Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures (F) were recorded across the state of Hawaii Wednesday…along with the minimum temperatures Wednesday:

79 – 58  Lihue, Kauai
82 – 70  Honolulu, Oahu
79 – 61  Molokai AP
83 – 60  Kahului, Maui
75 – 69  Kailua Kona
84 – 68  Hilo, Hawaii

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

0.03  Puu Lua, Kauai
0.02  Waianae Valley, Oahu
0.00  Molokai
0.00  Lanai
0.00  Kahoolawe
0.03  Kula Branch Station, Maui
0.63  Pohakuloa Keamuku, Big Island


The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph)…as of Wednesday evening:


29  Port Allen, Kauai – NW
27  Honolulu AP, Oahu – SW
12  Molokai – NW
24  Lanai – W
18  Kahoolawe – WSW
21  Maalaea Bay, Maui – SW
24  Ahumoa, Big Island – SW


Hawaii’s Mountains – Here’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.



Aloha Paragraphs

http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/goes/west/cpac/ir4.jpg
Dry stable low clouds over and around the islands…
with rainy clouds offshore to the west and northeast –
with the recent cold front now offshore to the southeast

http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/goes/west/hi/ir4.jpg
Clear to partly cloudy…some cloudy areas locally


http://radar.weather.gov/Conus/RadarImg/hawaii.gif
Very limited precipitation…with just a few showers
here and there



~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~



High Wind Warning…Big Island Summits – west winds 40-70 mph
with gusts over 80

Small Craft Advisory…for rough seas – parts of the state

High Surf Advisory…along north and west facing shores of
Kauai and Oahu, north shores of Maui, and west shores
of the Big Island


The air flow across our area is coming in from the northwest…keeping a slight chill in place through Thursday. Here’s the latest weather map, showing the Hawaiian Islands, and the rest of the North Pacific Ocean, along with a real-time wind profiler of the central Pacific. We find high pressure systems far to the northeast and northwest of Hawaii, with associated ridges of high pressure offshore to the west and east. At the same time, we have low pressure systems far to the north, with an associated cold front now dissipating southeast and south of the Big Island. Gradually lighter and cool winds will come in from the northwest and north in the wake of this cold front through Thursday. As we get into Friday, stronger and gusty kona winds will develop again ahead of yet another cold front…arriving during the weekend. The next cold front in line will likely arrive around next Wednesday….stay tuned.

The recent cold front has ushered in dry, relatively cool…and stable conditions over the state. Here’s the looping radar image showing a few leftover moisture spots over the nearby ocean, which will bring a few minor showers to some parts of the state…although limited for the time being. The outlook suggests this drier reality will persist through most of Friday. Looking beyond that, the models continue suggesting that yet another cold front will arrive during the upcoming weekend. It’s still a coin toss as to whether this will bring possible heavy rainfall, or perhaps less than that…stay tuned. At any rate, as we move into early next week, we should see more dry weather returning, albeit still on the cool side of normal…followed by that next week cold front mentioned in the paragraph above. I’ll be back with more information on all of the above, I hope you have a great Wednesday night wherever you’re spending it! Aloha for now…Glenn.

Here in Kula, Maui: The main thing early this Wednesday morning is the improved weather, although the dry air is making it feel a bit cool. It’s clear to partly cloudy here on Maui. I’ll have a better idea what’s going on here in Kula,…once it gets light. The air temperature near its minimal reading was 51.8 degrees here at my weather tower. At the same time, it was 64 degrees down at the Kahului airport near the ocean…with 36 degrees atop the Haleakala Crater. The summit of the Big Island was an even colder 23.2 degrees atop Mauna Kea. In contrast to all these wintery temperatures, it was a warmer 74 degrees in Kona on the Big Island at the same time / Now at 720am, I can see that its clear to partly cloudy, with a mix of multi-layered clouds.

~~~ It’s just into the early evening hours now, and there are low clouds that have formed over some parts of Maui. I also see a fair amount of haze down there in the central valley, which looks very much like volcanic haze to my eyes. I think its very likely that these clouds will evaporate after dark, making way for a chilly morning Thursday. Here in Kula, if the winds calm down enough, I’ll be looking for temperature down into the middle 40’s…what with all the dry air that has come into the state in the wake of the recent cold front. Skies have become mostly cloudy with a few showers just before sunset.


World-wide tropical cyclone activity:


>>> Atlantic Ocean: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2014 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2015. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued as conditions warrant.


Here’s a satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean

>>> Caribbean Sea: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2014 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2015. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued as conditions warrant.


>>> Gulf of Mexico: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2014 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2015. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued as conditions warrant.


Here’s a satellite image of the Caribbean Sea…and the Gulf of Mexico.

>>> Eastern Pacific: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2014 North Pacific hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on May 15, 2015. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued as conditions warrant.


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


Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)


>>> Central Pacific: The central north Pacific hurricane season has officially ended. Routine issuance of the tropical weather outlook will resume on June 1, 2015. During the off-season, special tropical weather outlooks will be issued as conditions warrant.


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


>>> Northwest 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: The Yukon Quest International Sled Dog race and climate change – For more than 30 years, the 1,000-mile Yukon Quest International Sled Dog race, which begins Saturday, has followed the Yukon River between Whitehorse, Canada, and Fairbanks, Alaska.


A little open water along the Yukon Quest trail is nothing new, but in recent years, long unfrozen stretches of the Yukon River have shaken even the toughest mushers.


Last year, musher Hank DeBruin of Ontario had stopped along the Yukon River to rest his dog team in the middle of the night, when the ice started to break up.


“I was sleeping in my sled bag and I heard a roar, sounded like freight train,” DeBruin says. “So I threw all my stuff in the sled bag, pulled my dogs and my sled up the bank a bit and turned around, and there was wide-open water where the sled was sitting five minutes earlier.”


Stories like DeBruin’s have become more common, raising concerns about the impact of climate change on Alaska’s state sport.


Mushers have plenty of anecdotal evidence of warming temperatures and the impact on their sport. Cody Strathe of Fairbanks says warmer temperatures and dwindling snow have changed how he trains his dog team.


“Normally dogs like to run at colder temperatures, usually like below zero,” Strathe says. “So we try to run more at night so they have those nice cold temperatures, which they tend to like more with their nice big fur coats.”


Dog teams need snacks during the race, so Strathe and other mushers cut up frozen chunks of meat and tripe. Eventually all that meat gets packed into drop bags and sent out to checkpoints along the trail.


“If it’s really warm out, our meat can thaw and spoil, and then that is bad for the dogs,” he says. “They can get sick or have nothing to eat, so we have to package our food in ways so it can stay cold longer.”


Strathe insulates his bags with bubble wrap to help keep them frozen. Other mushers add blocks of ice or even snow. Mushers are also packing gear for a wider variety of trail conditions. In recent years, they’ve carried rubber boots and chest waders in anticipation of open water. They’ve also packed raincoats for themselves and their dogs.


National Weather Service Climatologist Rick Thoman says a day will come when climate change delivers a more serious blow.


“We will reach a point where this starts to affect the ability to have these races,” Thoman says. “Whether this is in five years or 50 years or 100 years is an open question.”


That open question looms large for Alaska’s state sport and the economy surrounding it. Unseasonably warm winter weather has slowed other dog races. Paige Drobny, a musher for eight years who will drive a dog team in the 1,000-mile Iditarod in March, says she’s not sure how long her racing career will last.


“With the weather that we’re having, if we don’t get winters here soon, I think that there’s going to be no choice but for the sport to die out, if we don’t get some snow in the state,” Drobny says.


Drobny says she and her husband spend upwards of $70,000 a year to raise and maintain their dogs. The potential loss of mushing both as a sport and a draw for tourists could have a big economic impact in Alaska.


This year, Yukon Quest officials considered moving the start line of the race because of open water and thin ice on rivers near Whitehorse. A last-minute drop in temperature and a snowstorm gave race personnel a reprieve.


Mushers are hoping for a smooth run, but their sleds are still packed with extra gear, just in case.