As forecast, the West Northwest to Northwest has picked up. It will continue reaching Force 4/5 at times 6 till late on Thursday 06/08, before veering East and decreasing to become Force 2/3 by the afternoon on Friday 07/08. The strong wind will mean cooler temperatures and a choppy sea along exposed areas of the coastline in the coming days. That is not all, however. A confused swell is also possible. Swell waves consist of waves that have been generated by the wind in distant weather systems, but have drifted far away from their origin. Swell waves are largely unaffected by local winds, and normally persist for some time before dissipating. The coming days will see several sets of swell waves travelling in different directions, possibly causing crossing swells and a confused sea state at times. Recent days were characterised by relative calm and low swells from the East. Today’s onset of a strong West Northwest to Northwest wind means that swells from the Northwest will approach the Maltese Islands. The interaction of swell waves from opposite directions sometimes leads to confused and overlapping swells. A confused swell may be a hazard for swimmers and scuba divers, especially when further away from the shore. Crossing swells may also make boat handling more difficult. We advise you to keep this mind over the next few days, and be more cautious.

Kif imbassar, ir-riħ mill-Punent Majjistru għal Majjistral qed jitqawwa xi ftit. Dan se jilħaq Forza 4/5 kultant 6 f’xi ħinijiet sa tard il-Ħamis 06/08, qabel ma jdur Lvant u jonqos għal Forza 2/3 sa wara nofsinhar tal-Ġimgħa 07/08. Ir-riħ qawwi se jfisser temperaturi aktar friski u baħar kemmxejn imqalleb fejn jaqbel matul il-jiem li ġejjin. Dak mhux kollox. Jaf ikollna wkoll imbatt imħawwad. L-imbatt huma mewġ li jiġu ġġenerati f’sistemi tat-temp lil hinn minn xtutna, u li jibqgħu ġejjin l’hawn. Dawn kapaċi jippersistu għal siegħat twal qabel ma jisfaxxaw fix-xejn. Fil-jiem li ġejjin se naraw imbatt minn direzzjonijiet varji. Fl-aħħar jiem kellna arja pjuttost kalma u b’imbatt ħafif mill-Lvant. Il-wasla ta’ riħ qawwi mill-Punent Majjistru għal Majjistral illum, ifisser li se jkollna imbatt mill-Majjistral ukoll. Meta imbatt minn direzzjonijiet opposti jiltaqgħa, jaf iwassal għal baħar imħawwad. Dan jista jkun ta’ xkiel kemm għal għawwiema u bugħaddasa, speċjalment jekk ikunu imbiegħda mill-kosta. Imbatt imħawwad kapaċi jagħmilha aktar difiċli biex tikkontrolla opri tal-baħar żgħar. Navżawkom biss biex tkunu kawti u żżommu dan f’moħħkom għal jiem li ġejjin.