April 7-8 2006

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

Lihue, Kauai – 77F
Honolulu, Oahu – 79
Kaneohe, Oahu – 77
Kahului, Maui – 79
Hilo, Hawaii – 78
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
Kalaeloa, Oahu – 65

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:

0.34 MOUNT WAIALAELAE, KAUAI
0.57 POAMOHO 2, OAHU
0.04 MOLOKAI
0.00 LANAI
0.00 KAHOOLAWE
0.29 WEST WAILUAIKI, MAUI
0.85 KAMUELA UPPER, BIG ISLAND

Weather Chart – Here’s the latest (automatically updated) weather map…showing a high pressure system to our north of Hawaii. This pressure configuration will cause moderately strong trade winds to blow Saturday and Sunday…strong and gusty at times. 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 Image of the islands to see all the clouds around the state during the day and night. This next image is one that gives close images of the islands only during the daytime hours, and is referred to as a Close-up visible image. This next 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 animated radar image.

Aloha Paragraphs
Hula Dolls
Photo: Douglas Peebles

The Hawaiian Islands will continue to see great weather conditions through the weekend! After all the cloudy weather that we put up with during March, the abundant sunny weather now feels especially good. We’ve dropped back into a lovely early spring weather pattern, with the trade winds gracing the Aloha state, albeit on the strong and gusty side at times. All things considered, our weather will be very nice, well into the future!

Let’s talk a little about the specifics, starting off with the breezy trade winds. They will be blowing across our tropical latitudes thanks to high pressure centers to our north and ENE. These winds will start off the days quite lightly, then increase in strength through the afternoon hours. The NWS forecast office in Honolulu is keeping a small craft wind advisory active in those areas that experience the strongest winds.

The latest computer forecast models indicate that these brisk trade winds will continue through the next week, at least. Wind speeds will vary, although in general, we can look for 5-25 mph in most areas. Those places that find some physical terrain enhancement, will see gusts topping the 30 mph mark. As usual, the nights and early morning hours will have the lightest breezes…with the late morning through afternoon hours being strongest.

As for sunshine, there will be lots of it! The south and west facing leeward coasts will see the greatest abundance of warmth. These resort areas will be mostly sunny during the days, and clear during the nights as well. Temperatures will rise well up into the 80F’s, dropping to the upper 60F’s to low 70F’s at night. The somewhat cooler windward sides will find more cloudiness, with a few light showers falling…possibly increasing some Saturday night into Sunday morning.

How’s all that for a positive fair weather forecast!? The long range outlook remains favorably inclined, right through the next week, if not longer. All that waiting for the return of good weather, has really paid off. Anyone that lives here in the islands, and visitors that will be here on vacation too, well, you have picked a good time of year to be in Hawaii! It doesn’t really get too much better than this anytime of the year.

It’s late Aloha Friday afternoon here in Kihei, Maui, just after getting off work. It was yet another gorgeous day, in a good string of good days this week. I had to drive over to Lahaina during my lunch break, which was the first time I’ve been over there in months and months and months! It was hot over there, and the new crop mango fruit was hanging from the trees. It was nice to see Lahaina town, I’d actually forgotten what it felt like on that side of the island. The pace is slower, quite a bit slower than say Kihei or Wailea…but just as warm and dry. The slopes of the West Maui Mountains are totally covered with the most lush green vegetation! It was so pretty, I wanted to stop and gaze, but had to get back to Kihei. I snuck in the most brief dip in the ocean (I had to)…before getting back to the office. I’m about ready to head over to Borders, and then to a new film called Lucky Number Slevin. I’ll let you know what I thought of it early Saturday morning before I head out for another kayaking/snorkeling adventure. Have a great Friday night! By the way, if you have an extra moment, check out the pictures on the other pages, they’re pretty cool in my humble opinion. Aloha for now…Glenn.

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