Ocean and Great Lakes buoy map

These are periodic observations, not a continuous live stream. “Just reported” means 15 minutes old or less; “Near real-time” means up to 90 minutes. Reports over 90 minutes are delayed, and over six hours are old. These are Carr Weather’s age categories, not NOAA operational classifications.

Photos are recent for two hours, shown as earlier photos up to 16 hours, and hidden after that. Cameras often take photos only in daylight. A photo marker means NOAA lists a timestamped image; delivery is confirmed when the photo opens.

Updates are checked every five minutes while this view is visible. Shared source caches refresh observations every 10 minutes, camera listings every 15 minutes, and station locations every 30 minutes. Report, photo, and retrieval times are kept separate. All displayed times use Central Time.

The NDBC network includes buoys, coastal platforms, and partner stations. Coverage and available sensors vary; a missing reading stays blank. Fields use the source observation row, with no silent substitution from older reports. Individual sensors can have different sampling windows.

NOAA National Data Buoy Center · BuoyCAMs · Measurement timing · Report a map issue

Map tiles load from OpenStreetMap, which receives your IP address and the map areas you view. No buoy selection or precise device location is saved.