October 7-8 2006

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

Lihue, Kauai – 85F
Honolulu, Oahu – 86
Kaneohe, Oahu – 85
Kahului, Maui – 91
Hilo, Hawaii – 85
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii – 87

KAILUA-KONA – 79
MOLOKAI AIRPORT – 70

Precipitation Totals – The following numbers represent the largest precipitation totals (inches) during the last 24 hours (as of Sunday morning) on each of the major islands:

Weather Chart – Here’s the latest (automatically updated) weather map…showing a 1031 millibar high pressure center located to the NE…with it’s associated ridge extemding SW to a point very close to Kauai. This will keep our winds on the light side…tending south to SE through Monday.  Here’s a Weather Map Symbol page for clarification about what all those weather symbols mean on the map.

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 available during the daylight hours here in the islands…and when there’s a big moon rising just after sunset for an hour or two! Plus, during the nights and early mornings you will be able to see stars, and the sunrise too…depending upon cloud conditions.

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.

Tropical Cyclone Activity – The eastern Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15 through November 30…while the central Pacific (where Hawaii is) runs from June 1 through November 30. The latest storm information for the eastern Pacific can be found by clicking here. A storm tracking map for both the central and eastern areas can be found by clicking here . For the central Pacific, the latest storm information can be found by clicking here.

 

Sun tanning on the beach in Hawaii
Photo Credit: flikr.com

A trough of low pressure near the Hawaiian Islands will keep our weather a little unsettled, along with light and variable winds. This trough will keep the chance of some showers in the forecast through the weekend and beyond. The best chances for precipitation will remain anchored over the interior sections of the islands during the afternoons on the Big Island and Maui for the time being. The beaches should remain in good shape for the most part, with less chance of a shower. Hazy conditions will prevail until the trade winds return next week.

This trough of low pressure will keep our winds on the light side. This suggests that we’ll experience rather hot and humid weather during the days…with light sea breezes near the coasts locally to help cool things off. The daytime heating of the islands will start air rising, which will likely cause afternoon cloud buildups over and around the mountains. These convective cumulus clouds may let loose with some showers, some of which may be locally heavy. The best chances for those showers will be on the leeward slopes of the Big Island, and perhaps Maui.

We’ll see variable clouds, which means that there will be some sunny periods…mixed with cloudy periods. The beaches should be the best place to hang out for sunnier and drier weather, although could see cloudy periods during the afternoons locally there too.  Looking further ahead, the models show a cold front moving in our direction around the middle of the new week ahead.  It’s still a bit early for active cold fronts to sweep through the islands, although it may bring some prefrontal showers to Kauai and Oahu by Monday.

It’s early Saturday evening here in Kula, Maui, as I start writing this pre-sunset commentary.  I wish I could go out dancing again tonight, but I don’t know of anywhere here on Maui that is close enough, or has the kind of music to dance to that I like. At any rate, it was another nice day here on Maui, albeit it rather hot and muggy down near sea level, as the Kahului airport peaked at 91F degrees today…with the Kihei and Lahaina areas at least that warm. It’s actually well before sunset at the moment, and its rather hazy and muggy even up here in Kula. The low clouds are dropping quickly, with fog settling in around me quickly. I’m going to go sit out on my weather deck and take it all in right after this narrative update. I’m in for the night, with fresh tomato pasta sauce on the menu for this evenings dinner, then talking on the telephone some and finally turning to my cherished reading. I hope you have a great Saturday night! I’ll be back early Sunday with your next updated narrative then. Aloha for now…Glenn.

I want to highlight another of the great advertisers on my website today, this time it’s Kapalua vacation rental "Luxury accommodations – Upper West Maui."

October 6-7 2006

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

Lihue, Kauai – 82F
Honolulu, Oahu – 84
Kaneohe, Oahu – 84
Kahului, Maui – 88
Hilo, Hawaii – 85
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii – 87

KAILUA-KONA – 80
MOLOKAI AIRPORT – 69

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

Weather Chart – Here’s the latest (automatically updated) weather map…showing high pressure centers located to the NE and WNW of the Hawaiian Islands…with a connecting ridge that’s very close to Kauai. This will keep our winds mostly on the light side…tending SE through Monday.  Here’s a Weather Map Symbol page for clarification about what all those weather symbols mean on the map.

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 available during the daylight hours here in the islands…and when there’s a big moon rising just after sunset for an hour or two! Plus, during the nights and early mornings you will be able to see stars, and the sunrise too…depending upon cloud conditions.

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.

Tropical Cyclone Activity – The eastern Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15 through November 30…while the central Pacific (where Hawaii is) runs from June 1 through November 30. The latest storm information for the eastern Pacific can be found by clicking here. A storm tracking map for both the central and eastern areas can be found by clicking here . For the central Pacific, the latest storm information can be found by clicking here.

 

Full moon rising in the Islands
Photo Credit: flikr.com

A trough of low pressure near the Hawaiian Islands will keep our weather a little unsettled, along with light and variable winds. This trough will keep the chance of some showers in the forecast through the upcoming weekend. The best chances for precipitation will remain anchored over the interior sections of the islands generally speaking. The beaches should remain in pretty good shape for the most part, although it wouldn’t be out of the question for a shower to fall just about anywhere during the afternoon hours through the next several days.

This trough of low pressure will keep our winds on the light side. This suggests that we’ll experience some hot and muggy weather during the days, although there will be some light sea breezes near the coasts locally to help cool things off. The daytime heating of the islands will start air rising, which will likely cause afternoon cloud buildups over and around the mountains. These convective cumulus clouds may let loose with some showers, some of which may be locally heavy. There have been reports of thundershower activity on the Big Island, which may continue as well.

We’ll see variable clouds, which means that there will be some sunny periods…mixed with cloudy periods. The beaches should be the best place to hang out for sunnier and drier weather, although could see cloudy periods during the afternoons locally there too.  Looking further ahead, the models show a cold front moving in our direction early next week, and then another one later next week. It’s still a bit too early for active cold fronts to sweep through the islands, although at least one of them may bring a few showers to Kauai and Oahu.

It’s early Friday evening here in Kihei, Maui, as I start writing this update of today’s narrative.  The October full moon will be shining brightly during the nights now! I’m going  see the new film by Martin Scorsese called The Departed tonight after work, starring such notables as Jack Nicholson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Alec Baldwin among others…quite an lineup of heavy hitters I’d say!  I can hardly wait to see this big time crime story…involving the mob of course. Weatherwise, today turned out to be quite similar to yesterday, with most of the showers associated withth the trough, mentioned above, falling over the Big Island slopes. Here in Maui County it was basically just hot and muggy, with some afternoon cloud builds over Lanai, Molokai, kahoolawe, the West Maui Mountains…and of course the Haleakala Crater. I got to the beach early this afternoon, and once again it was near perfect, with very warm air and water, and hardly a breath of air. I hope you have a great Friday night, I’ll be back again Saturday morning with more weather updates then. Aloha for now…Glenn.

I want to highlight another of the great advertisers on my website today, this time it’s Kite Beach webcam "Beach image, wind direction, wind speeds…10% discounts on windsurf and kiteboarding equipment."

October 5-6 2006

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

Lihue, Kauai – 82F
Honolulu, Oahu – 83
Kaneohe, Oahu – 84
Kahului, Maui – 86
Hilo, Hawaii – 83
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii – 87

KAILUA-KONA – 77
LIHUE AIRPORT – 68

Precipitation Totals – The following numbers represent the largest precipitation totals (inches) during the last 24 hours (as of Friday morning) on each of the major islands:

Weather Chart – Here’s the latest (automatically updated) weather map…showing a 1029 millibar high pressure center located far to the NE of the Hawaiian Islands. Meanwhile, troughs of low pressure are boxing in the islands, which will keep light and variable winds around through Saturday.  Here’s a Weather Map Symbol page for clarification about what all those weather symbols mean on the map.

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 available during the daylight hours here in the islands…and when there’s a big moon rising just after sunset for an hour or two! Plus, during the nights and early mornings you will be able to see stars, and the sunrise too…depending upon cloud conditions.

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.

Tropical Cyclone Activity – The eastern Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15 through November 30…while the central Pacific (where Hawaii is) runs from June 1 through November 30. The latest storm information for the eastern Pacific can be found by clicking here. A storm tracking map for both the central and eastern areas can be found by clicking here . For the central Pacific, the latest storm information can be found by clicking here.

 

Beautiful colors with spray against the lava
Photo Credit: flikr.com

We’ve got some weather changes coming up for the Hawaiian Islands soon, which will last into next week. These new developments will occur in two areas, first in terms of lighter winds, and the second in regards to the chance of showers breaking out during the afternoon hours. The big change, which sort of snuck up on us, will be the arrival of an upper level trough of low pressure over our islands. This will essentially send our trade winds packing, replaced by much softer winds…light and variable in direction. Thursday will be the transition day, with still the trade winds blowing a little, but definitely heading into lighter realms as we head into the weekend time frame and beyond.

The upper trough of low pressure will cause our overlying atmosphere to become more unstable. This simply means that it will be more shower prone, although that doesn’t mean there will be widespread showers falling everywhere. The most likely areas for showers will be over and around the interior sections during the afternoon hours. Some of these convective clouds that build up over the mountains may be able to unload some locally heavy downpours here and there. This shower activity will be most pronounced over the Big Island slopes, and perhaps with time over Haleakala on Maui as well.

This spell of unsettled weather won’t be such a bad thing, as most days will start off quite sunny. The clouds will start to build over the mountains during the late morning hours, leading to those localized showers later in the days. The beaches should actually have nice weather, although could see cloudy periods during the afternoons locally too.  The interesting thing is that the models go on to show a cold front arriving late next week, which could bring some showers with it too, and help to bring us back around to a more normal trade wind weather pattern thereafter.

It’s early Thursday evening here in Kula, Maui, as I start writing this just past sunset commentary.  Behind me, out to the west, the skies are still faintly pink, from the thin cirrus clouds…as they lit up sweetly pink a little while ago. Looking out towards the east, the near full moon is rising up from the upper slopes of the Haleakala Crater…which is being muted to some degree by the thin clouds in that direction. It’s a lovely ending to a great day of weather. The trough of low pressure described in the paragraphs above, concentrated its effort best over the Big Island today, where a flood advisory went up for some locally heavy rains there. Here on Maui, it was actually rather placid, with much lighter winds than we’ve registered so far during the work week. I got down to the beach at lunch today, and found light breezes, lots of sunshine, although slightly dimmed by the thin cirrus clouds, and very warm ocean water temperatures again. There were no waves to ride, but that didn’t stop me from thoroughly enjoying my time in the "healing waters" of the Pacific. Tomorrow is already Friday, these weeks seem to zoom right by so quickly during these early autumn period.  I plan to see the new film by Martin Scorsese called The Departed tomorrow night, starring such notables as Jack Nicholson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Mark Wahlberg, Martin Sheen, Alec Baldwin among others…wow! I literally can hardly wait to see this story centered around the mob. It’s going on 7pm here in Hawaii as I get ready to go down and steam some organic broccoli to plate alongside my last piece of bbq’d organic chicken, then do a little reading, and to bed for this early rising Maui Weatherman. I hope you have a great Thursday night, and that you will meet me here again on Friday for the next weather narrative from paradise. Aloha for now…Glenn.

I want to highlight another of the great advertisers on my website today, this time it’s Mark Jackson – Realtor "Specializing in the West Maui Resort areas of Lahaina, Kaanapali, Napili and Kapalua"

October 4-5 2006

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

Lihue, Kauai – 84F
Honolulu, Oahu – 86
Kaneohe, Oahu – 84
Kahului, Maui – 89
Hilo, Hawaii – 80
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii – 86

KAILUA-KONA – 78
KAHULUI AIRPORT – 66

Precipitation Totals – The following numbers represent the largest precipitation totals (inches) during the last 24 hours (as of Thursday morning) on each of the major islands:

Weather Chart – Here’s the latest (automatically updated) weather map…showing a 1034 millibar high pressure center located far to the NE of the Hawaiian Islands. This high pressure cell, with its associated ridge, will give us light trade winds today…most breezy during the afternoons. Troughing aloft will soon bring our trade winds down, becoming light and variable with time. Here’s a Weather Map Symbol page for clarification about what all those weather symbols mean on the map.

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 available during the daylight hours here in the islands…and when there’s a big moon rising just after sunset for an hour or two! Plus, during the nights and early mornings you will be able to see stars, and the sunrise too…depending upon cloud conditions.

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.

Tropical Cyclone Activity – The eastern Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15 through November 30…while the central Pacific (where Hawaii is) runs from June 1 through November 30. The latest storm information for the eastern Pacific can be found by clicking here. A storm tracking map for both the central and eastern areas can be found by clicking here . For the central Pacific, the latest storm information can be found by clicking here.

 

The dynamic coast of the Big Island
Photo Credit: flikr.com

Fairly typical early autumn trade wind weather pattern will prevail in the Hawaiian Islands. Weather maps show a high pressure system located far to the NE of our Hawaiian Islands. This high pressure cell will keep our winds on the light to moderate side, quite breezy during the afternoon hours locally.  The latest computer forecast models show these balmy trade winds continuing to blow across our latitudes of the north central Pacific through the rest of this week. The trade winds may get substantially lighter next week as a trough of low pressure to the NW develops.

Nothing unusual is expected in terms of rainfall for the time being, with just a few showers falling here and there.  The upper level low pressure system to our NW, with its associated trough, won’t have very much of an influence on our local weather as it turns out. We can expect just the few windward biased showers, leaving most leeward areas dry…except over the Big Island, where some showers may fall along the Kona coast and slopes. Long range outlook suggests a cold front may bring some showers later next week.

It’s early Wednesday morning here in Kula, Maui, as I start writing this last paragraph of today’s narrative. It’s a quiet morning, with hardly a sound other than a few roosters in the area crowing as usual. Often I wake up before the alarm goes off, and can determine if it’s almost time to get up by whether or not the roosters are calling out yet. It’s an interesting experience sitting here at my desk, in my weather tower, with just this one small light on, so early in the morning…typing away about the weather in Hawaii. Of course in this last paragraph I give myself a little leeway to rap about other things too. This is one of those mornings that I find myself sitting for periods just staring at the monitor, waiting for something to inspire me. For some reason I keep thinking back about when I was a little boy delivering newspapers around my neighborhood early in the mornings. About how much I used to enjoy flinging the folded papers onto the porches as I rode around in the dark on my bike, with only the street lights to guide me. At that same time I was playing little league baseball, so I was really into throwing. Just like now, I was pretty much by myself in the dark, with only the man in his milk truck rounds, who would be carrying the bottles of milk to people’s doorsteps early too. It might sound a little lonely, although I’ve never really thought of it in that way. At any rate, it’s time to finish this off, so I can get out on the road, in the dark of course, for my early morning walk before getting ready for the rest of my day. I hope you have a great Wednesday! I’ll be back later with more weather updates. Aloha for now…Glenn.

I want to highlight another of the great advertisers on my website today, this time it’s Maui Car Rentals "Clean, reliable and low priced rental cars."

October 3-4 2006

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

Lihue, Kauai – 84F
Honolulu, Oahu – 86
Kaneohe, Oahu – 85
Kahului, Maui – 89
Hilo, Hawaii – 82
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii – 85

KAILUA-KONA – 77
HILO AIRPORT – 70

Precipitation Totals – The following numbers represent the largest precipitation totals (inches) during the last 24 hours (as of Wednesday morning) on each of the major islands:

Weather Chart – Here’s the latest (automatically updated) weather map…showing a 1032 millibar high pressure center located far to the NE of the Hawaiian Islands. This high pressure cell, with its associated ridge, will give us light to moderately strong trade winds through the rest of this week…most breezy during the afternoons.  Here’s a Weather Map Symbol page for clarification about what all those weather symbols mean on the map.

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 available during the daylight hours here in the islands…and when there’s a big moon rising just after sunset for an hour or two! Plus, during the nights and early mornings you will be able to see stars, and the sunrise too…depending upon cloud conditions.

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.

Tropical Cyclone Activity – The eastern Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15 through November 30…while the central Pacific (where Hawaii is) runs from June 1 through November 30. The latest storm information for the eastern Pacific can be found by clicking here. A storm tracking map for both the central and eastern areas can be found by clicking here . For the central Pacific, the latest storm information can be found by clicking here.

 

I suppose this would do in a pinch!
Photo Credit: flikr.com

The central north Pacific has lots of things going on now…in terms of weather features. Weather maps show a high pressure system located far to the NE of our Hawaiian Islands. This high pressure cell will keep our winds on the light to moderate side, quite breezy along the windward sides during the afternoon hours locally. There are also several upper lows and troughs in the vicinity, although they don’t seem to being having much direction influence on us…allowing less high clouds, with sunnier skies today into Wednesday.

An upper level low pressure system to the NW of Kauai, which has kept high clouds over us lately, is edging away today. Satellite images show the upper winds carrying less cirrus and altocumulus clouds in our direction now. There were some thunderstorms showing up over the ocean near Kauai, which may bring some locally heavy showers there. Otherwise, just the few windward biased showers, leaving most leeward areas dry…except over the Big Island and the Haleakala slopes on Maui, where some showers may fall too.

It’s early Tuesday evening here in Kula, Maui, as I start writing this post sunset commentary.   I was home to witness the very quick sunset, although it was rather non descript at best…just a fleeting smear of orange in the gray clouds hugging the far horizon to our west. Although, let’s face it…any sunset here in Hawaii is nothing to miss!  The high clouds, which have been around the last several, several days, that have been providing the sensational sunsets, are gone now. This of course opened up lots of sky space for sunnier weather today, that’s for sure! The lighting though is starting to give me that autumn feeling now, which I just love. By the way, I’d better start giving you a heads up, that I’ll be going away on vacation a little later this month. I have no one to take over this year, as my friend Hans Rosendal, who has taken over the reins the last couple of vacations, is unavailable this time around. So, there will be a three week period when I’ll be away from my computer.  I dislike leaving this website unattended to for so long, but that’s the way it’s turning out. It looks like there is no one to take over my TV show either, so that will be void a presenter as well. As you can see, I’m a one man weather show and website organization. Let’s get back to the moment now, and from here I’d like to wish you all a very good Tuesday night! I’ll be back very early Wednesday morning with your next weather narrative presentation. Aloha for now…Glenn.

I want to highlight another of the great advertisers on my website today, this time it’s Maui Kiteboarding Lessons. "If you want to learn to kiteboard, Maui is the place!"

October 2-3 2006

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

Lihue, Kauai – 81F
Honolulu, Oahu – 88
Kaneohe, Oahu – 84
Kahului, Maui – 92
Hilo, Hawaii – 83
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii – 88

KAILUA-KONA – 80
HILO AIRPORT – 72

Precipitation Totals – The following numbers represent the largest precipitation totals (inches) during the last 24 hours (as of Tuesday morning) on each of the major islands:

Weather Chart – Here’s the latest (automatically updated) weather map…showing a 1031 millibar high pressure center located far to the NE of the Hawaiian Islands. This high pressure cell, with its associated ridge will give us light trade winds through most of the week ahead…locally gusty during the afternoons along the north and east sides. Here’s a Weather Map Symbol page for clarification about what all those weather symbols mean on the map.

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 available during the daylight hours here in the islands…and when there’s a big moon rising just after sunset for an hour or two! Plus, during the nights and early mornings you will be able to see stars, and the sunrise too…depending upon cloud conditions.

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.

Tropical Cyclone Activity – The eastern Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15 through November 30…while the central Pacific (where Hawaii is) runs from June 1 through November 30. The latest storm information for the eastern Pacific can be found by clicking here. A storm tracking map for both the central and eastern areas can be found by clicking here . For the central Pacific, the latest storm information can be found by clicking here.

 

The spine of the Koolau Mountain range on Oahu
Photo Credit: flikr.com

High pressure to the north and NE of the islands will keep the trade winds blowing across the Aloha state today and Tuesday. Weather maps show a high pressure system located to the NNE of our Hawaiian Islands now. This high pressure cell will keep our winds light, although somewhat gusty along the windward sides during the afternoon hours locally. The latest forecasts show them remaining light to moderately strong through the week ahead. 

An upper level low pressure system to the NW of Kauai will keep high and middle level clouds streaming across Hawaii for the time being. Satellite images show the upper winds carrying lots of cirrus clouds in our direction. The associated rain bearing clouds aren’t expected to migrate in our direction. Otherwise, just a few windward biased showers, leaving most leeward areas dry…except over the Big Island and Haleakala slopes on Maui, where some locally heavy showers may fall.

It’s early Monday evening here in Kula, Maui, as I start writing this sunset commentary.  When I walked out of my office at the Pacific Disaster Center (my day job in Kihei), it was about as cloudy as it gets, without having some sort of precipitation falling. I was lucky to visit the beach during my lunch break today, finding nice warm sunshine. The ocean is as warm as it’s going to get this year, having reached 81F degrees today. At any rate, as I was driving up the Haleakala Highway, I started to run into very light sprinkles in Pukalani, and by the time I got home here in Kula, it was lightly showering. I love it when the clouds are low, and we’re having some misty showers…the only thing missing was some fog, and maybe breezy conditions…which would have made it perfect!  I’ll have to wait until the winter months for that particular scenario to unfold though. It’s 630pm and it’s already dark, or almost dark. I’ll go down the stairs soon, heat up that fresh tomato pasta sauce I made yesterday, and lay a piece of bbq’d chicken along side it. I know it may sound rather funny, but already I’m looking forward to going club dancing in Paia this coming Friday night! Oh well, there’s a lot of work to be done between now and then, so I’d better pace myself. I hope you have a great Monday night, and that you will meet me here again for the Tuesday edition of this weather narrative from paradise. Aloha for now…Glenn.

I want to highlight another of the great advertisers on my website today, this time it’s My Maui Condos. "Private Homes, Condos in Kihei & Lahaina for Rent Daily, Weekly, Monthly"

October 1-2 2006

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

Lihue, Kauai – 84F
Honolulu, Oahu – 84
Kaneohe, Oahu – 82
Kahului, Maui – 90
Hilo, Hawaii – 85
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii – 87

KANEOHE, OAHU – 78
HILO AIRPORT – 74

Precipitation Totals – The following numbers represent the largest precipitation totals (inches) during the last 24 hours (as of Monday morning) on each of the major islands:

Weather Chart – Here’s the latest (automatically updated) weather map…showing a 1027 millibar high pressure center located to the NNE of the Hawaiian Islands. This high pressure cell, with its associated ridge will give us light to moderate trade winds through most of the week ahead. Here’s a Weather Map Symbol page for clarification about what all those weather symbols mean on the map.

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 available during the daylight hours here in the islands…and when there’s a big moon rising just after sunset for an hour or two! Plus, during the nights and early mornings you will be able to see stars, and the sunrise too…depending upon cloud conditions.

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.

Tropical Cyclone Activity – The eastern Pacific hurricane season runs from May 15 through November 30…while the central Pacific (where Hawaii is) runs from June 1 through November 30. The latest storm information for the eastern Pacific can be found by clicking here. A storm tracking map for both the central and eastern areas can be found by clicking here . For the central Pacific, the latest storm information can be found by clicking here.

 

Sunset on the Kona coast of the Big Island
Photo Credit: flikr.com

We’ll find lighter trade winds blowing today through Monday. Weather maps show a high pressure system located to the NE of our Hawaiian Islands now. This high pressure cell will keep our winds lighter side of the wind spectrum now, although somewhat gusty along the windward sides during the afternoon hours locally. The latest forecasts show them remaining light through the new week ahead, as an early season low pressure system forms to our NW…interrupting the stronger trade wind flow. 

The area of moisture to the SE of the islands, which we thought would bring an increase in windward showers, has pretty much fallen apart. Satellite images and weather maps show a trough of low pressure to the SE of the Big Island of Hawaii. This area is expected to move across the Aloha state into Monday. The moisture associated with this trough will be rather insignificant, so we’ll see fairly routine weather conditions, with wispy high cirrus being carried into the state on the upper winds from the SW.

It’s late Sunday afternoon here in Kula, Maui, as I start writing this pre-sunset commentary.  I never made it to the north shore this morning, it was too enticing to stay home and have a quiet day by myself. I read, puttered around some, read a few poems…which I turn to more and more as autumn deepens into the winter season. I went out into the garden, and picked a bunch of cherry and yellow plum tomatoes, that, and some basil. I ended up making a wonderful fresh pasta sauce, which I can hardly wait to try out this evening. I’ll plate that with a piece of the organic chicken I bbq’d yesterday afternoon. It’s been a good day here upcountry, as the clouds set in early, and have hung around unabated, with even some light mist falling at the moment. My mostly unused ping pong table, out on the weather deck, has flecks of light drizzle on it. If there was someone around now to play with, I’d be up for a mellow session of hitting the ball back and forth for a while. It’s just that time of day, when the late afternoon, early evening sun will dip low on the western horizon before sunset, when we’ll get a little short burst of sunrays, not unlike what happens along the Kona slopes sometimes. I hope you have a great rest of your Sunday, and that you will meet me here again on Monday, as we launch into the new work week ahead. Aloha for now…Glenn.

I want to highlight another of the great advertisers on my website today, this time it’s Shot From Above.  "Beautiful Aerial Photography by – Chris Dahl Bredine"