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

85 – 79  Lihue, Kauai
88
73  Honolulu, Oahu
87 – 72  Molok
ai
89 – 73  Kahului AP, Maui
86 – 75  Kailua Kona
82 – 70  Hilo AP, Hawaii

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

0.30  Mount Waialeale, Kauai
0.16  Wheeler AF, Oahu
0.09  Molokai
0.00  Lanai
0.00  Kahoolawe

0.18  West Wailuaiki, Maui
1.70  Kawainui Stream, Big Island

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

29  Port Allen, Kauai
28  Kuaokala, Oahu
27  Molokai
31  Lanai
32  Kahoolawe
32  Kahului AP, Maui

30  Kealakomo, Big Island

Hawaii’s MountainsHere’s a link to the live webcam on the summit of our tallest mountain Mauna Kea (nearly 13,800 feet high) on the Big Island of Hawaii. This webcam is available during the daylight hours here in the islands, and at night whenever there’s a big moon shining down. Also, at night you will be able to see the 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
Pacific Storm Track remains far north of Hawaii


http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/goes/west/cpac/ir4.jpg
Thunderstorms well offshore south and northwest

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Low clouds arriving on the trade winds…high cloud southwest and north


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Showers locally –
Looping radar image


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

 

~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~

 

Broad Brush Overview: Our typical summertime trade winds will continue today, then gradually diminish during the weekend…with light to moderate winds expected Sunday and Monday. The trade winds will carry clouds and a few showers our way, favoring windward areas as usual, with shower coverage more limited later today into Sunday. Tropical moisture moving in from the southeast is expected to bring increased showers to the Big Island on Sunday…spreading to the other islands Monday and Tuesday.

Looking Ahead: An area of tropical moisture, currently located far southeast of the Big Island, will move toward the islands. Thus, we can look for an increase in showers, particularly for windward portions of the Big Island Sunday, potentially spreading to the other islands through Tuesday. The trade wind flow will ensure most of this moisture affects windward areas, although a few stray showers could sneak over into leeward spots here and there.

Meanwhile, a weak low pressure system aloft is forecast to be located west of Kauai early next week, and could interact with the increased moisture…to bring some locally heavy downpours. Trade winds may strengthen again by the middle of next week, while the surge of tropical moisture moves away west of the islands. Winds may then trend lighter again, as we head into the Labor Day holiday weekend, as yet another cold front moves by well northwest of the state.

Here’s a wind profile of the Pacific Ocean – Closer view of the islands / Here’s the vog forecast animation / Here’s the latest weather map

Marine environment details: A strong high far north of the islands is generating moderate to locally stronger trade winds. A Small Craft Advisory (SCA) is in effect for the typically windy waters around the Big Island and Maui, as well as the Kaiwi Channel. The high will begin to gradually weaken, likely allowing the SCA to be trimmed back to just the typically windy waters evening. The high will continue to weaken as it drifts southward during the weekend, allowing the trade winds to decrease further, and the SCA may be dropped entirely by Saturday. Moderate trade winds are expected from Saturday night through Monday, then becoming moderate to locally stronger by Tuesday.

There are no significant swells expected in the short term. A combination of rough, trade wind driven seas, and small east swell energy from distant tropical cyclone activity, will produce elevated surf just below the High Surf Advisory level along east facing shores today. East shore surf will decline during the weekend, while south facing shores may see a moderate inconsistent bump from the southwest…along with continued pulses of small southeast swell. A larger south swell is due late Wednesday into next Thursday.

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Typical trade wind weather pattern holding firm



World-wide tropical cyclone activity


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>>> Atlantic Ocean: No active tropical cyclones

1.) An elongated area of low pressure stretching across north-central Florida is producing a large area of disorganized cloudiness and thunderstorms extending from the southwest coast of Florida northeastward into the western Atlantic. Although some development of this system is expected when it moves northeastward near the southeast United States coast, it is becoming more likely that the low will merge with a front before significant tropical or subtropical development occurs. Regardless of development, heavy rain and flooding is possible over portions of southern and central Florida during the next few days. In addition, this system is expected to cause increasing winds and rough surf along the coasts of Georgia and the Carolinas through early next week.

* Formation chance through 48 hours…low…30 percent
* Formation chance through 5 days…medium…40 percent

>>> Caribbean Sea: No active tropical cyclones

>>> Gulf of Mexico:

Hurricane 09L (Harvey) remains active, and is now a Category 1 system, here’s a NHC graphical track map, a satellite image…and what the computer models are showing

Close up satellite image as Harvey impacts the Texas coast

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: No active tropical cyclones

An area of low pressure is expected to develop a few hundred miles south of the southern tip of Baja California during the next couple of days. Environmental conditions appear conducive for gradual development of this system thereafter while it moves northward or northwestward.

* Formation chance through 48 hours…low…near 0 percent
* Formation chance through 5 days…medium…40 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)

>>> Northwest Pacific Ocean:

Tropical Storm 16W (Pakhar) remains active, here’s a 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: 
China’s ‘Rejuvenation’ Bullet Trains Are the World’s Fastest
–  China was once home to the world’s fastest trains, but that position was temporarily derailed in 2011, after a crash between two bullet trains killed 40 people and injured nearly 200 more, leading officials to scale back maximum train speeds from 217 mph to 186 mph.

But the country is getting back on track, as the next generation of bullet trains — said to be the world’s fastest — began transporting passengers Monday (Aug. 21) on the Beijing-Tianjin Intercity Railway, according to the state-run Xinhua News Agency.

Dubbed “Fuxing,” which means “rejuvenation,” the new high-speed trains are expected to expand service starting Sept. 21 to run between Beijing and Shanghai, traveling at speeds of up to 217 mph. But the trains are capable of going even faster. With maximum speeds of 249 mph, they are the fastest trains in the world, Xinhua News Agency reported.

First unveiled in June, the Fuxing bullet trains were tested on July 27 at their maximum speed. They will operate seven round-trips daily between Beijing and Shanghai, and are expected to reduce travel time from 5 hours to 4 hours and 30 minutes, according to the Xinhua News Agency.

To put the speed of the Fuxing trains into perspective, the maximum speed of Amtrak intercity high-speed trains in the U.S. is 150 mph, and only half of the trains run at speeds of 100 mph or more, according to the railroad’s website.

Other types of transportation systems may promise ultra-high-speed travel, but they still have a long way to go before they’re passenger-ready.

In Japan, testing is currently underway for trains capable of traveling at up to 310 mph using magnetic levitation — so-called “maglev” technology — but they won’t be operational until 2027. And billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk’s proposed “Hyperloop,” a tube track that could carry people in air-cushioned pods at speeds of up to 760 mph, is still preparing for a preliminary testing stage, which will be conducted at 200 mph.