PSV Blue Thunder from Ulstein

In 1789 after a mutinous uprising on the HMS Bounty, Captain William Bligh managed to navigate himself & 18 of his crew in a 23 foot lifeboat over 3600 nautical miles to safety, armed with nothing but a sextant & a pocket watch.

Just imagine what you could do in a similar situation when armed with nothing but an iPhone & these handy apps!

Each application on the list can be run stand alone, although some require the iPhones GPS input or 3G service for maximum functionality.  Of course if you are getting a 3G signal you could also just call up the coast guard for a ride…  None of these will replace good old common sense!

Now on to the list!

1. Sextant.

If it was good enough for Captain Bligh then it should be good enough for you to find your way home!  This handsome bronze sextant will allow you to shoot the stars with ease.

A close second was the Clinometer App, which can be used in the same way & is arguably more useful for a variety of applications.  Not quite nautical enough to make the list though…

2. StarMap Pro

What good is a sextant without stars to navigate by?  STARMAP is a pocket planetarium, using the breath taking technologies of the iPhone. It brings the present and future sky map at the tip of your fingers, at any time, anywhere.  Available in base & pro versions.

3. Traveling Companion – True Compass

Travelling Companion is a great application for anybody who is constantly on the go! Who wants to lug along a huge GPS device with you when you can bring your phone? Travelling Companion offers many features to help guide you to your destination with a slick, easy to use interface.

4. Sunrise

Another handy tool for being out on the water.  Break out your A,B,C tables & take an azimuth  of the sun!

In addition to using your current GPS location, it has a list of built in locations around the world.

5. Tide Tables

TideApp is a free application from Atlantis Technology.  It will enable you to check the tides for user selected ports.

6. NOAA Raster Charts

Now we are talking!  iNavX charts uses the iPhone’s built in location services (i.e. GPS, cell tower, WiFi) to plot your position in real-time on the multi-touch scrolling and zooming marine chart!  Although one of the more expensive apps at $49.95 this one offers access to thousands of charts and maps: official CHS Canada Charts, Navionics Gold Charts, Discovery Charts, HotMaps, NV. Verlag Charts, Hilton’s fishing charts, TRAK Canada lakes fishing maps and Solteknik Sweden waters charts may be purchased separately from X-Traverse.

7. Foreca.mobi World Weather

See what the weather is going to be doing while you are on the water!  Offers 10-day forecast, current conditions and stunning weather animations including radar, satellite and precipitation forecast for all your favorite locations. Foreca.mobi covers both national and international locations, in total over 140.000 locations.

8. 1st Response Emergency Kit

What can go wrong will go wrong. So it’s a good idea to be prepared. The 1st Response:Emergency Kit is a must-have for those who like to be prepared. It puts as much practical information as possible into your hands for unexpected situations.

In addition to offering first aid help 1st Response there is a light function that allows you to use your handset as a light. Just tap it and open or close the aperture to get as much or as little light as you need. The distress button provides access to a SOS function. You can adjust the flashing light by color and the rate of flashes in seconds.

9. Emergency Beacon

You’re lost in the middle of nowhere. You’re trapped in an earthquake, hurricane or other emergency situation. How do you find your way out? How do you get help?
This simple application, when activated, sends out a distress beacon with your current location to rescuers.
Why not use the built in Google Maps? Two reasons. Google Maps do not allow you to email your latitude and longitude. And although you may be able to send a signal from urban locations, Google Maps may be of little help in offshore settings.

10. Ship It!

Even with all of the previous apps you are still going to have some time to kill while steaming back in to port.  What better way to spend it than playing Ship It! by Coracle Online?

This addictive Maritime game features excellent graphics & animations.  The object of the game is to move cargo across the docks & load up the ships for departure…  But make sure you get the right type of cargo on the right ship!

There you have it!  10 applications useful to those that are adrift in a lifeboat, or otherwise lost at sea.  Pass this list on to your shipmates, to ensure they have the necessary tools!