If you've watched the ocean, trying to figure out what kind of ships you see off in the distance, turn to www.marinetraffic.com to learn that and so much more. The site will not only tell you what kind of ship you're looking at, but where it came from, where it's going and who loaded it.
The website lists just about every registered ship on the world, with information about its position, direction, speed and destination, along with information on, technical data about and photos of the ship.
The information is also presented in a map format, with tankers and hazardous materials transporters in red, freighters in green and ferries in blue. And it doesn't just show ships. There is also information about wind-parks and working at-sea platforms.
It doesn't take long to realize there's plenty going on the seas and oceans of the globe.
The information can also be filtered, if you want to only look at data on platforms, working ships or ferries, for example. There are also listings on many private vessels and ships owned by governments.
There's an option to create your own virtual fleet to track. It's also possible to post a picture taken to the databank, which holds information on 600,000 vessels. The website is free. Downloading a matching app, available for Android and iOS, costs under 5 dollars.