Ship transits on
Drag the slider or a chart to move the date. Click a colored dot to open an event.
ships per day on the dateaverage in the "before" period
Daily transits by chokepoint
Each chart counts the ships that crossed one chokepoint each day. The blue line is a 7-day average by default; switch to daily counts or a 30-day average in the panel. The gray band is the "before" period and the orange band the "after" period. The dashed lines inside the bands are each period's average, and the panel table gives the change. Pick a preset or type your own dates.
The map shows the same date. Each solid circle is sized by ships per day at that chokepoint, and the dashed ring shows the "before" average, so a small circle inside a large ring means traffic has fallen. Circles turn amber below 85 percent of the "before" level and red below 60 percent. The box in the corner tracks the Cape of Good Hope, where diverted ships go.
Colored dots along the top of each chart are events from the timeline. Click one, or pick it from the list, to read what happened and open its source. Filter the categories in the panel.
PortWatch estimates transits from AIS, the radio transponders that large ships carry. Ships can switch AIS off, and in a war zone many do, so a count near zero means few ships are broadcasting, not proof that none moved. Counts cover commercial ship types (container, dry bulk, general cargo, roll-on/roll-off and tanker); warships are not included. A fall in transits shows how shippers and insurers judged the risk. It does not measure damage.