Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures (F) were recorded across the state of Hawaii Wednesday…along with the minimum temperatures Wednesday:
82 – 66 Lihue, Kauai
81 – 67 Honolulu, Oahu
80 – 56 Molokai AP
84 – 60 Kahului, Maui
81 – 70 Kailua Kona
84 – 64 Hilo, Hawaii
Here are the latest 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands, as of Wednesday evening:
0.01 Anahola, Kauai
0.02 Olomana Fire Station, Oahu
0.00 Molokai
0.00 Lanai
0.00 Kahoolawe
0.00 Maui
0.00 Big Island
The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph)…as of Wednesday evening:
15 Mana, Kauai – SE
16 Kahuku Trng, Oahu – SE
16 Molokai – E
10 Lanai – SW
16 Kahoolawe – ESE
15 Hana, Maui – SE
18 Upolu AP, Big Island – NE
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.
Aloha Paragraphs
Large area of clouds over the ocean to the north…with
an approaching cold front to the northwest
Higher clouds beginning to close in over the islands
There are a few showers in places…mostly over the ocean
~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~
High Surf Advisory…for north and west shores of
Kauai, Oahu, Molokai, and north shores of Maui
Small Craft Advisory…rising seas around waters
of Kauai
Light southeasterly to easterly breezes, with areas of vog in places…increasing from the south and southwest Here’s the latest weather map, showing the Hawaiian Islands, and the rest of the North Pacific Ocean, along with a real-time wind profiler of the central Pacific. We find high pressure systems well offshore to the northeast of Hawaii moving northward, with an associated ridge extending southwest from its center…over Oahu and Kauai. At the same time, we have lots of low pressure systems to the northwest…with a cold front over the ocean to the northwest. The air coming into the state remains dry and stable, and locally quite hazy. Our winds will be light, generally from the southeast through east. The winds will veer back towards the south and southwest, strengthening later Thursday and Friday, ahead of the next cold front. Winds will shift to the northeast to east during the weekend, then veer to the southeast again Monday…turning around to the south and southwest ahead of another possible cold front. We may finally see the return of our long lost trade winds later next week, helping to get rid of this ongoing vog situation.
Generally dry conditions expected into Thursday…with the next cold front arriving early Friday on Kauai. Here’s the looping radar image showing a few showers falling, mostly over the mountain slopes locally. Clear to partly cloudy, with afternoon clouds, and a few minor showers over and around the mountains in places. The forecast still calls for a cold front moving into the state, which will usher in another round of precipitation. Kauai will find this front on its doorstep early Friday, Oahu and Maui County later Friday into the night…with the front stalling over the Big Island during the weekend. We may have yet another cold front pushing in our direction early next week, although it’s still too early to know what kind of rainfall it may bring…if any. I’ll be back with more information on all of the above, I hope you have a great Wednesday night wherever you’re spending it! Aloha for now…Glenn.
Here in Kula, Maui: It’s still too dark to see the sky, although the winds are calm, with a low temperature of 52 degrees here at my weather tower at 6am. It was 64 degrees down at the Kahului airport near the ocean…with 43 degrees atop the Haleakala Crater at the same time. The summit of the Big Island was a colder 34 degrees atop Mauna Kea. The warmest temperature around the state was 71 degrees at the Kona AP on the Big Island. I’ll be curious to see how much volcanic haze is in the air as soon the sun comes up…more on that soon. It’s now 7am, and I can see that its mostly clear, with a low temperature of 51 degrees. I can see clouds and some haze down in the central valley.
~~~ It’s now into the afternoon hours, at around 115pm, under partly cloudy skies, and volcanic haze. The winds are very light here in Kula, with an air temperature of 73.8 degrees. Meanwhile, it is mostly sunny and 78 degrees at the same time down in Kahului. The warmest temperature around the state early this afternoon was 82 degrees at Hilo on the Big Island.
~~~ We’re into the early evening hours now, under cloudy and hazy conditions, with calm winds. The volcanic haze is very thick, completely eliminating my view of the West Maui Mountains…from here in Kula.
World-wide tropical cyclone activity:
>>> Atlantic Ocean: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2014 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2015. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued as conditions warrant.
Here’s a satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean
>>> Caribbean Sea: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2014 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2015. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued as conditions warrant.
>>> Gulf of Mexico: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2014 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2015. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued as conditions warrant.
Here’s a satellite image of the Caribbean Sea…and the Gulf of Mexico.
>>> Eastern Pacific: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2014 North Pacific hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on May 15, 2015. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued as conditions warrant.
Here’s a wide satellite image that covers the entire area between Mexico, out through the central Pacific…to the International Dateline.
Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)
>>> Central Pacific: The central north Pacific hurricane season has officially ended. Routine issuance of the tropical weather outlook will resume on June 1, 2015. During the off-season, special tropical weather outlooks will be issued as conditions warrant.
Here’s a link to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC)
>>> Northwest Pacific Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones
>>> South Pacific Ocean: Tropical Cyclone 12P (Lam) remains active near the Gulf of Carpenteria, Australia, here’s the JTWC graphical track map…along with a NOAA satellite image.
Tropical Cyclone 13P (Marcia) remains active in the Coral Sea, offshore from western Australia, here’s the JTWC graphical track map…along with a NOAA satellite image.
>>> North and South Indian Oceans: There are no active tropical cyclones
Here’s a link to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)
Interesting: New ozone-destroying gases on the rise – Scientists report that chemicals that are not controlled by a United Nations treaty designed to protect the Ozone Layer are contributing to ozone depletion.
In the new study, published today in Nature Geoscience, the scientists also report the atmospheric abundance of one of these ‘very short-lived substances’ (VSLS) is growing rapidly.
Study lead author Dr Ryan Hossaini, from the School of Earth and Environment at the University of Leeds, said: “VSLS can have both natural and industrial sources. Industrial production of VSLS is not controlled by the United Nations Montreal Protocol because historically these chemicals have contributed little to ozone depletion.
“But we have identified now that one of these chemicals is increasing rapidly and, if this increase is allowed to continue, it could offset some of the benefits to the Ozone Layer provided by the Montreal Protocol.”
In the study, the researchers used a 3D computer model of the atmosphere to determine the impact of VSLS on ozone and climate.
Measurements of VSLS in the atmosphere over the past two decades, provided by collaborators from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in the United States, were also analysed. These measurements revealed a rapid increase in atmospheric concentrations of dichloromethane, a man-made VSLS used in a range of industrial processes.
Study co-author Professor Martyn Chipperfield, from Leeds’ School of Earth and Environment, said: “We need to continue monitoring the atmospheric abundance of these gases and determine their sources. At present, the long-term recovery of the Ozone Layer from the effects of CFCs is still on track, but the presence of increasing dichloromethane will lead to uncertainty in our future predictions of ozone and climate.”
The researchers found that while the amount of ozone depletion arising from VSLS in the atmosphere today is small compared to that caused by longer-lived gases, such as CFCs, VSLS-driven ozone depletion was found to be almost four times more efficient at influencing climate.
Dr Hossaini explained: “Due to their short atmospheric lifetimes, VSLS break down and destroy ozone in the lowermost part of the stratosphere. This is important, as a molecule of ozone lost in this region has a far larger impact on climate than a molecule destroyed at higher altitudes by longer-lived gases.”
The researchers also separated out natural sources of VSLS – such as seaweed in the ocean – and those released due to human activity – such as industrial processes – in order to determine the relative importance of each.
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