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

85 – 78  Lihue, Kauai
90 – 79  Honolulu, Oahu – record high for Friday was 91…back in 1995
90 – 74  Molokai
92 – 76  Kahului, Maui – record high for Friday was 93…back in 1951
88 – 78  Kailua Kona
84 – 71  Hilo, Hawaii

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

2.95  Mount Waialeale, Kauai
2.60  Poamoho RG 1, Oahu
0.50  Puu Alii, Molokai
0.03  Lanai
0.03  Kahoolawe
1.42  Kaupo Gap, Maui
5.80  Waiakea Uka, Big Island

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

16  Poipu, Kauai – NE
23  Kuaokala, Oahu – NE
23  Molokai – NE
29   Lanai – NE
22  Kahoolawe – NE
17  Kahului AP, Maui – NE
20  Kaupulehu, 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

http://weather.unisys.com/satellite/sat_ir_enh_west_loop-12.gif
There are a couple of weak tropical disturbances here in the
central Pacific – in addition to former tropical depression
Enrique well to our east, and tropical storm Dolores close
to Mexico…both in the eastern Pacific
more information below

http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/goes/west/cpac/vis.jpg
There’s areas of thunderstorms to the northwest and north of the
state…along with the swirl of clouds associated with
former tropical depression Enrique well east of us
Looping version


http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/goes/west/hi/vis.jpg
Showers moving across the state locally…
drier conditions this weekend
Looping version


http://radar.weather.gov/Conus/RadarImg/hawaii.gif
A few showers over the ocean…passing over
the islands locally too – looping radar image

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


~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~



The trade winds will continue to blow through this weekend…although then weaken some next week. 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 a strong, near 1038 millibar high pressure system to the northeast of the state…nearly stationary. Meanwhile, there are tropical systems/troughs west, southwest, south and east of the state…moving more or less westward. The trade winds are expected to continue through Sunday. The models suggests that our winds will become lighter as we push into the new week…with somewhat muggy weather returning then too. It appears that much of next week will have a mix of lighter trades…and daytime sea breezes.

Off and on showers…mostly along our windward coasts and slopes. We’ll see drier weather returning during the weekend…which should stick around into the new week. As the winds turn noticeably softer around Monday or Tuesday, we’ll see a somewhat muggy, convective weather pattern settle over us. This typically brings clear to partly cloudy mornings, with afternoon clouds over the interior sections, which can drop showers. These lighter winds will usher in rather humid conditions too, especially near sea level locations. As there should be light trade winds hanging on too, we will see a few windward shores falling at times too. I’ll be back with more updates on all of the above and below, I hope you have a great Friday night wherever you’re spending it! Aloha for now…Glenn.

Here on Maui…it’s 540am Friday morning, with partly cloudy conditions over the the island…with showers falling locally. The middle level clouds over us lit up a beautiful orange and pink color this morning, which was really nice! Here in Kula, I heard showers falling at times during the night, which woke me up a couple of times. The air temperature here in Kula, at my upcountry weather tower was 64.6 degrees, while it was 77 down at the Kahului airport and out in Hana…with a 48 degree reading up at the summit of the Haleakala Crater at near the same time.

– We’re into the middle of the afternoon now at 230pm, under mostly cloudy skies, although with some sunshine still trying to poke through down in the central valley. Here in Kula, it seems to be working up towards a shower, although its just shy of happening at the time of this writing.

– It’s early evening, and clear to partly cloudy in general…looking really nice actually. It would be fun to take in the sunset, with feet in the ocean, and perhaps a glass of something fun in hand! 

Friday Evening Film – There are a whole host of new films out this week, several of which I’ve been looking forward to seeing. My friend Jeff and I saw one of these called Mr. Holmes, starring Ian McKellen, Laura Linney, Hiroyuki Sanada, Milo Parker, and Hattie Morahan…among others. The synopsis: Mr. Holmes is a new twist on the world’s most famous detective. 1947, an aging Sherlock Holmes returns from a journey to Japan, where, in search of a rare plant with powerful restorative qualities, he has witnessed the devastation of nuclear warfare. Now, in his remote seaside farmhouse, Holmes faces the end of his days tending to his bees, with only the company of his housekeeper and her young son, Roger. Grappling with the diminishing powers of his mind, Holmes comes to rely upon the boy as he revisits the circumstances of the unsolved case that forced him into retirement, and searches for answers to the mysteries of life and love – before it’s too late.

I wasn’t too sure of what to expect from this film, although I had a feeling it might be very good…and I certainly wasn’t disappointed. As a matter of fact, both Jeff and I gave it an A grade, which neither one of us dispenses lightly. It was unavoidable to experience the sadness of aging by seeing this film, although the smart script kept it afloat very well. It was a period drama, which was anchored in very large part…by the stellar performance of 75 year old Ian Mckellen. As a matter of fact, each of the actors gave noteworthy performances, with not a bad apple in the bunch. There were deep emotions being displayed on the screen, which were easily felt by sitting in the audience, and at times they were very touching. I’m so glad that I decided to see this film, as I considered it a splendid piece of work, one of the best in a while. If you’d care to take a quick peek…here’s the trailer.


World-wide tropical cyclone activity:

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

Shower activity associated with the tropical wave midway between the
coast of Africa and the Windward Islands has diminished.


* Formation chance through 48 hours…near…0 percent
* Formation chance through 5 days…near…0 percent

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

>>> Gulf of Mexico: There are no active tropical cyclones

Here’s a satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean

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

Tropical cyclone formation is not expected during the next 5 days over the Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean Sea or Atlantic Ocean

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

>>> Eastern Pacific:

Tropical Storm 05E (Dolores)…remains active in the eastern Pacific Ocean, located 380 miles west-southwest of Cabo San Lazaro, Mexico. Here’s a graphical track map of this system.

Here’s what the hurricane models are showing for this weakening tropical storm…along with a satellite image

1.)   Shower and thunderstorm activity has become a little better organized near an area of low pressure located about 700 miles south-southwest of Acapulco, Mexico. Environmental conditions are expected to be conducive for additional development, and a tropical depression is likely to form early next week while the system moves northwestward at about 10 mph well offshore of the coast of Mexico.

* Formation chance through 48 hours…low…20 percent
* Formation chance through 5 days…high…80 percent

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

1.)  An area of showers and a few thunderstorms, associated with the remnants of former tropical depression Enrique, are located about 1020 miles east of Hilo, Hawaii. Environmental conditions are not expected to become favorable for significant development of this system as it remains nearly stationary.

* Formation chance through 48 hours, low…near 0 percent

Here’s a satellite image of this area of disturbed weather

2.)  Disorganized showers and isolated thunderstorms continue in the vicinity of a weak surface trough about 650 miles south southwest of Honolulu, Hawaii. Environmental conditions are not expected to be conducive for any significant development of this system as it moves toward the west at 10 to 15 mph during the next two days.

* Formation chance through 48 hours, low…near 0 percent

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

>>> Northwest Pacific Ocean:

Tropical Depression 11W (Nangka) is dissipating…located about 289 NM west-southwest of Misawa, Japan – Final Warning

Here’s the JTWC graphical track map, along with a satellite image. 

Tropical Depression 1C (Halola) remains active…located about 862 NM east-southeast of Iwo To.

Here’s the JTWC graphical track map, along with a satellite image of this gradually strengthening tropical cyclone. Here’s what the computer models are showing.

>>> 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: Acidic Arctic Ocean Threatens Food Web – One byproduct of rising carbon-dioxide levels is increasing ocean acidity — a phenomenon that scientists have termed an existential threat to marine life. The waters of the Arctic and the far-north Pacific are particularly prone to acidification as a result of several natural factors, so scientists regard the region as the proverbial canary in the coal mine for the rest of the world’s oceans. A new study shows that within just fifteen years these waters may be too acidic for a range of marine animals to build and maintain their shells year round.

Ocean acidification works like this: The top layer of the ocean comes into contact with atmospheric gases, gradually dissolving them. Carbon dioxide forms carbonic acid when dissolved in water, increasing the ocean’s acidity. As ocean water acidifies, it eventually loses its ability to maintain levels of calcium carbonate minerals that many marine organisms, from tiny plankton at the bottom of the food chain to clams and crabs, require to build their shells.The new study, published in the journal Oceanography, notes that already, “[t]he rapid accumulation of carbon dioxide in the upper thousand meters of the ocean has fundamentally altered the chemistry of seawater, making the ocean on average ~30% more acidic.”

To identify how long it would take for Pacific-Arctic waters to reach critical thresholds beyond which shelled animals would not be able to reproduce or survive, researchers from the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution spent a month on the US Coast Guard cutter Healy in the Bering, Chukchi, and Beaufort Seas off Alaska. From cutter Healy, they evaluated the water chemistry in the region, measuring things like temperature, salinity, and dissolved carbon. With their measurements they were able to validate the predictions of a computer model designed to predict changes in ocean acidity in the region. They then used the model to project future acidification levels in the Pacific-Arctic region.


The model predicted that levels of aragonite — a calcium-carbonate mineral critical for shell building — will fall mostly below natural thresholds for most of the year in 2025 in the Beaufort Sea, in 2027 in the Chukchi Sea, and in 2044 in the Bering Sea.

“Our research shows that within 15 years, the chemistry of these waters may no longer be saturated with enough calcium carbonate for a number of animals from tiny sea snails to Alaska King crabs to construct and maintain their shells at certain times of the year,” Jeremy Mathis, an oceanographer with NOAA and lead author of the study, said in a press release.

The ripple effects of these large-scale ecosystem disturbances are likely to be felt higher up the marine food chain. Eventually, they may have enormous economic and nutritional ramifications for human populations that rely on fish. According to the release, nearly 60 percent of the US’s commercial fisheries landings by weight are harvested in Alaska. That’s 5.8 billion pounds of seafood worth $1.9 billion annually.

“The Pacific-Arctic region, because of its vulnerability to ocean acidification, gives us an early glimpse of how the global ocean will respond to increased human-caused carbon dioxide emissions, which are being absorbed by our ocean,” Mathis said in the press release. “Increasing our observations in this area will help us develop the environmental information needed by policy makers and industry to address the growing challenges of ocean acidification.”