From Russia with love - well, Gdansk.

The Russian trawler, Nivenskoye from the Kalingrad based Fishing Company has steamed from Gdansk and is now heading south west off Cornwall to a destination unknown. Once the vessel is out of range of the shore-based AIS antennas the vessel's track can only be followed via satellite...

meanwhile, one of the world's most powerful tugs, the Abeille Bourbon has left her berth in Brest and is anchored in the lee of Ushant - presumably waiting on station in the event of any emergency cover that might occur as the severe storms predicted lash the western shipping...

she can be seen here showing off her huge power and sea-keeping abilities in this poor weather video.

Work in progress - Karen of Ladram dodging way west of the Scillys.

More work in progress on the boat detail above the waterline - especially to place the two crew stood on top of the shelterdeck ahead of the hauler hatch cover - more sea detail to follow.

Work in progress...

Beginning to pick out detail in and around wheelhouse and stern of the boat...

and a little more on the water action as she takes another heavy sea...

changing the angle of the photo...

heavy seas are always a challenge to give the scene sufficient depth.

From gales in Cornwall to storms in Shetland

GUSTS WINDS - Windy says #Lerwick #Shetland just recorded a 95mph gust . . . . . . worse is still to come #Storm3 #ScotsStorm

— Windy Wilson (@WindyWilson88) January 10, 2015

The current weather systems courtesy of EarthNull show the main protagonist - an area of intense low pressure off the top of Scotland with the wind travelling in an anti-clockwise direction giving the hurricane force south westerly to westerly winds- while, unusually away to the west of the UK deep in the North Atlantic is a small(ish) area of high pressure - a bit of a renegade in meteorological terms as it is normally a huge area of high pressure that creates the 'North Atlantic blocking system' which forces successive lows coming across from the eastern seaboard of the US to travel north east across the ocean - giving the UK its familiar weather pattern of southwesterly - westerly winds that eventually go north west - only to start the cycle all over again as the next low hits arrives on our shores...

average wind speed from the weather buoy 64406 off the top of Scotland at 0700 today...

with the corresponding wave height data...

contrasted with the wind speed from the buoy at the Sevenstones off Land's End, Cornwall... 

looking ahead to the 14th when things don't look so good either!