are just trying to figure out if we need a raincoat. Don’t worry, we can help you navigate this foggy jargon without needing a barometer tattooed on your arm!
A Polish-British meteorologist and weather presenter known for broadcasting with BBC Weather. His work involves communicating forecasts and explaining meteorological conditions to a general audience through television and related media. In a nautical learning context, the entry is relevant only where course material or a specific forecast presentation refers to him by name. This is…
A United States government agency responsible for science and services relating to weather, climate, oceans and coasts. Usually abbreviated to NOAA, it is part of the US Department of Commerce. Its work includes weather forecasting and warnings, climate and ocean observation, hydrographic surveying and nautical charting, coastal services, fisheries management and environmental research. Mariners may…
Breaking wave crests whose entrained air and foam appear white against the surrounding water. Also called whitecaps, they form when waves become steep enough to break under wind, opposing current, shallow-water or crossing-sea effects. Their increasing frequency is one visual cue used in empirical wind and sea-state descriptions. White horses do not correspond to one…
The aerodynamic force or effective exposed area through which wind acts on a vessel and its equipment. Hull topsides, superstructure, rig, sails, covers, deck cargo and people contribute according to projected area, shape, height and wind angle. Windage affects leeway, low-speed manoeuvring, anchoring and mooring loads even when the vessel is not moving through the…
In the direction from which the wind is coming, or on the side facing the incoming wind. Windward is the opposite of leeward and can describe a vessel’s side, another object’s position or progress towards the source of the wind. The windward side is not necessarily physically higher except when heel makes it so. The…
The periodic change in sea level produced principally by the gravitational interaction of the Moon, Sun and Earth and by the Earth’s rotation. Astronomical tide is the predictable sum of many constituents whose periods and amplitudes vary by location because of basin shape, depth and coastline. It produces high and low waters and is related…
The wind velocity relative to the Earth’s surface rather than relative to a moving vessel. Apparent wind is the vector combination of true wind and the vessel’s velocity through the chosen reference frame. Marine instruments calculate true wind using measured apparent wind plus speed and heading or course data, and their result depends on whether…
The Beaufort Force 10 wind category, corresponding to sustained winds of 48 to 55 knots. The Met Office marine description is ‘Storm’. In a fully developed open sea it is associated with very high waves, long overhanging crests, extensive foam and spray and reduced visibility, but actual waves depend on fetch, duration, depth and pre-existing…
A weather map showing analysed or forecast atmospheric conditions over a broad area at a stated time. It commonly depicts mean-sea-level pressure with isobars, high- and low-pressure centres, fronts and troughs and may include observations or other meteorological features. Analysis charts represent a best estimate of conditions at the valid time, while forecast charts show…
A sudden, substantial increase in wind speed that lasts longer than a brief gust. A squall can accompany a shower, thunderstorm, cold front or line of convective cloud, but it is not defined by the presence of dark cloud or by one particular type of front. Wind direction may shift and heavy rain, hail, lightning…
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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