Collection: Environmental sensors

Environmental sensors: measuring conditions that influence the boat and its systems

Environmental sensors enhance onboard electronics by measuring physical conditions around the boat or technical installations: solar irradiance, temperature, pressure, humidity, brightness, or parameters useful for diagnostics. This collection includes sensors that are neither standard navigation probes nor fluid level sensors, but provide contextual data that can be used by a monitoring system.

For solar, local weather, and technical monitoring

A sensor such as the Victron SolarSense allows tracking solar production by measuring actual sunlight and associated temperatures. This data helps interpret the performance of solar panels and solar charge controllers: an MPPT that charges little does not have the same meaning under overcast skies, a hot panel, or a wiring fault.

Connection to onboard networks

Depending on the product, data can be transmitted to an NMEA 2000 network, VE.Can, a GX device, or a proprietary interface. The choice of sensor therefore depends as much on the measured parameter as on its integration with the existing ecosystem: chartplotter, gateway, display, Cerbo GX, cloud supervision, or diagnostic software.

Selection criteria

• Measured parameters: irradiance, ambient temperature, panel temperature, pressure, humidity, or brightness.
• Compatible network: NMEA 2000, VE.Can, GX, Bluetooth, USB, or analog output.
• Range and accuracy: verify according to use, especially for comparing solar output and actual conditions.
• Installation: outdoor mounting, UV exposure, IP rating, cables, and connectors suitable for the marine environment.

Skysat advice

An environmental sensor is most useful when it informs a decision: solar production diagnostics, energy bank monitoring, temperature alarm, or performance analysis. Before adding one, check where the data will be displayed and how it will be processed by the onboard system.