Air Temperatures The following maximum temperatures (F) were recorded across the state of Hawaii Thursday:

85  Lihue, Kauai
85  Honolulu, Oahu
86  Molokai
89  Kahului, Maui
88  Kona, Hawaii
87  Hilo, Hawaii


Air Temperatures ranged between these warmest and coolest spots near sea level – and on the highest mountain tops on Maui and the Big Island…as of 743pm Thursday evening:


Honolulu, Oahu – 80
Hana airport, Maui – 73


Haleakala Summit –    M
(near 10,000 feet on Maui)
Mauna Kea Summit – 43 (13,000+ feet on the Big Island)


Hawaii’s MountainsHere’s a link to the live web cam on the summit of near 13,800 foot Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaii. This web cam is available during the daylight hours here in the islands…and when there’s a big moon shining down during the night at times. Plus, during the nights you will be able to see stars, and the sunrise and sunset too… depending upon weather conditions. Here’s the Haleakala Crater webcam on Maui – if it’s working.

 


Aloha Paragraphs



http://www.topdreamer.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/barking-sand-beach-634x436.jpg

Our local trade winds will regain strength this weekend

A  few windward showers tonight…interior upcountry
afternoon showers Friday – increasing windward showers
late Friday into Saturday


Cool morning Friday





The following numbers represent the most recent top wind gusts (mph), along with directions as of Thursday evening:

12  Mana, Kauai – NE
18  Kahuku Trng, Oahu – ESE
20  Molokai – E
20  Lanai – NE
21  Kahoolawe – ESE
17  Lipoa, Maui – NE
24  South Point, Big Island -NW


Here are the latest 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands as of Thursday evening:


0.47 Puu Opae, Kauai
0.18  Lualualei, Oahu
0.00  Molokai
0.00  Kahoolawe
0.00  Lanai
0.07  Pukalani, Maui
0.33  Kahua Ranch, Big Island


We can use the following links to see what’s going on in our area of the north central Pacific Ocean. Here’s the latest NOAA satellite picture – the latest looping satellite image… and finally the latest looping radar image for the Hawaiian Islands.


~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~



The winds will be lighter than normal into early Saturday…with the trade winds gradually strengthening this weekend into next week. Here’s a weather chart showing a near 1020 millibar high pressure system located to the west-northwest, and another near 1026 millibar high pressure cell far northeast of the islands. The forecast calls for recovering trade winds this weekend into next week.

A few windward showers, mostly during the night and early mornings…increasing some Saturday. Satellite imagery scattered just a few low level clouds over the ocean surrounding the islands. Here’s the looping radar image, showing just a few showers over the islands…mostly over the interior sections of the islands at the time of this writing. As the winds remain quite light, we’ll see a few more afternoon upcountry clouds and showers Friday. As we push into the weekend, we’ll see a modest increase in clouds and showers arriving along our windward sides. The approaching area of clouds, that will be responsible for Saturday’s showers, is viewable over the ocean east and east-southeast of the Big Island…using this looping satellite image.


Reflections from Maui:
Here on Maui this evening skies were clearing up, with many areas already near cloud free. The air temperature at my place in Kula at 645pm was 70.7F degrees. Meanwhile, down at the airport in Kahului, it was mostly clear at about the same time, and a warmer 80 degrees. Here in Kula, we had a couple of light showers during the early afternoon hours, although not as many as we had yesterday by any means. I expect almost all clouds to dissipate overnight here in Maui County, making way for yet another near totally clear morning on Friday…a bit cooler than normal too. I’ll be back early Friday morning with your next new weather narrative from paradise, I hope you have a great Thursday night wherever you’re spending it! Aloha for now…Glenn.


World-wide tropical cyclone activity:


Atlantic Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones

DISORGANIZED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS…ASSOCIATED WITH A SURFACE
TROUGH…EXTEND FROM PUERTO RICO NORTHEASTWARD ACROSS THE ADJACENT
ATLANTIC. SURFACE PRESSURES ARE CURRENTLY RISING AND DEVELOPMENT OF
THIS DISTURBANCE…IF ANY…WILL BE SLOW TO OCCUR. THIS SYSTEM HAS A
LOW CHANCE…10 PERCENT…OF BECOMING A TROPICAL CYCLONE DURING THE
NEXT 48 HOURS AS IT MOVES NORTHWESTWARD AT 10 TO 15 MPH. SOME
DEVELOPMENT OF THIS SYSTEM IS POSSIBLE IN A FEW DAYS WHEN THE
DISTURBANCE MOVES NORTHEASTWARD AHEAD OF A COLD FRONT AND INTERACTS
WITH REMNANTS OF GABRIELLE OVER THE CENTRAL ATLANTIC OCEAN. THIS
SYSTEM HAS A MEDIUM CHANCE…30 PERCENT…OF BECOMING A TROPICAL
CYCLONE DURING THE NEXT 5 DAYS.


SHOWER ACTIVITY ASSOCIATED WITH A TROPICAL WAVE LOCATED ABOUT 600
MILES WEST OF THE CAPE VERDE ISLANDS HAS DIMINISHED. DEVELOPMENT OF
THIS SYSTEM IS NOT LIKELY DUE TO VERY UNFAVORABLE ENVIRONMENTAL
CONDITIONS. THIS SYSTEM HAS A LOW CHANCE…NEAR 0 PERCENT…OF
BECOMING A TROPICAL CYCLONE DURING THE NEXT 48 HOURS…AND A LOW
CHANCE…NEAR 0 PERCENT…OF BECOMING A TROPICAL CYCLONE DURING THE
NEXT 5 DAYS WHILE IT MOVES TO THE WEST-NORTHWEST AT ABOUT 10 MPH.

OTHER SYSTEMS WITH FORMATION POTENTIAL BEYOND 48 HOURS…

 


A TROPICAL WAVE OVER AFRICA IS EXPECTED TO MOVE OVER THE FAR EASTERN ATLANTIC OCEAN IN A COUPLE OF DAYS…AND DEVELOPMENT OF THIS SYSTEM IS POSSIBLE OVER THE WEEKEND AND INTO EARLY NEXT WEEK. THIS SYSTEM HAS A LOW CHANCE…NEAR 0 PERCENT…OF BECOMING A TROPICAL CYCLONE DURING THE NEXT 48 HOURS…AND A MEDIUM CHANCE…40 PERCENT…OF BECOMING A TROPICAL CYCLONE DURING THE NEXT 5 DAYS.

Caribbean Sea:
Former tropical depression 07L (Gabrielle) is dissipating in the Caribbean. Here’s the National Hurricane Center’s graphical track map…along with a NOAA satellite image.  Here’s a looping radar image of tropical depression Gabrielle – Final Advisory


Gulf of Mexico:
There are no active tropical cyclones

A BROAD AREA OF LOW PRESSURE IN THE WESTERN GULF OF MEXICO LOCATED A LITTLE LESS THAN A HUNDRED MILES EAST OF TAMPICO IS MOVING WESTWARD. THIS SYSTEM IS ACCOMPANIED BY A LARGE BUT DISORGANIZED AREA OF CLOUDINESS AND A FEW SQUALLS. ALTHOUGH THE SYSTEM IS ALREADY APPROACHING LAND…A TROPICAL DEPRESSION COULD FORM BEFORE THE LOW MOVES INLAND ALONG THE COAST OF MEXICO LATER THIS MORNING. THIS SYSTEM HAS A MEDIUM CHANCE…50 PERCENT…OF BECOMING A TROPICAL CYCLONE DURING THE NEXT 48 HOURS…AND A MEDIUM CHANCE…50 PERCENT…OF BECOMING A TROPICAL CYCLONE DURING THE NEXT 5 DAYS. REGARDLESS OF TROPICAL CYCLONE FORMATION…HEAVY RAIN AND GUSTY WINDS WILL BE SPREADING ALONG THE COAST OF THE MEXICAN STATES OF VERACRUZ AND TAMAULIPAS TODAY.

Here’s a satellite image of both TD Gabrielle and the rest of the Caribbean Sea…and the Gulf of Mexico. Here’s the hurricane model output for Invest 99L – discussed just above
Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)


Eastern Pacific: 
Tropical storm 12E (Lorena) remains active in the northeast Pacific. Here’s the National Hurricane Center’s graphical track map…along with a NOAA satellite image. Here’s what the hurricane models are showing for this system.

 

Here’s a wide satellite image that covers the entire area between Mexico, out through the central Pacific…to the International Dateline.


Central Pacific Ocean:
There are no active tropical cyclones

 

Here’s a link to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC)


Western Pacific Ocean:
There are no active tropical cyclones


South Pacific Ocean:
There are no active tropical cyclones

 

North and South Indian Oceans: There are no active tropical cyclones


Here’s a link to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)


Interesting:  Proof Clean Air Act Has Reduced Pollution – Before 1970, there was no law in place regulating the amount of pollution that could be emitted by any single entity. However, in 1970, the Clean Air Act was passed and today there is clear evidence that it has indeed helped to reduce pollution.


A collaborative project involving Jesse Nippert, a Kansas State University associate professor of biology, Richard Thomas, professor of biology at West Virginia University, Scott Spal, master’s graduate from West Virginia University, and undergraduate Kenneth Smith from West Virginia University, shows that the Clean Air Act has helped forests systems recover from decades of sulfur pollution and acid rain. In four years, centuries of eastern red cedar tree, or Juniperus virginiana, rings were studied in the Central Appalachian Mountains of West Virginia. This region is of particular concern because it is directly downwind of the Ohio River Valley coal power plants and has experienced years of acidic pollution.


Red cedar trees were chosen because they are abundant, long-lived, and a good recorder of environmental variability. They grow slowly and rely on surface soil moisture, which made them sensitive to environmental change. According to Nippert, their abilities to live for centuries meant that researchers could analyze hundreds of years of tree rings.


According to the tree rings, scientists found that the trees have improved in growth and physiology in the decades since the Clean Air Act was passed. “There is a clear shift in the growth, reflecting the impact of key environmental legislation,” Nippert said. “There are two levels of significance in this research. One is in terms of how we interpret data from tree rings and how we interpret the physiology of trees. The other level of significance is that environmental legislation can have a tremendous impact on an entire ecosystem.”


The researchers analyzed the stable carbon isotopes within each tree ring as a recorder of physiological changes through time. Researchers analyzed tree rings back to the early 1900s, when sulfur dioxide deposition throughout the Ohio River Valley began to increase. By studying the stable isotopic signature in each tree ring, the researchers were able to compare the trees’ growth patterns and changes in physiology to changes in atmospheric chemistry during the 20thcentury. Results showed that despite increased carbon dioxide — which tends to increase plant growth — tree growth and physiology declined for the majority of the 20th century when acidic pollution was high.


But scientists noticed a dramatic change around 1980, 10 years after the Clean Air Act was enacted.


“Our data clearly shows a break point in 1982, where the entire growth patterns of the trees in this forest started on a different trajectory,” Nippert said. “It took 10 years for that landmark environmental legislation to reduce sulfur dioxide emissions, but it eventually did. When it did, we saw an entire ecosystem recover from years of acidic pollution.”