OpenSeaMap

OpenSeaMap - the free nautical chart is a free project that collects nautical information and spatial data for each freely usable. Using these data, a worldwide chart is created. The map is accessible through the website of OpenSeaMap and is also available for download for use as electronic chart for offline applications.

The project is part of OpenStreetMap. OpenSeaMap uses the same database and complements the spatial information with navigational information. This data may be used freely under the Open Database License. As a result, integration into print products, web sites and applications such as navigation software is possible, without being limited by restrictive licenses or having to pay fees. The naming of OpenSeaMap as a data source is required for data usage.

History

The idea for the project came at a developer conference of OpenStreetMap in autumn 2008 in the Linux Hotel in Essen. Boaters and programmers decided to specifically take care of as part of OpenStreetMap to the oceans and inland waters. The project was created at the beginning global and multilingual. After 2009, the structural conditions have been created, the pattern could harbor " Warnemünde " are exemplified as the chart may look like. Since autumn 2009, is a dedicated server is available and the project uses several collaborations with other free projects and other organizations.

In November 2009, the project in the technical sailors newspaper bowline has been described, in December in the yacht. In January 2010, the project on the Water Fair was invited to Dusseldorf boat, and there has been first presented to a large audience. 2011, the project was presented at the INTERGEO an international geodesy - specialist audience. 2012 turn on the boat. 2013 OpenSeaMap was invited to the international HydrographenTag and published in " International Haydro " and " Hydrographic News ". 2014 is the project back "boot " on the. The developers meet twice a year in Nuremberg to a multi-day developer conference.

Contents of the chart

Showing Beacon, fairway tons, Untiefentonnen, and other navaids. In the ports of the port facilities are mapped ( harbor wall, pier, bridges, docks, gas station, loading cranes, access roads, railway lines, ferry lines ). Likewise, authorities, shipyards and repair shops, as well as sanitary facilities and utilities. The nautical attributes correspond to the international standard IHO -S- 57th

The data are presented in several levels with OpenLayers based map of OpenStreetMap. The base map contains all possible objects in OpenStreetMap. Above this are as Layer navaids, harbors, Weather Map, coastal and inland level, temporary racing events, as well as ocean depths based on a bathymetric model for the description of the seabed.

Since 2013/14, water depths are recorded in shallow waters and displayed the coverage.

Applications

The card is designed for planning of sailing and boat trips. Along the way she helps the tourists to the orientation or as a holiday diary. It is not intended to replace official charts.

Internationality

The site is translated into six languages ​​: German, English, French, Italian, Spanish and Russian. The tools and the legends are available with a German, English and French surface. The map shows the location names are always written in the local language and script. The geographical coverage is worldwide. Depending on the region and the active there cartographers, coverage varies and is growing daily.

Relevance

The data is stored immediately after entry and are available worldwide instantly. The data of the base map are visible after a few minutes in the map. New or modified nautical data are currently (2011) visible after about an hour in the map. Weather maps are updated three times a day. Ship tracking and level data are shown in near real time.

Cutting Tools

To edit you must log in with a verified email address. The application is free and should by personal responsibility help to produce high quality data. The read access is possible without registration.

As raw data are usually located on the local machine or used on the server loaded GPS tracks. This may also be shown by the editing tool together with freely available satellite or aerial images. Based on this the displayed data now allows the user points, lines and areas create that map the objects mapped to reality. These dots and lines can be assigned to attributes that describe the object and its properties. The editors are constructed such that only permitted combinations are possible.

Other programs can read and write access on the XML - RPC interface to the data on the OpenSeaMap server.

Pilot book

Weather information

Different weather data worldwide on weather maps displayed: Wind map, air pressure map ( isobar ), etc, each with two to three times daily updates and with a prediction to three days.

There is a Meteogram with detailed wind forecasts and weather information for a forecast period of eight days for each port. Available are the weather data for wind direction, wind speed, air temperature, air pressure, relative humidity, cloudiness, precipitation. From this data available worldwide, the Lore can determine the expected sea weather.

Ocean depths

Worldwide, the Merestiefen between 100 and 10,000 m are displayed in a 23 -step blue scale and shading. Trenches and back are easy to recognize. At higher zoom levels additionally labeled depth contours are shown. The data comes from a cooperation with GEBCO and their bathymetrischem GEBCO_08 record.

According to the depths and elevations are indicated by contour lines and shading. The amount of data comes from the ASTER project of METI and NASA.

Water depths via crowdsourcing

Worldwide shallow water depths are detected by crowdsourcing. Sailors, Motorboofahrer, commercial vessels, divers, fishermen capture with echo sounder and GPS depths between 0 and 100 m. Divers work with dive computers. To record the data used is a self-developed data logger. Be surveying coastal waters, lakes and rivers. From the collected mass data a terrain model is created, and from this depth contours are derived. Uploaded tracks are shown on the map. Among the surveyors of the sea floor is discussed how crowdsourcing can support and complement the systematic usually cadastral surveying the seabed.

Aerial photos

Optionally, the nautical information on aerial photographs of Bing or on the base map from OpenStreetMap can be represented. The aerial images are also for the world Abdigitalisieren of Geo - information, partly in high resolution.

Kayak card, divers card

For kayakers shows the Layer "Sport" all the rivers of the world. Kayak routes are highlighted according to their difficulty. Entry and exit points are marked, as well as obstacles and Umtrage sites. In Germany, the river levels are displayed with the current water level in the layer " level".

For divers shows the Layer "sport" interesting dive sites, bottle filling stations, dive shops and equipment rental.

Vector map for Garmin chartplotter

Owners of Garmin chartplotters can use a card specially created for these devices. The vector format allows the whole of Europe on a memory card of 4 GB map ( North Sea, Baltic Sea, Norwegian coast, Channel, Great Britain, Biscay, Portuguese coast, Mediterranean Sea, Black Sea). The European inland waters are also included. Garmin maps are available worldwide. These cards also work on handsets that dominate the " naval " mode.