Email Access - FTPmail FAQ

How can I receive NDBC observations via an e-mail?

Don't have world wide web capability at sea, but you can send an e-mail? You can obtain the latest observations in text format for one or more stations by FTPmail. FTPmail is an NWS application that processes an e-mail message that has been constructed with FTP commands. Send an e-mail to ftpmail@ftpmail.nws.noaa.gov. The email must be sent as a text only message. HTML messages will fail. You may be able to change the option in your message composition window, or you might have to change the settings on your email client. Type in anything you want for the subject. Then, enter these FTP commands as the contents of your e-mail to obtain the latest observations from, for example, buoy station 42007 and C-MAN station DPIA1 (Note! the system is case-sensitive and C-MAN stations must be entered in lower case - dpia1, instead of DPIA1):

open
cd data/observations/marine/latest_obs
get 42007.txt
get dpia1.txt
quit

You will receive an e-mail back for each station that you request. Here's a sample retrieval from 42007:

Subject: tgftp.nws.noaa.gov:/42007.txt (get 42007.txt)
Date: (date/time response was sent)
From: ftpmail@ftpmail.nws.noaa.gov
To: (your e-mail address)

Station 42007
30° 5.4' N 88° 46.2' W

12:50 pm CDT
1700 GMT on 10/19/07:
Wind: N (360°), 7.8 kt
Gust: 9.7 kt
Seas: 2.0 ft
Peak Period: 7 sec
Pres: 29.85 steady
Air Temp: 75.6 °F
Water Temp: 77.2 °F
Dew Point: 58.1 °F

Wave Summary
1:50 pm CDT
1700 GMT on 10/19/07:
Swell: 2.0 ft
Period: 6.7 sec
Direction: SSE
Wind Wave: 0.0 ft
Period: 0.0 sec

All stations shown on the NDBC web site, except drifting buoys, can be obtained. For other National Weather Service (NWS) products via FTPmail, and for more detailed information about the service, go to NWS's FTPmail instructions.