Marine forecasts ↗
Choose the coastal or local waters area covering your site and your journey. Read the issue time and the whole forecast period.
THE DIVER’S RESOURCE CENTRE
Read the conditions. Ask local questions.
A useful forecast is the beginning of a conversation. Connect official information with the exact site, your operator and what you observe on arrival.
OBSERVE · ASK · REASSESSThese are links and preparation questions, not live conditions or a recommendation to dive. Educational interpretation awaits independent instructor review.
Start with official information
Choose your Australian location on the Bureau of Meteorology website. Open the source to read its current information; this page does not copy or cache forecasts.
Warnings ↗
Check current official warnings before travel and again before entering the water. No warning does not mean a dive is suitable.
Tide predictions ↗
Select the relevant prediction location and check the date and time convention. Tide height and tidal stream are different information.
Forecasts and observations explained ↗
Understand the difference between a forecast area, an observation station and what is happening at your entry point.
Resource links checked 1 October 2026. Forecast issue times belong to the original source.
Use three different kinds of evidence
A directory tells you about a place. A forecast describes expected weather across an area. A local briefing connects those broad descriptions to today’s proposed activity. Keep the source and time attached to each piece of information so you can see which questions remain unanswered.
Keep the source, place and time together
Three kinds of conditions evidence
Official information
Read the area, issue time and forecast period.
Local context
Connect the information to the exact site and proposed activity.
On-site observations
Reassess entry, exit and conditions when you arrive.
An evidence map for the preparation guide. No layer alone establishes that a dive is suitable.
The Bureau explains that forecasts describe broad areas, while observation stations report at particular locations. A sheltered station may not represent an exposed coast. Likewise, a screenshot from yesterday does not establish today’s conditions. BOM: forecasts and observations ↗
Read more than the weather icon
The Bureau’s marine safety framework asks water users to consider warnings, changing weather, wind, waves and tide times. For dive preparation, use these as headings for questions rather than treating a single number as permission to enter. Check the expected return period as well as the planned start. BOM: checking the weather ↗
| Information | Question to resolve | Avoid assuming |
|---|---|---|
| Forecast area and time | Does this forecast cover our site, transport and return time? | The nearest town’s land forecast describes offshore conditions. |
| Wind and direction changes | How would the forecast direction affect this entry, exit or boat trip? | A place sheltered early in the day stays sheltered. |
| Sea and swell | What will these conditions mean at the actual shoreline? | A calm-looking surface or small weather icon tells the full story. |
| Tide and local current | Which prediction applies here, and what local explanation is needed? | One location’s prediction can be copied to another site. |
| Access and closures | Is the site open, and which authority or operator confirms that? | Being listed in a directory means access is currently available. |
| Observation or community report | Where and when was it recorded? What has changed since then? | A positive report from another day is a forecast. |
Why a calm-looking day can still need caution
Wind and swell are different parts of the picture. The Bureau notes that swell generated far away can arrive during apparently calm weather, with lulls between sets. Forecast wind and swell directions describe where they come from. Ask how the coastline faces those directions and what that means for the proposed entry and exit. BOM: marine hazards ↗
YouDive does not assign a universal safe wind or wave limit. An exposed rock entry, sheltered pier and boat operation need different local assessments. Write down uncertainty instead of converting it into a green light. A change of site or cancellation remains a legitimate outcome of preparation.
Keep the prediction attached to its location
When opening a tide table, record the location, date and stated time convention. Do not silently substitute a nearby port or change the displayed time. BOM explains that tide predictions reflect astronomical influences and some seasonal effects, while weather also affects actual water levels. Some secondary locations supply times only and are not intended for navigation. BOM: tide prediction limitations ↗
If a site description refers to slack water or a tidal-stream window, ask the local operator which prediction and location it uses. A general high/low tide table is not a site-specific dive schedule. For a place such as Port Phillip, take the exact site name to the briefing rather than asking only whether “the bay” is suitable.
Example: turn a vague plan into useful questions
“The weather looks nice, so let’s dive a pier” leaves almost everything unresolved. A more useful enquiry gives the site name, date, your recent experience and the source you checked. Ask whether access is open, who will assess local conditions, what entry and exit are proposed, and what happens if the plan changes.
Keep the answers separate from the directory’s recorded depth or seasonal visibility. Those fields help you research the site; they do not report what will happen on your visit. If two sources disagree, show both to the operator instead of choosing the answer you prefer.
Common questions
Does no weather warning mean the dive is safe?
No. A warning system does not assess your training, equipment, site access or entry and exit. Resolve suitability with qualified local support and assess conditions on arrival.
Can I rely on a dive-site photograph?
Use it to understand what the place may look like, with its date and location in mind. It cannot establish current conditions. YouDive’s AI illustrations are labelled and are not site photographs.
Does this worksheet replace a dive plan?
No. It collects information and questions for a briefing. It does not calculate gas, depth, time, decompression or emergency procedures.
TAKE BETTER QUESTIONS TO YOUR BRIEFING
My dive preparation worksheet
Record your sources and questions. This is a discussion aid, not a dive plan or a safety assessment. Notes stay in this page and disappear when you leave or reload it.
Completing this worksheet does not establish that conditions are suitable. Resolve unanswered questions with your instructor or operator.