Marine Weather and Tide Forecast for Kiawah Island, SC
February 19, 2025 5:54 AM EST (10:54 UTC) Change Location
![]() | Sunrise 6:56 AM Sunset 6:10 PM Moonrise 12:00 AM Moonset 10:24 AM |
AMZ330 Charleston Harbor- 304 Am Est Wed Feb 19 2025
Today - N winds 10 kt. A slight chance of rain early this morning, then rain late this morning.
Tonight - N winds 10 to 15 kt. Rain, mainly in the evening.
Thu - NW winds 10 to 15 kt. A chance of showers in the afternoon.
Thu night - N winds 10 to 15 kt with gusts to 20 kt.
Fri - N winds 5 to 10 kt.
Fri night - N winds 5 kt.
Sat - NE winds 5 kt.
Sat night - N winds 5 kt. A slight chance of showers.
Sun - NW winds 5 kt. A slight chance of showers.
Sun night - NW winds 5 kt. A slight chance of showers.
unless otherwise noted, waves 1 foot or less.
charleston harbor water temperature 55 degrees.
unless otherwise noted, waves 1 foot or less.
charleston harbor water temperature 55 degrees.
AMZ300 304 Am Est Wed Feb 19 2025
Synopsis for the coastal waters of south coastal south carolina and north coastal georgia - A coastal low will track northeastwards off the georgia/south carolina coast today, with high pressure building into the region by end of the week. A broad area of low pressure off the coast will form on Sunday.

NEW! Add second zone forecast
Kiawah River Bridge Click for Map Wed -- 12:14 AM EST 5.09 feet High Tide Wed -- 06:25 AM EST 0.78 feet Low Tide Wed -- 06:59 AM EST Sunrise Wed -- 10:24 AM EST Moonset Wed -- 12:17 PM EST 4.47 feet High Tide Wed -- 06:09 PM EST Sunset Wed -- 06:26 PM EST 0.61 feet Low Tide Tide / Current data from XTide NOT FOR NAVIGATION |   |
Kiawah River Bridge, South Carolina, Tide feet
12 am |
5.1 |
1 am |
4.9 |
2 am |
4.3 |
3 am |
3.3 |
4 am |
2.2 |
5 am |
1.3 |
6 am |
0.8 |
7 am |
0.9 |
8 am |
1.5 |
9 am |
2.5 |
10 am |
3.5 |
11 am |
4.1 |
12 pm |
4.5 |
1 pm |
4.4 |
2 pm |
3.8 |
3 pm |
2.9 |
4 pm |
1.9 |
5 pm |
1.1 |
6 pm |
0.7 |
7 pm |
0.7 |
8 pm |
1.3 |
9 pm |
2.2 |
10 pm |
3.3 |
11 pm |
4.2 |
Charleston Harbor Entrance Click for Map Wed -- 12:30 AM EST -0.00 knots Slack Wed -- 03:53 AM EST -1.69 knots Max Ebb Wed -- 06:58 AM EST Sunrise Wed -- 07:01 AM EST 0.00 knots Slack Wed -- 09:24 AM EST 1.28 knots Max Flood Wed -- 10:23 AM EST Moonset Wed -- 12:15 PM EST -0.00 knots Slack Wed -- 03:27 PM EST -1.45 knots Max Ebb Wed -- 06:08 PM EST Sunset Wed -- 06:51 PM EST 0.00 knots Slack Wed -- 09:48 PM EST 1.21 knots Max Flood Tide / Current data from XTide NOT FOR NAVIGATION |   |
Charleston Harbor Entrance, South Carolina Current, knots
12 am |
0.3 |
1 am |
-0.3 |
2 am |
-1.1 |
3 am |
-1.5 |
4 am |
-1.7 |
5 am |
-1.4 |
6 am |
-0.8 |
7 am |
-0 |
8 am |
0.7 |
9 am |
1.2 |
10 am |
1.2 |
11 am |
0.7 |
12 pm |
0.1 |
1 pm |
-0.5 |
2 pm |
-1.1 |
3 pm |
-1.4 |
4 pm |
-1.4 |
5 pm |
-1.1 |
6 pm |
-0.5 |
7 pm |
0.1 |
8 pm |
0.6 |
9 pm |
1.1 |
10 pm |
1.2 |
11 pm |
0.9 |
Area Discussion for Charleston, SC
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FXUS62 KCHS 190918 AFDCHS
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Charleston SC 418 AM EST Wed Feb 19 2025
SYNOPSIS
A coastal low will track northeastwards off the Georgia/South Carolina coast today, with high pressure building into the region by end of the week. A broad area of low pressure off the coast will form on Sunday.
NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/
Early this morning, satellite water vapor showed a mid-level low over the MN/IA state line. Near term guidance indicates that the closed low will track SE across the Mid West today into tonight.
GFS1deg times a band of H5 Q-vector convergence, around 15 units, passing over the forecast area during the daylight hours. At the sfc, high pressure will build across the Southeast U.S. today, pushing as far south as FL. An inverted trough over the Gulf Stream will gradually deepen this morning, with a coastal low developing this afternoon. Once the coast low organizes, it should track to the northeast along the Carolina coast. High resolution guidance indicates that isentropic lift will develop over the wedged high.
The combination of deepening forcing and PW building in excess of an inch should support widespread light rain for much of the day. QPF values were reduced, ranging from around .3 across the CHS Tri- county to .75 across extreme SE GA. CAMs indicate that a squall line may race across the eastern Gulf through early this afternoon, this feature may cut off some moisture from reaching the forecast area.
Given thick cloud cover, widespread light rain, and steady NE winds high temperatures will be limited to the upper 40s inland to the low to mid 50s along the coast.
Tonight, the coastal low will continue to deepen as it tracks off the coast of NC. As the low departs, H85 temperatures over Lake Moultrie are forecast to fall from 5C at 0Z to -3C by 12Z Thursday.
In addition, forecast soundings indicate that dry air will increase from the top-down tonight. Pops will sharply decrease across the forecast area this evening, with generally dry conditions after midnight. Late this evening, temperatures, at least wet-bulb temperatures, are forecast to fall to around freezing across portions of Berkeley and Dorchester Counties. Isolated to scattered showers or drizzle may track across area of temperatures around freezing. It is possible that some locations could see a light glaze of ice. Given warm soils and marginal temperatures, it appears that ice accumulation on the sfc is unlikely. However, a glaze of ice is possible in the tree tops and other elevated surfaces. Low temperatures are forecast to range from the upper 20s across portions of Berkeley and Dorchester Counties. There is a chance that some black ice is possible on shaded bridges or other elevated surface. However, winds between 5 to 10 mph and warm soil temperatures should limit any black ice. Elsewhere, low temperatures are forecast to range from the low 30s to mid 30s.
SHORT TERM /THURSDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT/
While the bulk of the precipitation will have fallen by Thursday morning, majority of high-resolution guidance is now showing another round of light rain showers is expected by late morning into the afternoon hours, confined to our northern South Carolina counties.
This is expected to occur as some last remaining low/mid-level shortwaves move down towards the coast, with enough moisture remaining available to squeeze out some light rain showers. And yes, despite starting off the morning near freezing, the surface and boundary layer quickly rise to well above freezing resulting in no concern wintry precip. Afternoon highs peak in the lower to upper 40s before cold air advection (CAA) pushes the rain showers out to sea throughout the afternoon hours, leading to some breezy westerly winds sustained in the teens with gusts in the lower to mid 20s.
The pressure gradient decreases into the evening hours allowing for winds to also decrease, though CAA will continue aloft. We'll have to see how calm we get, as it's shaping up to be a good night for radiational cooling given clear skies. Latest model guidance has the region dipping down into the lower to upper 20s, coolest furthest inland, with some wiggle room remaining as temperatures may further cool given the aforementioned radiational cooling setup. Record lows are in the upper teens to lower 20s, and we're still a few degrees above. While the winds are expected to be light, it will not take much wind to cause wind chill values to dip down into the teens Friday morning, so will likely need a cold weather advisory at some point to highlight the cold.
After the cold start to the day, we'll be watching as a surface high pressure over the central CONUS slides eastwards, keeping cool conditions continuing with no chances for precipitation. Another afternoon with highs in the lower to upper 40s, though thankfully this will be our last day with highs 15 to 20 degrees below normal for the foreseeable future per the latest ensembles.
Quiet conditions continue on Saturday as the surface high pressure begins to weaken, with southerly winds expected by the afternoon hours which should help warm the region into the lower to upper 50s.
Overnight into Sunday, ensembles show a broad area of low pressure developing off the coast, with some deterministic models showing similar solutions.
LONG TERM /SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/
Sunday will see the aforementioned broad area of low pressure result in some light rain showers throughout the morning and early afternoon hours, with temperatures in the upper 50s to mid 60s.
Agreement amongst the deterministic models continues to diverge into the extended, with ensemble clustering showing two competing clusters each carrying 36%/31% of members respectively. The dominant cluster keeps chances for light rain continuing into Monday before moving the rain off to sea, while the second keeps the area dry. NBM basically splits those two solutions, keeping chances for rain before drying out Sunday night into Monday. Heading out into next week, a surface high pressure develops across the northern Gulf keeping the area dry and warm with temperatures in the 70s expected Tuesday and Wednesday.
AVIATION /09Z WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/
6Z TAFs: Sfc high pressure will ridge across the terminals through the TAF period. An area of low pressure will develop off the GA/SC coast today, tracking to the northeast. This pattern will result in a strengthen area of Cold Air Damming across the region today through this evening. Northeast winds with lowering VFR ceilings will occur across the terminals through daybreak this morning. A large area of rain is forecast to lift north this morning, reaching KSAV by 14Z and KCHS and KJZI by 16Z. Forecast soundings and MOS indicates that ceilings would likely drop to IFR 2-3 hours after the arrival of the rain. Lingering CAD and cooling temperatures tonight will likely result in the llvl inversion to lower tonight. Cloud bases are forecast to drop below 500 ft at KSAV this evening.
Extended Aviation Outlook: VFR conditions expect through the late work week.
MARINE
Today, high pressure will ridge over land as a coastal low develops over the Gulf Stream. The pressure gradient is expected to pinch over the nearshore waters of Charleston County this afternoon.
Northeast winds are forecast to increase to 20 kts with gusts to 25 kts this afternoon into early this evening. A Small Craft Advisory has been issued for the Charleston County nearshore waters from noon until 8 PM. Elsewhere, northeast winds outside the harbor should frequently gusts to around 20 kts. Seas should gradually build through the day, ranging from 3 to 5 ft by late this afternoon.
Tonight, the coastal low will depart the marine zones to the northeast. Winds across the coastal waters are forecast to shift from the northwest, speeds between 15 to 20 kts. Seas are forecast to range between 3 to 5 ft.
Thursday through Monday: Thursday, the combinations of a steepening pressure gradient and cold air advection should support gusty NW winds. Gusts are forecast to range between 25 to 30 kts across all marine zones outside the CHS Harbor Thursday afternoon through Thursday night. Seas will build during the period, ranging between 3 to 6 ft. Small Craft Advisories will likely be needed for the near and outer waters. High pressure will return to the region Friday through Saturday. Winds and seas should remain below SCA criteria.
Another coastal low may develop over the waters on Sunday, moving away from the region on Monday. There may be an increase in winds and seas, but conditions should remain below advisory criteria.
CLIMATE
Record Low Maximum Temperatures:
February 21: KCHS: 47/2020
Record Low Temperatures:
February 21: KCHS: 22/1958
CHS WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
GA...None.
SC...None.
MARINE...Small Craft Advisory from noon today to 8 PM EST this evening for AMZ350.
Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Charleston SC 418 AM EST Wed Feb 19 2025
SYNOPSIS
A coastal low will track northeastwards off the Georgia/South Carolina coast today, with high pressure building into the region by end of the week. A broad area of low pressure off the coast will form on Sunday.
NEAR TERM /THROUGH TONIGHT/
Early this morning, satellite water vapor showed a mid-level low over the MN/IA state line. Near term guidance indicates that the closed low will track SE across the Mid West today into tonight.
GFS1deg times a band of H5 Q-vector convergence, around 15 units, passing over the forecast area during the daylight hours. At the sfc, high pressure will build across the Southeast U.S. today, pushing as far south as FL. An inverted trough over the Gulf Stream will gradually deepen this morning, with a coastal low developing this afternoon. Once the coast low organizes, it should track to the northeast along the Carolina coast. High resolution guidance indicates that isentropic lift will develop over the wedged high.
The combination of deepening forcing and PW building in excess of an inch should support widespread light rain for much of the day. QPF values were reduced, ranging from around .3 across the CHS Tri- county to .75 across extreme SE GA. CAMs indicate that a squall line may race across the eastern Gulf through early this afternoon, this feature may cut off some moisture from reaching the forecast area.
Given thick cloud cover, widespread light rain, and steady NE winds high temperatures will be limited to the upper 40s inland to the low to mid 50s along the coast.
Tonight, the coastal low will continue to deepen as it tracks off the coast of NC. As the low departs, H85 temperatures over Lake Moultrie are forecast to fall from 5C at 0Z to -3C by 12Z Thursday.
In addition, forecast soundings indicate that dry air will increase from the top-down tonight. Pops will sharply decrease across the forecast area this evening, with generally dry conditions after midnight. Late this evening, temperatures, at least wet-bulb temperatures, are forecast to fall to around freezing across portions of Berkeley and Dorchester Counties. Isolated to scattered showers or drizzle may track across area of temperatures around freezing. It is possible that some locations could see a light glaze of ice. Given warm soils and marginal temperatures, it appears that ice accumulation on the sfc is unlikely. However, a glaze of ice is possible in the tree tops and other elevated surfaces. Low temperatures are forecast to range from the upper 20s across portions of Berkeley and Dorchester Counties. There is a chance that some black ice is possible on shaded bridges or other elevated surface. However, winds between 5 to 10 mph and warm soil temperatures should limit any black ice. Elsewhere, low temperatures are forecast to range from the low 30s to mid 30s.
SHORT TERM /THURSDAY THROUGH SATURDAY NIGHT/
While the bulk of the precipitation will have fallen by Thursday morning, majority of high-resolution guidance is now showing another round of light rain showers is expected by late morning into the afternoon hours, confined to our northern South Carolina counties.
This is expected to occur as some last remaining low/mid-level shortwaves move down towards the coast, with enough moisture remaining available to squeeze out some light rain showers. And yes, despite starting off the morning near freezing, the surface and boundary layer quickly rise to well above freezing resulting in no concern wintry precip. Afternoon highs peak in the lower to upper 40s before cold air advection (CAA) pushes the rain showers out to sea throughout the afternoon hours, leading to some breezy westerly winds sustained in the teens with gusts in the lower to mid 20s.
The pressure gradient decreases into the evening hours allowing for winds to also decrease, though CAA will continue aloft. We'll have to see how calm we get, as it's shaping up to be a good night for radiational cooling given clear skies. Latest model guidance has the region dipping down into the lower to upper 20s, coolest furthest inland, with some wiggle room remaining as temperatures may further cool given the aforementioned radiational cooling setup. Record lows are in the upper teens to lower 20s, and we're still a few degrees above. While the winds are expected to be light, it will not take much wind to cause wind chill values to dip down into the teens Friday morning, so will likely need a cold weather advisory at some point to highlight the cold.
After the cold start to the day, we'll be watching as a surface high pressure over the central CONUS slides eastwards, keeping cool conditions continuing with no chances for precipitation. Another afternoon with highs in the lower to upper 40s, though thankfully this will be our last day with highs 15 to 20 degrees below normal for the foreseeable future per the latest ensembles.
Quiet conditions continue on Saturday as the surface high pressure begins to weaken, with southerly winds expected by the afternoon hours which should help warm the region into the lower to upper 50s.
Overnight into Sunday, ensembles show a broad area of low pressure developing off the coast, with some deterministic models showing similar solutions.
LONG TERM /SUNDAY THROUGH TUESDAY/
Sunday will see the aforementioned broad area of low pressure result in some light rain showers throughout the morning and early afternoon hours, with temperatures in the upper 50s to mid 60s.
Agreement amongst the deterministic models continues to diverge into the extended, with ensemble clustering showing two competing clusters each carrying 36%/31% of members respectively. The dominant cluster keeps chances for light rain continuing into Monday before moving the rain off to sea, while the second keeps the area dry. NBM basically splits those two solutions, keeping chances for rain before drying out Sunday night into Monday. Heading out into next week, a surface high pressure develops across the northern Gulf keeping the area dry and warm with temperatures in the 70s expected Tuesday and Wednesday.
AVIATION /09Z WEDNESDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/
6Z TAFs: Sfc high pressure will ridge across the terminals through the TAF period. An area of low pressure will develop off the GA/SC coast today, tracking to the northeast. This pattern will result in a strengthen area of Cold Air Damming across the region today through this evening. Northeast winds with lowering VFR ceilings will occur across the terminals through daybreak this morning. A large area of rain is forecast to lift north this morning, reaching KSAV by 14Z and KCHS and KJZI by 16Z. Forecast soundings and MOS indicates that ceilings would likely drop to IFR 2-3 hours after the arrival of the rain. Lingering CAD and cooling temperatures tonight will likely result in the llvl inversion to lower tonight. Cloud bases are forecast to drop below 500 ft at KSAV this evening.
Extended Aviation Outlook: VFR conditions expect through the late work week.
MARINE
Today, high pressure will ridge over land as a coastal low develops over the Gulf Stream. The pressure gradient is expected to pinch over the nearshore waters of Charleston County this afternoon.
Northeast winds are forecast to increase to 20 kts with gusts to 25 kts this afternoon into early this evening. A Small Craft Advisory has been issued for the Charleston County nearshore waters from noon until 8 PM. Elsewhere, northeast winds outside the harbor should frequently gusts to around 20 kts. Seas should gradually build through the day, ranging from 3 to 5 ft by late this afternoon.
Tonight, the coastal low will depart the marine zones to the northeast. Winds across the coastal waters are forecast to shift from the northwest, speeds between 15 to 20 kts. Seas are forecast to range between 3 to 5 ft.
Thursday through Monday: Thursday, the combinations of a steepening pressure gradient and cold air advection should support gusty NW winds. Gusts are forecast to range between 25 to 30 kts across all marine zones outside the CHS Harbor Thursday afternoon through Thursday night. Seas will build during the period, ranging between 3 to 6 ft. Small Craft Advisories will likely be needed for the near and outer waters. High pressure will return to the region Friday through Saturday. Winds and seas should remain below SCA criteria.
Another coastal low may develop over the waters on Sunday, moving away from the region on Monday. There may be an increase in winds and seas, but conditions should remain below advisory criteria.
CLIMATE
Record Low Maximum Temperatures:
February 21: KCHS: 47/2020
Record Low Temperatures:
February 21: KCHS: 22/1958
CHS WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES
GA...None.
SC...None.
MARINE...Small Craft Advisory from noon today to 8 PM EST this evening for AMZ350.
Stations | Dist | Age | Wind | Air | Water | Waves | inHg | DewPt |
CHTS1 | 16 mi | 54 min | N 8.9G | 50°F | 55°F | 30.09 | ||
ACXS1 - ACE Basin Reserve, SC | 18 mi | 69 min | N 1.9 | 47°F | 30.06 | 42°F | ||
41066 | 24 mi | 46 min | ENE 18G | 56°F | 58°F | 30.05 | 54°F | |
41076 | 24 mi | 79 min | 4 ft | |||||
41033 | 27 mi | 46 min | NE 12G | 55°F | 54°F | 30.07 | 51°F | |
41067 | 27 mi | 64 min | 54°F | 3 ft | ||||
41029 - Capers Nearshore (CAP 2) | 30 mi | 46 min | ENE 19G | 53°F | 55°F | 30.07 | 48°F | |
41065 | 30 mi | 64 min | 54°F | 3 ft |
Wind History for Charleston, SC
toggle option: (graph/table)
Airport Reports
Link to 1 hour of 5 minute data for KJZI
Terminal Aerodrome Forecast (TAF) for KJZI
Wind History Graph: JZI
(wind in knots)GEOS Local Image of southeast
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Charleston, SC,

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