In article ,
Jon O'Rourke writes:

"John Hall" wrote in message
...
snip
Are the buoys only in coastal/shallow waters, or are there
some in the middle of the Atlantic as well?

Pretty much all over.

http://www.metbrief.com/0600Z.gif

Shows the 0600Z buoy (triangles)/ship (circles) data this morning (note some
decluttering employed).

Thanks, Jon. Yes, that does look like pretty good coverage, though by
the nature of things I imagine that the ship coverage will have gaps in
it from time to time (which is when the buoys can be particularly
important). In addition to the randomness factor, I imagine that
merchant ships would try to steer courses that will minimise exposure to
any particularly nasty storms that are forecast.

It looks as though most of the buoys can't measure wind direction or
speed, which I imagine must sometimes be a handicap.

I confess that I hadn't visited your site before - it's superb.
--
John Hall "Never play cards with a man called Doc.
Never eat at a place called Mom's.
Never sleep with a woman whose troubles
are worse than your own." Nelson Algren