Hawaiian Islands Weather details & Aloha Paragraphs / June 17-18, 2015

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

83 – 75  Lihue, Kauai
90 – 74  Honolulu, Oahu – 90 tied the high temperature record on this date…in 1995
84 – 72  Molokai AP
85 – 73  Kahului, Maui
85 – 75  Kailua Kona
82 – 70  Hilo, Hawaii

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

0.67  Kilohana, Kauai
1.22  Oahu Forest NWR, Oahu
0.60  Puu Alii, Molokai
0.00  Lanai
0.02  Kahoolawe
0.42  Hana AP , Maui
1.35  Kawainui Stream, Big Island

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

17  Poipu, Kauai – NE
30  Kuaokala, Oahu – NNE
31  Molokai – NE
31  Lanai – NE
29  Kahoolawe – NE
30  Kapalua, Maui – NE
31  Pali 2, Big Island – NE

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

Upper level cirrus clouds are now mostly gone…although
there may be more coming up from the southwest

Lots of lower level clouds…some cirrus southwest –
Looping version of this image

Showers…mostly along our windward sides and
over the nearby ocean

Here’s the looping radar image for the Hawaiian Islands

Small Craft Advisory…windiest coasts and channels around
Maui County and the Big Island

~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~

The trade winds will last through Saturday…with a possible weakening early Sunday into next Monday. 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 to the west-northwest, northwest, north and far northeast of the state. At the same time, there’s a low pressure system, with an associated cold front to the north of Hawaii. The forecast calls for trade winds continuing through these last few days of spring. There’s a chance that our trade winds may make yet another unusual slow down this weekend into early next week.

Trade wind weather conditions will prevail through Saturday. The windward sides will see a few showers, mostly at night…which will get carried our way on the gusty trade wind flow. We have a fairly normal, well established late spring weather pattern, with nothing out of the ordinary expected until summer starts on Sunday. Interestingly enough, the models are showing the trade winds slowing down again then, as the tail-end of a very late season cold front might move over parts of the island chain…with an increase in showers into the early part of next week. I’ll be back with more updates on all of the above, I hope you have a great Wednesday wherever you’re spending it! Aloha for now…Glenn.

– It’s quite cloudy here on Maui early this morning, consisting of low cumulus and stratocumulus from what I can see. Looking at the satellite image above, it appears that the thick high cirrus clouds, that we had much of yesterday…are now gone. The air temperature up here in Kula was 54.3 before sunrise, while at near the same time, the Kahului airport was reporting 73, with 72 degrees and light rain out in Hana, 64 at Kaupo Gap…and 52 up at the Haleakala Crater.

– We’re into the early evening hours now, under partly cloudy skies, along with cloudy areas along the windward sides and around the mountains…and some cirrus coming up from the southwest. I expect some color as we move through sunset, as those cirrus light up briefly. Here in Kula, it was 74.8 at 6pm, while it was 81 in Kahului and Kapalua, 75 in Hana…and 64 atop the Haleakala Crater at the same time.

>>> Atlantic Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones

Here’s a satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean

>>> Caribbean Sea: There are no active tropical cyclones

Tropical cyclone formation is not expected during the next 5 days over the Caribbean Sea and Atlantic Ocean

>>> Gulf of Mexico:

Tropical Depression Bill is weakening about 84 miles east-southeast of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, with sustained winds of 25 mph, moving north-northeast at 7 mph. Here’s a NHC graphical track map, and a looping satellite image 

HAZARDS AFFECTING LAND

RAINFALL:  BILL IS EXPECTED TO PRODUCE TOTAL RAIN ACCUMULATIONS OF 3 TO 6 INCHES ACROSS EASTERN OKLAHOMA…NORTHWEST ARKANSAS…AND INTO SOUTHERN MISSOURI. LOCALLY HIGHER AMOUNTS UP TO 10 INCHES MAY ALSO BE POSSIBLE. ADDITIONAL AMOUNTS OF 1 TO 2 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE INTO PORTIONS OF EASTERN AND SOUTHERN TEXAS. RAINFALL AMOUNTS OF 2 TO 4 INCHES ARE POSSIBLE FARTHER NORTHEAST INTO THE OHIO RIVER VALLEY. THESE RAINS MAY PRODUCE LIFE-THREATENING FLASH FLOODS.

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

>>> Eastern Pacific: There are no active tropical cyclones

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: There are no active tropical cyclones

No tropical cyclones are expected through the next two days

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:  Bad News for Groundwater Basins – About one third of Earth’s largest groundwater basins are being rapidly depleted by human consumption, despite having little accurate data about how much water remains in them, according to two new studies led by the University of California, Irvine (UCI), using data from NASA’s Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) satellites.

This means that significant segments of Earth’s population are consuming groundwater quickly without knowing when it might run out, the researchers conclude. The findings are published today in Water Resources Research.

“Available physical and chemical measurements are simply insufficient,” said UCI professor and principal investigator Jay Famiglietti, who is also the senior water scientist at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California. “Given how quickly we are consuming the world’s groundwater reserves, we need a coordinated global effort to determine how much is left.”

The studies are the first to comprehensively characterize global groundwater losses with data from space, using readings generated by NASA’s twin GRACE satellites. GRACE measures dips and bumps in Earth’s gravity, which are affected by the mass of water. In the first paper, researchers found that 13 of the planet’s 37 largest aquifers studied between 2003 and 2013 were being depleted while receiving little to no recharge.

Eight were classified as “overstressed,” with nearly no natural replenishment to offset usage. Another five were found to be “extremely” or “highly” stressed, depending upon the level of replenishment in each. Those aquifers were still being depleted but had some water flowing back into them.

The most overburdened aquifers are in the world’s driest areas, where populations draw heavily on underground water. Climate change and population growth are expected to intensify the problem.

“What happens when a highly stressed aquifer is located in a region with socioeconomic or political tensions that can’t supplement declining water supplies fast enough?” asked Alexandra Richey, the lead author on both studies, who conducted the research as a UCI doctoral student. “We’re trying to raise red flags now to pinpoint where active management today could protect future lives and livelihoods.”

The research team — which included co-authors from NASA, the National Center for Atmospheric Research, National Taiwan University and UC Santa Barbara — found that the Arabian Aquifer System, an important water source for more than 60 million people, is the most overstressed in the world.

The Indus Basin aquifer of northwestern India and Pakistan is the second-most overstressed, and the Murzuk-Djado Basin in northern Africa is third. California’s Central Valley, used heavily for agriculture and suffering rapid depletion, was slightly better off, but was still labeled highly stressed in the first study.