Towing

Geophysical operations in progress until 03 sep by M/V dong fang ming zhu towing 12000 meter long cable in…

Gulf of Mexico · NAVAREA IV 729/15

What this record establishes

Archived notice · 2015-09-04 00:01Z

This notice comes from the historical archive. Its archived status does not establish when or how the reported situation ended.

Source and dates: NGA MSI broadcast-warn JSON (archive, frozen 2024-05) · MEXICO IV 169/15 311658Z AUG 15.. Issued 2015-08-31 17:08Z. First collected 2026-08-17 13:38Z; last seen in collection 2026-08-17 15:46Z. Collection dates record ingestion, not a new incident or a fresh field observation.
Location covered: Gulf of Mexico. 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 Gulf of Mexico →

issued: 2015-08-31 17:08Z
status: Archived notice
authority: MEXICO IV 169/15 311658Z AUG 15.
NAVAREA: NAVAREA IV
issued by: MEXICO IV
sea: Gulf of Mexico
position: 20.263, -92.856
vessel: M/V DONG FANG MING ZHU · 7 messages
source: NGA MSI broadcast-warn JSON (archive, frozen 2024-05) · first seen 2026-08-17 13:38Z

Original warning text

GULF OF MEXICO.
BAY OF CAMPECHE.
MEXICO.
1. GEOPHYSICAL OPERATIONS IN PROGRESS UNTIL 03 SEP
   BY M/V DONG FANG MING ZHU TOWING 12000 METER
   LONG CABLE IN AREA BOUND BY
   21-57.81N 089-22.03W, 20-22.23N 092-11.23W,
   20-00.55N 092-11.45W, 20-00.23N 092-50.13W,
   18-30.59N 092-50.71W, 18-29.25N 093-20.97W,
   18-13.03N 094-25.05W, 19-41.39N 095-26.61W,
   20-31.89N 094-40.06W, 20-34.71N 093-11.25W,
   22-37.66N 090-21.02W.
   WIDE BERTH REQUESTED.
2. CANCEL THIS MSG 04 SEP 15.

Reading this warning

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.
CANCEL THIS MSG: The warning's own expiry: a line telling the reader when the message cancels itself.

All warning terms →

Collected reports in this area · tows

11 within 180 nm since 2015 · 0 in the last 12 months · 0 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

0 tows listed in force · see all

Record snapshot 2026-09-26 22:39Z; source collection times vary.

Towing

Vessels under tow with long or unlit tow lines. All current tows →

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.