The Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) has published the first “High Density Electronical Navigational Chart” (HD ENC). The new digital charts primarily feature more accurate depth information and therefore guarantee better and safer navigation. In two years’ time, the “S100” chart project will be the logical next step towards even more accurate nautical charts.
New “S100” chart project to be launched from 2026
The new nautical charts from the Bundesamt für Seeschifffahrt und Hydrographie (BSH) will provide shipping with even more accurate depth information, thus enabling greater safety and increased efficiency in navigation. The first electronic high-density nautical charts (HD ENC) have been available since June 2024 and represent an intermediate step towards even more accurate charts, which the future “S100” standard is expected to deliver from 2026. Although the newly developed charts cannot be used directly on all devices, such as Raymarine devices, they serve as a template for the Raymarine charts. The customer therefore also uses the BSH charts indirectly for the Raymarine Lighthouse charts.
“We talk a lot about the new nautical chart standard ‘S100’ and its advantages, but it won’t arrive until 2026. The BSH was asked by the shipping industry whether we could incorporate the higher resolution of the depth image into the electronic nautical charts before then. We have been working intensively on the preparation of ‘S100’ for years and can now meet this request,” says Thomas Dehling (Head of the Nautical Hydrography Department at BSH Hamburg). The first new product of this kind shows the area of the Port of Rostock, and other areas will follow continuously.
Faster updates of navigation data
As soon as the survey reports new data, it flows directly into the new HD ENC (“High Density Electronical Navigational Chart”). With the previous products, the updated data is always updated at the same time as the paper charts. This works much faster with the new technology. With the HD ENC, seafarers can obtain up-to-date navigation data much more quickly and receive a much more precise depth image including very accurate depth contours, namely after every meter instead of only every five meters previously.
Navigation gets a detailed view of possible space for navigating
The BSH Hamburg’s nautical information service publishes electronic nautical chart products in accordance with the standards of the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO). These products naturally comply with a specific set of rules and are provided by the BSH in electronic form. Larger ships in particular need as much space as possible to navigate in the busy North Sea and Baltic Sea. The HD ENC is therefore an important contribution to further increasing safety in shipping.