NOAA tides, water levels, and water temperature
Outgoing Tide uses the NOAA Center for Operational Oceanographic Products and Services for station metadata, tide predictions, preliminary water-level observations, and water-temperature observations where available.
- Tide predictions are calculated predictions for a station and are not the same as a live water-level measurement.
- Local tide snapshot covers July 2026 through July 2027. The July 19, 2026 build contains high/low predictions for 3,493 of the 3,499 stations in NOAA's tide-predictions metadata collection; six stations returned no usable series. These are the stations available at build time, not a ranking of fishing destinations. After you explicitly select a station, the calendar requests that station's local file. Missing files or dates use the live NOAA request path where available. The snapshot does not update itself or supply observed water levels.
- Preliminary water levels are recent observations that have not completed NOAA quality control and can change.
- Residual is the displayed difference between the preliminary observation and the corresponding prediction.
- Water temperature appears only where a nearby NOAA station reports that product.
Weather and atmospheric conditions
Current weather, hourly conditions, and seven-day model guidance come from the Open-Meteo commercial Weather API for the selected station coordinates. Requests are relayed through Outgoing Tide so the commercial API credential is never sent to your browser. Displays may include temperature, wind, gusts, humidity, pressure, precipitation, cloud cover, weather codes, and UV guidance.
Forecast values are model guidance rather than direct observations at the selected tide station. Timing and local conditions may differ.
Open-Meteo data are provided under CC BY 4.0; see the provider's data sources and licence. Outgoing Tide selects locations, converts units where needed, and formats the results into its own panels. These presentation changes are not a new observation or an endorsement by the provider.
Marine forecast and swell
Wave height, wave period, swell height, swell period, and related marine guidance come from the commercial Open-Meteo Marine Weather API for the selected location through the same protected relay. Marine model guidance is not navigation data and should be checked against official marine forecasts and local conditions.
Radar and wind maps
The Outgoing Tide Weather Map combines NOAA/NWS MRMS base-reflectivity radar with short-range precipitation and 10-meter wind guidance from Open-Meteo. OpenFreeMap, OpenMapTiles, and OpenStreetMap contributors provide the geographic basemap and labels. Map credits are displayed with the maps; OpenStreetMap data are available under the Open Database License.
Solunar periods and moon phases
Solunar windows are calculated from lunar events at the selected station coordinates using astronomical calculations. Major periods center on moon overhead and underfoot; minor periods center on moonrise and moonset. They are traditional planning references and do not predict or guarantee fish activity.
Species temperature windows
Species temperature windows are static guide-reference ranges. They are not live biological observations and should not be interpreted as a guarantee that a species is present or feeding. The highlighted ranges are compared with the latest available water-temperature source shown in the panel.
Station search and location
Station search combines a bundled coastal-station catalog with NOAA station metadata. ZIP-code searches use Zippopotam.us to estimate coordinates before finding nearby stations. Browser geolocation is used only after permission and is processed in the browser to find a nearby station.
Fishing regulations and species references
Regulation and species information is provided as a planning reference. Seasons, boundaries, size limits, bag limits, closures, and emergency rules can change. The controlling state or federal wildlife agency source should always be checked before fishing.
When an angler opens a species identification card, Outgoing Tide may request a short summary and openly licensed image attribution from Wikipedia and Wikimedia. Those references are supplemental identification aids, not regulatory or biological-status sources.
Current predictions use a separate station
The Currents panel uses NOAA current predictions and identifies the selected current station separately from Homebase's tide station. Compatible sources are ranked by distance; coverage may require a regional station. Read its location and distance before applying it to a route. Predicted speed and direction are not an observation at the boat, and unavailable coverage does not mean zero flow. See how to interpret currents.
Loading, freshness, and availability
Live panels request information when they load or when the selected station changes. After explicit station selection, the covered tide calendar can read that station’s local NOAA prediction snapshot. Dates or files outside available snapshot coverage use the existing live NOAA request path where available. A snapshot is not a water-level observation. A displayed update time describes the source record or the most recent successful request available to that panel. Network failures, provider outages, station maintenance, and missing products can delay or prevent a live display.
App and website FAQ
For app configuration help, a guide to every screen and tab, refresh and offline-tide instructions, and brief answers about the website, visit the Frequently Asked Questions page.
Editorial interpretation and review
Reviewed September 17, 2026. Our editorial standards describe source checks, assisted drafting, and corrections. Guide review dates are separate from live-data timestamps. Compare predictions with observations only when station, time, datum, and units match.
Questions about a source
If a panel appears inaccurate or a source label needs clarification, send the station name, station ID, panel name, and approximate time through the contact page.