Hawaiian Islands Weather details & Aloha paragraphs / December 2-3, 2011

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

Lihue, Kauai –                   M
Honolulu airport, Oahu –     82 
Kaneohe, Oahu –               79
Molokai airport –                79
Kahului airport, Maui          83  (record high for the date: 90F degrees in 1951)  
Kona airport                      81
Hilo airport, Hawaii –          81

Air Temperatures ranged between these warmest and coolest spots near sea level – and on the highest mountain tops…as of 5pm Friday evening:

Honolulu, Oahu – 80
Princeville, Kauai – 72

Haleakala Crater – M (near 10,000 feet on Maui)
Mauna Kea –        36 (over 13,500 feet on the Big Island)

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

1.56     Kilohana, Kauai
1.10     Makaha Stream, Oahu
0.08     Molokai
0.00     Lanai
0.00     Kahoolawe
0.34     Puu Kukui, Maui
0.78     Glenwood, Big Island

Satellite and Radar Images: To view the cloud conditions we have here in Hawaii, please use the following satellite links, starting off with this Infrared Satellite Image of the islands to see all the clouds around during the day and night. This next image is one that gives close images of the islands during the daytime hours, and is referred to as a Close-up visible image. Finally, here's a Looping IR satellite image, making viewable the clouds around the islands 24 hours a day. To help you keep track of where any showers may be around the islands, here’s the latest animated radar image.

Hawaii’s Mountains – Here’s a link to the live web cam on the summit of near 13,500 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. The Haleakala Crater webcam on Maui just came back online, after being on the blink for several weeks.

Tropical Cyclone activity in the eastern and central Pacific – Here’s the latest weather information coming out of the National Hurricane Center, covering the eastern north Pacific. You can find the latest tropical cyclone information for the central north Pacific (where Hawaii is located) by clicking on this link to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center. A satellite image, which shows the entire ocean area between Hawaii and the Mexican coast…can be found here.  Here's a tropical cyclone tracking map for the eastern and central Pacific.

 Aloha Paragraphs

  Passing showers generally windward sides,
light to moderate winds…good weekend
 
 
 

As this weather map shows, we find a very strong 1045 millibar high pressure system located far to the northeast of the Hawaiian Islands Friday night. At the same time, we have another weaker near 1021 millibar high pressure cell north-northwest of Hawaii. At the same time, we find a trough of low pressure just to the northeast of the islands, and a frontal boundary near Kauai. Winds will be light to moderate trade winds on Maui and the Big Island, and more east to southeast on the Kauai end of the chain Saturday…then returning trade winds Sunday.

The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph), along with directions Friday evening:

20                 Barking Sands, Kauai – NW
18                 Kahuku, Oahu – ENE
27                 Molokai – NE
08                 Kahoolawe – E
27                 Kapalua, Maui – NE
16                 Lanai – NE
30                    Upolu Point, Big Island – NE

We can use the following links to see what’s going on in our area of the north central Pacific Ocean early Friday night. Looking at this NOAA satellite picture we find that high and middle level cloudiness are located over the ocean to the southwest, south, east…extending over most of the state. We can use this looping satellite image to find a considerable amount of thunderstorm activity far to our southwest over the ocean, with high cirrus clouds flying off the tops of those clouds in a large swath moving over the state. The weak frontal boundary that reached into the state as far as the Kauai Channel, is falling apart…and moving back up towards the northwest. Checking out this looping radar image we see showers over the ocean, most of which are in the light to moderately heavy category…which is heading westward. 

Sunset Commentary:  The rulers of our Hawaiian Island weather picture continue to be a dissipating weak cold front near Kauai…and a weak trough of low pressure over the central islands. The light to moderately strong trade winds are helping to push both the trough and the frontal cloud band westward. This will carry the frontal showers over Kauai and then away…and the trough’s showers over the windward sides of the state for the most part. The showers associated with the trough, light to moderately heavy, had already begun to arrive on Maui and the Big Island this afternoon, and continue to head westward. The frontal showers are in the Kauai Channel, pushing across Kauai at the time of this writing.

This will leave a nice looking weekend for the Aloha state, which will likely extend into the first half of the upcoming new work week as well. The next cold front in line, as we close in on the beginning of winter here in the tropics, will approach this weekend…although won’t make it to Kauai, much less the rest of the state. This will keep the islands just fine through the next five days, with just the usual passing trade wind showers along our north and east windward coasts and slopes. Perhaps, and this is getting pretty far out into the future to count on with very much certainty, could be another windy episode of strong and gusty winds towards the end of the new week. This sets us up to continue through the last part of autumn 2011 into early winter…in good shape, which is good news, in contrast to how it could be otherwise. It’s just a matter of time however before our next rain bearing cold front arrives thereafter.

Here it is Friday evening already, and as usual, I'll be trekking over to Kahului to see a new film. This one is called Hugo, starring Asa Butterfield and Chloe Grace Moretz…among many others. The synopsis: Hugo is a wily and resourceful boy whose quest to unlock a secret left to him by his father will transform him and all those around him, and reveal a safe and loving place he can call home. The critics are giving this new film a very high A- grade, while the film reviewing website, rotten tomatoes, often a hard grader, is giving this film a high 93% approval…out of a top number of 100. This all sounds good to me, and I'm looking forward to seeing what the excitement is all about. I don't know anything about this film, but will go on the ratings alone. Here's the trailer for this film, just in case you would like to see it.

Here in Kihei, Maui at around 530pm Friday evening, skies were generally cloudy, most of which consisted of the high clouds. As noted above, there will be lots of clouds everywhere tonight into Saturday morning. However, it should be relatively dry along the leeward sides, with most of the showers occurring along our north and east facing coasts and slopes. As we push into the weekend we should see favorably inclined weather conditions just about everywhere, with just those usual windward biased showers being carried our way on the trade wind flow. I'll be back early Saturday morning with your next new weather narrative from paradise, I hope you have a great Friday night until then! Aloha for now…Glenn.

Extra: Video of a Jet airplane (cockpit crew) coming into and landing at the Los Angeles International Airport…twilight view.