Hawaiian Islands Weather details & Aloha Paragraphs / March 8-9, 2015

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

75 – 63  Lihue, Kauai
77 – 65  Honolulu, Oahu
72 – 63  Molokai AP
70 – 64  Kahului, Maui
75 – 70  Kailua Kona
70 – 65  Hilo, Hawaii

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

0.25  Kilohana, Kauai
0.04  Waianae Valley, Oahu
0.29  Puu Alii, Molokai
0.00  Lanai
0.00  Kahoolawe
0.37  Kahakuloa, Maui
1.06  Honokaa, Big Island

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

28  Mana, Kauai – NNW
24  Waianae Valley – NNW
18  Molokai – NNE
27  Lanai – NE
27  Kahoolawe – N
18  Maalaea Bay, Maui – NNE
21  Upolu AP, Big Island – NNE

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



A large swath of thick clouds, oriented northeast to southwest,
overlies part of the island chain…coming up from the southwest


Partly to mostly cloudy conditions over most of the state…
much of which consists of the higher level clouds, although
there are rainy clouds locally along the windward  sides
of the Big Island and parts of Maui County too

Some fairly light windward showers, except for the wetter
conditions over much of the Big Island and offshore
to the west, south, southeast and east

Here’s the looping radar image for the Hawaiian Islands

~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~

The Mauna Kea Summit…on the Big Island of Hawaii
High Wind Warning / Winter Weather Advisory…
Big Island summits

The cool north to northeasterly winds will continue, becoming lighter through mid-week…then strengthen again Thursday onwards. 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 northwest and northeast of the islands. At the same time, we have a gale low pressure system to the north-northeast of the islands. At the same time, we have a new, although weak low pressure cell well offshore to the east- northeast. The placement of these low pressure areas is helping to keep cool north to northeast breezes blowing across our area of the central Pacific. The outlook calls for more chilly north to northeast winds continuing through the new work week. As we get into next weekend…a more easterly trade wind air flow will finally arrive.

The Big Island is the focus for most of our showers at the moment…which will continue into Monday. The recent easing-up in the passing shower activity along our windward sides continues in most areas, with the exception of the Big Island, and to a lesser degree Maui, where shower activity will exist. The northerly breezes may carry some of these showers to the windward sides on the other islands, although not many. Meanwhile, the considerable high clouds will continue to dim and filter our Hawaiian sunshine over the next several days, although it is gradually moving eastward. The forecast outlook suggests that more rain may arrive Wednesday into Thursday. The longest range models suggest the return of more classic trade wind conditions by the upcoming weekend, with drier conditions then too.  I’ll be back with more updates on all of the above, I hope you have a great Sunday night wherever you’re spending it! Aloha for now…Glenn.

Here on Maui: The skies are still cloudy here on Maui just before sunrise, although very little rainfall is occurring. The winds are lighter than they have been early this morning, with the small craft wind advisory flag now lowered statewide. The low temperature was 54.9 degrees here at my weather tower in Kula. It was 66 degrees down at the Kahului airport, 64 at Kapalua, 63 degrees at the Hana airport…and 34 degrees atop the Haleakala Crater at the same time. The warmest low temperature around the state was 71 degrees in Kailua-Kona on the Big Island.

~~~ It sure feels like winter today, at least here in upcountry east Maui, with the temperature at mid-day here in Kula…running a chilly 64 degrees. At about the same time, it was only 67 degrees at the Kahului AP, 68 in Kapalua, and an even cooler 66 out in Hana. Speaking of cold, it’s only 39 degrees up at the top of the Haleakala Crater. Meanwhile, it’s in the upper 20’s atop the Mauna Kea summit on the Big Island! It’s a combination of the cooler than normal northerly breezes, and the high clouds, which are keeping much warmth from the sunshine to a minimal.

~~~ We’re into the early evening hours now at 615pm, under cloudy skies and cool northerly winds. The smaller islands from Kauai to Maui have been drier today, with most of the more pronounced rainfall anchored along the windward side of the Big Island. The air temperature here at my Kula weather tower at the moment is a cool 57.4 degrees, while down at the Kahului AP, it was 67 degrees, 66 degrees in Kapalua, and 64 degrees out in Hana. The summit of the Haleakala Crater was a very chilly 37 degrees…while the top of Mauna Kea over on the Big Island, was a definitely cold 28 degrees!

Friday Evening Film: My friend Jeff, his girlfriend Svetlana and another lady friend of ours saw a new film, which was the second in this series of films. It was a comedy called The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, starring Judi Dench, Maggie Smith, Dev Patel, Big Nighy, Penelope Wilton, Celia Imrie, Tamsin Greig, and Richard Gere…among many others. The synopsis: Now that The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel is full up with its long-term residents, co-managers Muriel Donnelly (Maggie Smith) and Sonny Kapoor (Dev Patel) have a dream of expansion, and they’ve found just the place. With plans underway, Evelyn and Douglas (Judi Dench and Bill Nighy) venture into the Jaipur, India workforce, wondering where their regular breakfast dates will lead. Meanwhile, Norman and Carol (Ronald Pickup and Diana Hardcastle) navigate the swirling waters of an exclusive relationship, as Madge (Celia Imrie) juggles two very eligible suitors, and recent arrival Guy Chambers (Richard Gere) finds a muse in Sonny’s mother, Mrs. Kapoor (Lillete Dubey) for his next novel. As his marriage to Sunaina (Tina Desai), the love of his life, quickly approaches, Sonny finds his plans for the new hotel making more claims on his time than he has available. Perhaps the only one who may know the answers is Muriel, the keeper of everyone’s secrets. As the big day nears, family and guests alike find themselves swept up in the irresistible intoxication of an Indian wedding.

It turned out to be a good film, not one that had us jumping out of our seats, but good nonetheless. I personally enjoyed most of the acting, and the well seasoned actors too. Each of them had their individual stories going on, which gave some depth to an otherwise rather slow film. This is a film for older folks, and all of our group is in our 50’s and 60’s…so we fit right into that category. Quite honestly, there didn’t seem to be the need for a sequel to the first film, which stood on its own quite well. One of the uplifting things was the colorful Bollywood scenery, and seeing life in that part of the world. There was a certain sweetness to the whole affair, which gave a good effort in overpowering the melancholy of all that maturity. It was the polar opposite of the recent film 50 Shades of Grey…in no uncertain terms! One critic wrote: “A bit like a second linty mint delivered from the depths of your grandmom’s cardigan pocket: sweet but, really, no need.” And finally, as for the grading, straight B ratings from our gang. Here’s the trailer if you’d like to take a peek.

>>> 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: Tropical Cyclone 16S (Haliba) is now active in the South Indian Ocean, here’s the JTWC graphical track map…along with the NOAA satellite image.

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

Interesting: Is rain dependent on soil moisture? – It rains in summer most frequently when the ground holds a lot of moisture. However, precipitation is most likely to fall in regions where the soil is comparatively dry. This is the conclusion reached by researchers at ETH Zurich following an analysis of worldwide data. Their study contributes to a better understanding of soil moisture, a little explored climatic factor.

The water content of soil has a great impact on the regional climate, but many of the connections are still not clear. Researchers at ETH Zurich’s Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Science, together with colleagues from Belgium and the Netherlands, examined when and where it rains most frequently on summer afternoons. They wanted to clarify whether more rain fell on days when the soil was dry or moist. And where exactly it was most likely to rain on these days. The contradictory findings of other scientists was the reason for their study. Some researchers observed afternoon precipitation in particular on days with high soil moisture, while others seemingly came to the opposite conclusion – the rain fell in places where the soil, compared with surrounding areas, was driest.

The new study now provides some clarity. “On average, it rains most on days with high soil moisture,” explains Benoit Guillod, the first author, who led the study as part of his doctoral thesis in the group of Sonia Seneviratne, Professor for Land-Climate Dynamics, and who is now working at the University of Oxford. “Most precipitation falls, however, over the driest sub-region.” The phenomena can be explained in the following way: over the course of a day, the sun warms the earth’s surface, causing the water in lakes, rivers, oceans and the ground to evaporate. This water vapor rises throughout the day, where it meets colder layers of air and condenses. It then starts to rain. The soil’s moisture content plays a decisive role, particularly in areas far from the coast: The more moisture in the soil, the more water can evaporate, which increases the likelihood of precipitation.

But where exactly does it rain? Within a humid area, the areas with lower soil moisture produce the warmest air, permitting the water vapor to rise the highest and thus meet the colder air layers the soonest. As a result, it rains most frequently at these locations.

In order to reach this conclusion, the scientists had to consult myriad data. Although soil moisture is an important climatic factor, there is a lack of global information. Until now, Switzerland has been one of the few trailblazers in this area: a monitoring network, initiated by the Institute for Atmospheric and Climate Sciences, has been in existence since 2008. Together with the Agroscope Reckenholz-Tänikon and MeteoSwiss, ETH has established 19 sites with soil sensors across Switzerland as part of the SwissSMEX project. The soil temperature and moisture content are recorded at various depths.

Such detailed measurements are rare worldwide. For the study, scientists had to rely on satellite data, which delivered information regarding the moisture at the soil surface to a depth of two to three centimeters. For an accurate examination of water evaporation, however, the data from the surface was not sufficient. Much water evaporates through the vegetation as plants absorb water through their roots from deep in the soil and transport it up. The scientists estimated the soil moisture up to a depth of one metre; to do so, in addition to data on precipitation and surface soil moisture, they also used information on radiation and temperature.

More than 100,000 rain events analyzed

“We laid a grid over the earth’s surface, and with the help of an algorithm we identified more than 100,000 individual rain events between 2002 and 2011, and we then analysed the soil moisture before these events,” explains Guillod. Previous studies were either limited to the spatial aspect – where it rains – or the temporal aspect – when it rains. “Our study was the first to show the overall temporal and spatial correlation between soil moisture and precipitation,” says Guillod.

Nevertheless, he warns against premature conclusions: “The question of when exactly rainfall occurs is not yet completely clear due to the complexity of the process.” Higher performance computers, detailed simulations and model experiments should deliver further answers in the future about the extent to which rain events are influenced by soil moisture and atmospheric processes.

The answers to these questions might help a better understanding of other climate processes in the future. “They may allow further conclusions to be drawn, for example, about the interaction between soil moisture and plant growth,” explains Seneviratne. Such information may serve, for example, as the basis for research on the ramifications of large-scale irrigation systems in farming. Or they could shed light on whether the expansion of arid areas could be curbed through planting and irrigation.