Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures were recorded across the state of Hawaii Tuesday:
Lihue, Kauai – M
Honolulu airport, Oahu – M
Kaneohe, Oahu – M
Molokai airport – M
Kahului airport, Maui – M
Kona airport – M
Hilo airport, Hawaii – M
Air Temperatures ranged between these warmest and coolest spots near sea level – and on the highest mountain tops…as of 8pm Tuesday evening:
Lihue, Kauai – 76
Hilo, Hawaii – 69
Haleakala Crater – 46 (near 10,000 feet on Maui)
Mauna Kea – 32 (near 13,800 feet on the Big Island)
Hawaii’s Mountains – Here’s a link to the live web cam on the summit of near 13,800 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. Here's the Haleakala Crater webcam on Maui…although this webcam is not always working correctly.
Aloha Paragraphs
Gusty trades – windward showers at times…
with generally dry leeward areas
Active small surf leeward beaches
High cirrus clouds…good sunrise Maui County
As this weather map shows, we have a near 1036 millibar high pressure system located to the north of the Hawaiian Islands. Our local winds will remain moderately strong, although stronger at times through Wednesday…then gradually lighter thereafter.
The following numbers represent the most recent wind gusts (mph), along with directions as of Tuesday evening
07 Barking Sands, Kauai – NE
16 Bellows, Oahu – NE
25 Molokai – NE
29 Kahoolawe – NE
27 Kahului, Maui – NE
23 Lanai – NE
17 South 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. Here's the latest NOAA satellite picture – the latest looping satellite image…and finally the latest looping radar image for the Hawaiian Islands.
Here are the latest 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands as of Tuesday evening:
0.21 Mount Waialeale, Kauai
0.02 Moanalua RG, Oahu
0.00 Molokai
0.00 Lanai
0.00 Kahoolawe
2.19 Puu Kukui, Maui
1.70 Island Dairy, Big Island
Sunset Commentary: As we move through Wednesday, strong high pressure to our north will keep the trade winds blowing. These trades will blow in the moderately strong realms, although there will be gusts that approach 40 mph at times in those windiest locations through Wednesday evening. These windiest areas will include parts of Maui County and the Big Island, where a small craft wind advisory continues until 6pm Wednesday evening. Weather circumstances will bring the trade wind speeds down during the second half of the week, at which point they will fall into the light to moderately strong category Thursday…then even lighter during the upcoming weekend.
The latest forecast continues to show a trough of low pressure with an associated cold front approaching the Hawaiian Islands this weekend into early next week. This could cause our local winds to become more easterly or even southeast…and falter in strength quite a bit too. The latest thought, and it has been changing on a daily basis…is that this low pressure system would remain to the north of our islands, although perhaps close enough to trigger some wetter weather in our area by Sunday into next Monday. As we move further into next week, the trade winds will rebound, bringing back more normal windward biased showers…along with lots of warm sunshine for the south and west facing leeward beaches.
Here in Kula, Maui at 515pm, skies were clear to partly cloudy with calm winds, and an air temperature of 75.7F degrees. As this satellite image shows, we have a fairly minor area of high cirrus clouds to our west, which is spreading over the state locally. This should bring a nice colorful sunset to our island skies this evening…at least in some areas. ~~~ As noted above, our trade winds will persist, remaining quite gusty through Wednesday. These trades will taper off quite a bit starting Thursday, and remain lighter into the weekend. The models point out an area of low pressure edging this way Saturday and Sunday into early next week. The models still haven't nailed down a solid weather solution, although again it looks like lighter winds and potentially wetter weather for the weekend into early next week. The lighter winds may also help promote afternoon clouds around the mountains…with likely clear skies along our beaches below. I suggest that we hold this wetter weather prospect lightly for the time being, giving the computer models a bit more time to sort things out. ~~~ I'll be back early Wednesday morning with your next new weather narrative, I trust that you will have a great Tuesday night until then! Aloha for now…Glenn.
Interesting: Many of us in the West take for granted our state-of-the-art banking systems, which make it very easy to deposit and withdraw cash. Every little town has a bank, and in the city there is practically one around the corner. Unfortunately, not every country has such luxury. In India, for example, personal banking requires traveling to the nearest branch, often in far-away cities, requiring nearly a full day to do so.
However, thanks to an innovation in ATM technology, all this is going to change. Vortex Engineering, a start-up sponsored by Chennai's Indian Institute of Technology, has created an energy-efficient solar power ATM machine. This will bring the ability to do banking to even the most remote Indian Village.
The innovation of a solar powered ATM is a win-win for Indian account-holders and Indian bankers. It will allow more transactions to be done, and decrease the often prohibitive expense of traveling to the closest branch. Vortex is marketing their machines as a way for banks to reach out to un-banked and under-banked regions.
The new ATMs are being called Gramateller, whereas "gram" in Hindi means "village". Their unique design allows them to run using 90% less power than traditional ATM machines. Their low power requirements allow them to function in the extreme heat of southern India without overheating.
It also allows them to function well in the snowy winters of northern India. To date, 450 Gramatellers have been installed and 10,000 more are set to be installed within the next two years. Other countries have taken notice, and the solar panels may soon be going international.
Other countries with interest include Bangladesh, Madagascar, Nepal, and Djibouti. The Vortex ATMs are more rugged and durable than other ATMS, and they will work well even in harsh conditions. Other developing nations should take a look at this innovation in banking. It may be one of the best ways to improve their economies, particularly in rural communities.
Email Glenn James: 