Overview
ISO 23745:2024 - Ships and marine technology - General specification for shipborne meteorological instruments - is the first-edition ISO standard that defines technical requirements and test methods for shipborne meteorological instruments (SMIs). It covers SMIs installed on ships that share marine meteorological data with other ships, national meteorological services or other users. The standard aims to ensure consistent measurement quality, interoperability and reliable data exchange to support safe navigation, weather forecasting and climatological applications.
Key topics and technical requirements
ISO 23745:2024 addresses the full lifecycle of SMIs, including functional, environmental and interoperability requirements:
- General requirements
- Appearance, installation guidance and material selection
- Cable, battery and enclosure protection considerations
- Meteorological measurement parameters
- Performance and test methods for atmospheric pressure, air temperature, relative humidity, apparent/true wind speed and direction, visibility and sea‑surface temperature
- True wind calculation
- Principles and component-based calculation to derive true wind from apparent wind and ship motion
- Sampling, algorithms and data quality
- Sampling rate expectations, algorithm and meteorological data quality control procedures
- Data handling
- Data storage integrity, transmission, communication interfaces and transmission formats
- Timing and synchronization
- Clock accuracy, allowable time error and synchronized-time requirements for timestamping observations
- Safety, EMC and environmental robustness
- Safety checks, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) and environmental condition tests relevant to ship installations
- Test methods and verification
- Test ambient conditions, standard apparatus and parameter-specific tests (see clauses 5 and 6)
- Supporting documentation
- Annexes for installation requirements, ship motion information and observation data/metadata (Annexes A–C)
Practical applications and users
ISO 23745:2024 is intended for stakeholders involved in the design, manufacture, installation, operation and use of shipborne meteorological systems:
- Shipbuilders and marine integrators specifying onboard instrumentation
- Instrument manufacturers and test laboratories developing and certifying SMIs
- Shipping companies and vessel operators ensuring compliance and data quality
- National meteorological services and networks (including Voluntary Observing Ship - VOS - schemes) that ingest ship observations
- Researchers, port authorities, offshore wind operators and weather service providers relying on standardized marine observations
By following ISO 23745, organizations can improve interoperability of ship-sourced meteorological data, enhance quality control, and facilitate data exchange for navigation safety, forecasting and climatology.
Related standards and references
ISO 23745 references relevant maritime and meteorological standards and guides, including:
- ISO 10596 (marine wind vane and anemometers)
- IEC 60092 series (ship electrical installations)
- IEC 60533 (EMC on ships with metallic hulls)
- WMO Guides (WMO‑No. 8 and WMO‑No. 488)
Keywords: ISO 23745:2024, shipborne meteorological instruments, SMIs, ship meteorological data, marine meteorological instruments, true wind calculation, sampling rate, data quality control, EMC, VOS.
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