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MaritimeHub AIS Hub

Live vessel tracking, AIS theory, equipment, regulations and the full AIS picture — from the first transponder switched on in 2002 to satellite AIS, VDES, superyacht tracking and autonomous shipping. Learn the system and watch it work in real time.

AIS overview
Live Fleet Map
Real-time positions for 600k+ vessels worldwide.
Search a Vessel
Look up any ship by IMO, MMSI or name.
Contribute a Station
Run a receiver, fill coverage gaps, earn premium access.

MaritimeHub Live AIS Map

Real-time vessel positions powered by AIS Friends. Pick a hotspot — including superyacht-dense waters — or search by IMO / MMSI / vessel name.

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Live data: AIS Friends global network. Class A vessels report every few seconds; Class B every 30s–3min. Some superyachts run AIS in low-power mode or off in port — legal under SOLAS V/19.

On Watch

The AIS picture right now — what’s being tracked, what to monitor, and the data points that matter most.

High-density traffic zones Dover Strait, Singapore Strait and Rotterdam approaches — see how AIS handles 1,000+ vessels in shared coverage.
Superyacht season tracking Riviera in summer, Caribbean in winter — follow the fleet between Monaco, St Tropez, St Barts and Antigua.
Dark-vessel detection Spotting AIS gaps, switch-offs and identity spoofing. How operators read what isn’t there.

Explore the AIS World

Use the AIS Hub as a complete map of the system — from VHF radio principles to satellite coverage, regulation and operator tooling.

Fundamentals

AIS Basics & Origins

What AIS is, how it grew out of SOLAS, and how the system shares a single VHF channel.

Explore basics → Technology

Equipment & Transponders

Class A, Class B, AtoN, SART and base stations. Antennas, GPS and bridge displays.

Explore equipment → Networks

Coverage & Satellite AIS

Coastal stations, repeaters, S-AIS and where the blind spots still are.

Explore coverage → Future

VDES & Smart Tracking

VHF Data Exchange, predictive analytics and autonomous vessel operations.

Explore future →

Featured AIS Topics

Entry points into the most-asked AIS subjects on MaritimeHub.

How AIS Works

Self-organising TDMA, channels 87B/88B and 2,250 time slots that keep traffic moving without collisions.

The 27 Message Types

Position reports, voyage data, base station messages and binary application data — what each carries.

SOLAS & Carriage Rules

Which vessels must carry AIS, when it can be switched off, and what flag states require beyond IMO baseline.

Class A vs Class B

SOTDMA vs CSTDMA, transmit power, reporting intervals and why a Class B isn’t equal to Class A.

Superyacht AIS

Privacy mode, AIS off in port, owner anonymity and how the world’s biggest yachts show up — or don’t.

Spoofing & Dark Activity

How identities are faked, how it’s detected, and what the sanctions and insurance worlds are doing about it.