The Fastnet Shipping Forecast region draws its name from a rocky outcrop off the southern tip of Ireland, etched on sailors’ charts as the ‘teardrop of Ireland’ - a title earned from its position as the last sight of Ireland for emigrants sailing to America. This isolated beacon, lying roughly 6.5km southwest of Cape Clear Island and about 13km from the Irish mainland, is a small, craggy outcrop, spanning around 24 acres, with its highest point standing 30m above sea level.
Despite the island’s small size, it dominates the maritime landscape with the iconic Fastnet Lighthouse, a masterpiece of 19th-century engineering. The 54-metre tower, clad in Cornish granite, was constructed to withstand the fiercest Atlantic storms. Its light, a powerful beacon with a
