Surveys

Survey operations in progress in Timor Sea off Australia by vessel SW BLY towing twelve 7300-meter cables, seven-mile berth requested.

Timor Sea · HYDROPAC 2241/26

What this record establishes

Cancelled notice · 2026-09-25 16:30Z

This notice disappeared from the issuing source's in-force list. No explicit recovery or all-clear is established by that removal.

Source and dates: NGA MSI in-force warnings (DailyMem*.txt). Issued 2026-08-05 12:18Z. First collected 2026-08-17 13:41Z; last seen in collection 2026-09-25 17:47Z. Collection dates record ingestion, not a new incident or a fresh field observation.
Location covered: Timor Sea. The map shows an area described by the warning; the listed coordinate is its representative center. Check the original wording for limits and qualifications.

Current notices and reporting history in the Timor Sea →

issued: 2026-08-05 12:18Z
status: Cancelled notice
sea: Timor Sea
position: -13.081, 128.261
vessel: M/V SW BLY · 24 messages
nearest port: Wyndham · 143 nm
source: NGA MSI in-force warnings (DailyMem*.txt) · first seen 2026-08-17 13:41Z

Original warning text

TIMOR SEA.
AUSTRALIA.
SURVEY OPERATIONS IN PROGRESS UNTIL FURTHER
NOTICEBY M/V SW BLY TOWING TWELVE 7300 METER
CABLES IN AREA BOUND BY
12-47.76S 127-35.15E, 12-38.08S 127-44.03E,
12-38.27S 128-06.05E, 13-18.37S 128-53.75E,
13-38.87S 128-35.38E.
SEVEN MILE BERTH REQUESTED.

Reading this warning

Survey operations: A research or survey vessel is mapping the seabed or water column, often while towing equipment.
Until further notice: The operation or danger has no scheduled end; the warning stays in force until a later message cancels it.
Towed array / streamer: Equipment towed a long way behind a vessel — sonar, a hydrophone cable, a sampling sled — invisible at the surface.
Tow / towing: A vessel towing another vessel, a barge or a structure — slow, hard to manoeuvre, and with a long line between.
Area bound by: Introduces a list of positions that are the corners of an area — the polygon the warning applies to.
Position (degrees and minutes): How warnings write positions: degrees, a hyphen, then minutes, with N/S and E/W — 49-40.8N 003-43.8W.
Wide berth requested: Keep well clear — or, when a distance is given ("TWO MILE BERTH REQUESTED"), at least that far away.

All warning terms →

Collected reports in this area · survey operations

30 within 180 nm since 2007 · 7 in the last 12 months · 1 listed in force now

Counts include repeat notices about the same situation. NGA archive coverage ends 2024-05; live collection began 2026-08-17. The period between them is incomplete. An empty year is not evidence that no hazards occurred.

Month of issue in the collected archive

All available years combined. Uneven collection and repeat bulletins affect these counts; this chart does not measure the seasonality or probability of incidents.

Nearby notices listed in force · within 120 nm

No other collected notice is currently listed in force within this radius. This does not establish safe conditions.

Worldwide in the collected sources

55 survey operations listed in force · see all

Record snapshot 2026-09-30 17:36Z; source collection times vary.

Surveys

Hydrographic and scientific survey vessels, often towing long arrays. All current survey operations →

Not for navigation. This is a re-rendering of an official navigational warning for awareness; mariners must use official NAVAREA broadcasts and their national MSI service.