Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures (F) were recorded across the state of Hawaii Tuesday…along with the low temperatures Tuesday:
86 – 76 Lihue, Kauai
85 – 76 Honolulu, Oahu
85 – 75 Molokai AP
86 – 74 Kahului AP, Maui
89 – 78 Kona AP
87 – 73 Hilo AP, Hawaii
Here are the latest 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands…Tuesday evening:
0.33 Mount Waialeale, Kauai
3.54 Moanalua RG, Oahu
6.55 Molokai
0.10 Lanai
0.14 Kahoolawe
8.20 Puu Kukui, Maui
2.92 Kapapala RAWS, Big Island
The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph)…Tuesday evening:
21 Port Allen, Kauai
33 Kuaokala, Oahu
23 Molokai
20 Lanai
28 Kahoolawe
18 Maalaea Bay, Maui
22 Kaupulehu, Big Island
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
Hurricane Orlene is churning the waters of the eastern Pacific, this tropical cyclone won’t be a threat to Hawaii…meanwhile, there’s an early season storm far northwest with a cold front draping south
Close-up look at Hurricane Orlene
What the computer models are showing for Orlene’s journey westward
Areas of thunderstorms offshore
Clear to cloudy, depending on the area…thunderstorms near the eastern islands
Showers locally…heavy offshore at the moment – Looping radar image
Flash Flood Watch…Oahu, Maui County and the Big Island
~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~
Light winds for the most part…then stronger again Friday into the weekend. Here’s the latest weather map, showing high pressure systems far to our northeast, and closer to the north. Meanwhile, there’s a trough of low pressure over the islands. Winds will be light enough to allow for local daytime sea breezes and nighttime land breezes…into Thursday. As the winds remain on the lighter side of normal, and relative humidity levels remain high, keeping muggy conditions over the state. We can expect strengthening trade winds during the second part of the week.
Rainy conditions will occur over parts of the state…as tropical moisture is enhanced by a deep trough of low pressure aloft. We’ll find a prolonged period of off and on showers, along with heavy rain at times. This combination of weather features can spawn thunderstorms, which will lead to localized flooding issues here and there. At the moment, the greatest threat of heavy rain remains over the eastern islands and Oahu. As we get into the weekend, and on into early next week, conditions should improve…with drier weather and a more typical trade wind pattern returning.
Here’s a wind profile…of the offshore waters around the islands – with a closer view
Here’s the Hawaiian Islands Sulfate Aerosol animated graphic – showing vog forecast
Marine environment details: A pair of moderate northwest swells are expected through this weekend, one which is arriving now and expected to peak overnight, with the second arriving Friday and peaking Saturday. Both swells are expected to result in surf heights below advisory levels along north and west facing shores. Small swells arriving from the southern hemisphere will maintain small to moderate surf along leeward shores the next couple of days, with largest surf expected Thursday.
While sustained winds and seas are below Small Craft Advisory (SCA) criteria, increasing trade winds are expected toward the end of the week, as high pressure to the distant northeast moves a little closer, and the surface trough currently near Maui and the Big Island dissipates. Winds may become sufficiently strong to support the issuance of a SCA for waters around Maui and the Big Island at that time.
The island atmosphere is moist and unstable now, and is expected to remain that way the next couple of days. Heavy showers and thunderstorms will bring marine hazards in the form of cloud-to-surface lightning, low visibility…and locally erratic winds.
Unsettled late summer weather for a few more days
World-wide tropical cyclone activity…
>>> Atlantic Ocean:
Tropical Storm 10L (Ian) remains active in the central Atlantic, located approximately 695 miles east of Bermuda. Here’s the NHC graphical track map, a satellite image…and what the computer models are showing.
Tropical Storm 11L (Julia) remains active, located approximately 20 miles northeast of Brunswick, Georgia. Here’s the NHC graphical track map, a satellite image
Tropical Depression 12L is active, located approximately 95 miles northwest of the Cabo Verde Islands. Here’s the NHC graphical track map, a satellite image…and what the computer models are showing
Here’s a satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean
>>> Caribbean: No active tropical cyclones
>>> Gulf of Mexico: No active tropical cyclones
Here’s a satellite image of the Caribbean Sea…and the Gulf of Mexico
Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)
>>> Eastern Pacific:
Hurricane 16E (Orlene) is located approximately 620 miles west-southwest of the southern tip of Baja California. Here’s the NHC graphical track map, a satellite image…and what the computer models are showing
1.) A weak area of low pressure located a few hundred miles south- southwest of Acapulco, Mexico, is nearly stationary and producing minimal shower activity. Environmental conditions are expected to become more conducive for development, and a tropical depression could form this weekend or early next week while the low begins moving west-northwestward to northwestward, parallel to the coast of Mexico.
* Formation chance through 48 hours…low…10 percent
* Formation chance through 5 days…medium…60 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: No active tropical cyclones
Here’s a link to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC)
Typhoon 16W (Meranti) remains active…located approximately 176 NM west-southwest of Taipei, Taiwan. Here’s the JTWC graphical track map, a satellite image…and what the computer models are showing.
Typhoon 18W (Malakas) remains active…located approximately 637 NM south-southeast of Kadena AB, Okinawa, Japan. Here’s the JTWC graphical track map … a satellite image … and what the computer models are showing
>>> South Pacific Ocean: No active tropical cyclones
>>> North and South Indian Oceans / Arabian Sea: No active tropical cyclones
Here’s a link to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)
Interesting: Air Pollution: The Billion Dollar Industry – The World Bank has released a new report highlighting the fact that air pollution costs world governments billions upon billions every year and ranks among the leading causes of death worldwide.
The estimates — drawn from a number of sources, including the World Health Organization’s most recently completed data sets compiled in 2013 — can for the first time begin to examine the overall welfare cost of air pollution.
Specifically, researches studied the amount of money that world governments must spend on health emergencies, long term illnesses and chronic conditions caused by air pollution. They also took into account missed work and unemployment subsidies.
The report finds that, in terms of the economy, the burden is extremely high.
To be sure, some countries come out of this analysis relatively well off. For example, Iceland only loses $3 million of its gross domestic product to air pollution. Given that the country has a relatively small population and a slight industrial profile, that’s probably not that surprising though.
Other countries, like Liberia, performed relatively well despite their low levels of economic development. Several African nations also have low overall air pollution impact costs. Despite mid-to-high populations, infrastructure is comparatively low density in places like Malawi and Zimbabwe, so perhaps this isn’t that surprising either.
It’s when we get to rapidly developing and “developed” nations that the costs really start to mount up. For example, the United States is estimated to lose $45 billion every year due to air pollution, while the UK loses $7.6 billion annually. Germany comes in at $18 billion, though it will be interesting to see how the country’s renewable energy strategy might alter that figure over the coming years.
China, one of the most rapidly developing nations in the world, is estimated to be losing a staggering 10 percent of its overall GDP, while India is not far behind at roughly eight percent.
Financial losses will, however, seem trivial when we look at the potential human cost of air pollution.
The World Bank estimates that global air pollution kills roughly five and a half million people every year, or to put that another way: it will kill one out of every ten people worldwide.
Air pollution is now the fourth leading cause of premature death in the world and, as the Guardian points out, it actually causes “six times the number of deaths caused by malaria,” a fact that highlights the threat of air pollution most starkly.
It should be noted, though, that this figure does not necessarily reflect the rising danger to populations living in countries currently undergoing industrial and economic development. An obvious example is China, a country with well-documented air quality problems.
The World Bank estimates that, globally, the economy loses about $225 billion due to lost work days that result from those deaths. Add in welfare costs, or the money people are forced to pay in order to seek medical attention and other means of combating an air pollution problem, and that figure rises to a staggering $5 trillion.
Now, it may seem distasteful to talk about human lives in terms of economic loss, but it’s important to remember that without this loss, more money could be spent on health care for the general population.
Thus, air pollution has a much wider impact than we might first assume. While it certainly is true that developed nations suffer a significant burden from this problem, the financial impact on low and middle income nations is a staggering 59 percent of the total global welfare losses falling on those nations.
The World Bank notes that about “90 percent of the population in low and middle income countries are exposed to dangerous levels of ambient air pollution.” Air pollution has been linked to a number of health conditions, from cancer to autism-associated behavioral issues in children.
The World Bank’s Laura Tuck, vice president for sustainable development at the organization, stated, “Air pollution is a challenge that threatens basic human welfare, damages natural and physical capital, and constrains economic growth.”
Tuck continued:
We hope this study will translate the cost of premature deaths into an economic language that resonates with policy makers so that more resources will be devoted to improving air quality. By supporting healthier cities and investments in cleaner sources of energy, we can reduce dangerous emissions, slow climate change, and most importantly save lives.
Countries like China have made significant commitments to tackle their air pollution problems by restricting city development, creating green corridors and more, but critics warn that without curbing fossil fuel use, these measures can’t tackle the heart of the problem.
A number of so-called developed nations have also been criticized for failing to take appropriate action. The UK is a prime offender, considering that London has a persistent — and largely unaddressed – air pollution problem.
This study serves to highlight that, in terms of economic burden and human health impacts, air pollution is not something we can afford to ignore.
Email Glenn James: 
Helen Says:
Great article about the research @ Rensselaer!!
~~~ Hi Helen, very glad you enjoyed the reading…thanks for letting me know!
Aloha, Glenn