February 17-18 2006

Air Temperatures — The following maximum temperatures were recorded across Hawaii Friday:

Lihue, Kauai – 77F
Honolulu, Oahu – 82
Kaneohe, Oahu – 78
Kahului, Maui – 82
Hilo, Hawaii – 81
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii – 82

Temperatures early Saturday morning ranged between these warmest and coolest spots near sea level at the 5 a.m. hour:

Kailua-kona – 72
Kahului, Maui – 62

Precipitation Totals — The following numbers represent the largest precipitation totals during the last 24 hours (as of Saturday morning) on each of the major islands, including:

1.98 HANALEI RIVER, KAUAI
0.30 KAWAILOA, OAHU
0.00 MOLOKAI
0.01 LANAI
0.39 KAHOOLAWE
0.56 KULA BRANCH STATION, MAUI
0.05 KAHUA RANCH, BIG ISLAND

Weather Chart — Here’s the latest (automatically updated) weather map…showing a trough of low pressure just to the west of the islands…slowly moving away. This will keep our winds light SE Saturday, gradually becoming trade winds later Sunday or Monday. Here’s a Weather Map Symbol page for clarification about what all those funny weather symbols mean.

Hawaii’s Mountains — Here’s a link to the live webcam on the summit of near 14,000 foot Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaii. The tallest peak on the island of Maui is the Haleakala Crater, which is near 10,000 feet in elevation. These two webcams are only available during the daylight hours here in the islands…that is unless there’s a big moon rising just after sunset for an hour or two!

Satellite Images — To view the cloud conditions we have here in Hawaii, please use the following satellite links, starting off with the Infrared Satellite Imageof the islands to see all the clouds around the state. This next satellite image is one that gives close images of the islands only during the daytime hours, and is referred to as a Close-up visible satellite image. The next satellite image shows a larger view of the Pacific…giving perspective to the wider ranging cloud patterns in the Pacific Ocean…out from the islands. To help you keep track of where any showers may be around the islands, here’s the latest radar image.

Aloha Paragraphs

Beautiful Wave!


The well advertised upper level low pressure system has positioned itself to the NW of the main Hawaiian Islands now. I say well advertised, as the computer forecast models locked onto this late last week, and have held on tight ever since. The location and depth of this upper low will keep our local weather rather shower prone. It seems quite clear though, that the resultant precipitation will be most focused during the afternoon hours around the mountains.


This upper low, with its associated cold air aloft, will keep our overlying atmosphere unstable into Saturday. This means that whatever clouds that develop with the daytime heating, will be allowed to grow considerably in the vertical dimension. These mostly afternoon cumulus clouds will have towering aspects to them, and very likely drop some decent showers. The daytime heating of the islands will be the triggering mechanism for these big cloud forms.


The mornings in most areas will start off quite clear, giving the appearance of a great day coming up. However, as is often the case over tropical islands, clouds will grow during the second half of the day. So, it might be wise to hit the beaches, and do most of your outdoor activities during the beautiful morning hours. The afternoons, especially in the upcountry interior sections, may very well receive a pretty good rain shower! Clouds will generally collapse after dark, with returning clear skies into the next morning.


The Island of Kauai, which will be closest to the low pressure system, will have the best chance for the heaviest and most generous showers. The other islands will see afternoon cloud buildups too, although with likely somewhat less wet conditions. The above described weather scenerio will take us through Saturday. As Sunday and Monday rolls around, the upper low is expected to depart our area of the north central Pacific. Weather conditions are forecast to improve then, with light trade winds returning for a couple of days.


You may have noticed that I added a Paypal – Donate button on the left hand margin of all my website pages. I’d like to encourage all of you regular readers to make a contribution if possible. As you know, I invest a considerable amount of time keeping these pages updated on a daily basis throughout the year. It’s essentially a labor of love, as I enjoy keeping in touch with the weather, and then sharing it with you. Although, once a year I have a fund raiser, and ask folks to give a little something back in support of my efforts. Last year I was asked how much Glenn? I believe that somewhere between $35 and $50 is a fair amount per year. There will of course be those that will give less, and then again perhaps more. The range in 2005 was between $10 and $100. All you have to do is click on the Paypal button, follow the directions, and the funds will be securely transferred to my account there. By the way, if you feel more comfortable about sending a check, please contact me via email for my mailing address. I will appreciate whatever you can give, and of course thank you very much! The names below are the first contributors:

– Kathleen Spalding from Hawaii
– Susan Morgan
– Joyce Jones
– Daniel Hunt from Rochester, NY
- Mike Cochran from Bloomington, IL


It’s Friday late afternoon here in Kahului, Maui. I’m writing a few words from my web service providers office, bumpnetworks.com. They have a wonderfully large set of picture windows, with a dynamic view of the Haleakala Crater. It isn’t visible however, as there are lots of heavy duty cumulus and towering cumulus clouds hiding the bulk of the mountain. I can sit here and see rainbows, and lots of showers falling up there. I’m going to Borders Books for a while after this, and then meet a friend at one of the local theaters to see a film. The name of this film is Brokeback Mountain I believe, which received lots of hype…I’ll let you know what I think of it in Saturday mornings narrative update. I got to the beach again today at lunch, which was a special experience as usual. There were no waves to bodysurf, although the warm sand on my feet, and the warm ocean on my skin felt great! I hope you have a great Friday night. Aloha for now…Glenn.

p.s. If you like the pictures I use on this page, you may want to check out my other pages, as I change the pictures there too.