New Apps Detail Vital Nav Info

Navigating, particularly through inshore waters, can be a tricky business — especially when lights and other navigational aids can’t be found at the locations where your charts say they should be. Professional mariners know to check US Coast Guard Notices to Mariners often for updates. And thanks to a newly released app, recreational boats can access such info 24/7 from Android smart phones or tablets. 

Last month merchant mariner and software developer Captain Mike Maurice announced the release of a set of applications that display the Light Lists, Notices to Mariners and additional data, all of which have been optimized to work offline.

"The first application downloads and displays the Local Notice to Mariners (in PDF)," explains Maurice, "which the user can update once each week, from a high-speed server at my website. No ads, no user tracking.

"The second application displays the seven volume list of lights (48,000) for the entire United States. Each item has a picture that represents the type of item: light, horn, including over 30 different types of buoys with their various colors and physical styles. Each item can be accessed for its details. And, includes all the data from the original PDF or paper document which mariners are familiar with: location, light characteristic, remarks, type of structure, etc."

"The third application displays in a conventional list or a graphical map format, the so called discrepancies and temporary changes to the light lists, of which there are about 2500 items. These discrepancies contain important safety information which warns of hazards to navigation, lights extinguished, buoys off station or adrift and other issues. The map format provides a powerful, easy to use tool to select nearby items.

"Each item can be individually selected which displays detail information. An item once selected is saved and will be the focus in the list format or the map. The data is being updated about once a week."

The new apps con be downloaded from the Google Play store. See this link. Sounds like great info to have at your fingertips. Our only question is: Will an iPhone/iPad version be available soon also?