Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures (F) were recorded across the state of Hawaii Saturday…along with the minimums Saturday:
80 – 69 Lihue, Kauai
83 – 72 Honolulu, Oahu
80 – 68 Molokai AP
82 – 68 Kahului AP, Maui
81 – 67 Kailua Kona
78 – 67 Hilo AP, Hawaii
Here are the latest 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands, as of Saturday evening:
0.57 kilohana, Kauai
0.06 Kahuku Trng Area, Oahu
0.00 Molokai
0.00 Lanai
0.00 Kahoolawe
2.58 West Wailuaiki, Maui
5.21 Saddle Quarry, Big Island
The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph)…as of Saturday evening:
22 Waimea Heights, Kauai – NE
40 Oahu Forest NWR, Oahu – SSW
29 Molokai – ENE
36 Lanai – NE
40 Kahaloowe – ENE
37 Kahului AP, Maui – NNW
35 Kohala Ranch, 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
Late winter storms far north of the islands
Scattered low clouds to the north, northeast, east, and
northwest of the islands
Partly to mostly cloudy skies over the windward sides, with
mostly clear skies on the leeward sides…high cirrus clouds
clipping the Big Island
Showers…falling locally around the state – looping radar image
Small Craft Wind Advisory…all coasts and channel waters
High Surf Advisory..north and west shores of Kauai, and
north shores of Oahu, Molokai, Maui and the Big Island
~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~
Winds remain strong and gusty, and still rather cool tonight…easing up gradually from the southeast through Monday. Here’s the latest weather map, showing the Hawaiian Islands, and the rest of the North Pacific Ocean. We find a high pressure system north, with its associated ridge of high pressure located well to the north of the islands. This area of high pressure will keep strong and gusty winds in force for a little while longer. The trades will taper off Sunday into Monday, veering south to southeast into Tuesday morning…which could bring a brief period of volcanic haze over the state locally. The models suggest that we’ll see the next cold front arriving later Tuesday into Wednesday. As this front moves through, it will be followed by another blast of chilly north to northeasterly winds for several days.
There will be a few showers, although nothing unusual…through Monday night. There continues to be somewhat chilly and windy weather conditions in the wake of an old cold front, which arrived earlier this week. This tropical chill is due to a wind chill factor, and the still relatively dry and stable atmospherics over the state now. The leeward sides will continue to see generally fine sunny weather Sunday and Monday. An area of moisture is moving over the eastern islands, bringing off and on passing windward showers. The models continue pointing towards another cold front approaching the state early in the new week…with an increase in associated showers later Tuesday into Wednesday. The models go on to show the chance of yet another cold front arriving around next weekend.
Marine environment details: Strong high pressure north of our area is causing small craft advisory conditions across all coastal waters. The winds will gradually weaken later Sunday and Monday, as high pressure moves off to the northeast of the state. A front approaching the area Monday will cause lighter southeast winds out ahead of it. The front is forecast to pass across the islands Tuesday and Tuesday night…with breezy and cool northerly winds following in its wake. High pressure will be building in northwest of the area Wednesday and Thursday with breezy trade winds expected.
Surf along east facing shores is slowly diminishing, so the high surf advisory has been cancelled. However a new north-northwest swell will continue to fill in overnight with advisory level surf expected through Sunday. This swell will gradually lower early in the new week. A new large north swell is expected during the Wednesday through Friday time frame. There will also be a series of small south swells throughout the forecast period.
Here’s a wind profile…of the offshore waters around the islands – with a closer view
Here’s the Hawaiian Islands Sulfate Aerosol…animated graphic – showing vog forecast
Here in Maui County...It was clear to mostly cloudy early this Saturday morning, depending upon location…with showers or drizzle falling along the windward sides locally. Here in upcountry Kula, at my place, it was clear with the air temperature a cool 45.8F degrees before sunrise. The temperature at near the same time was 69 degrees down in Kahului under cloudy skies, 73 out in Hana, 70 at Maalaea Bay, and 36 atop the Haleakala summit. Meanwhile, Kahoolawe was 64 degrees, 65 at Lanai City, with 70 at the Molokai airport…with partly cloudy skies.
– Saturday afternoon, under a mix of clouds and sunshine, with the trade winds still whizzin’ along in those most exposed areas. The windward sides still have a few showers falling, although as is often the case during the heat of the afternoon hours, showers tend to back down some. As night falls, and the air temperatures falls a few degrees…I’d expect the showers to increase a notch or two into Sunday morning.
– Early Saturday evening, with weather conditions looking about like they have all day. My friend Jeff and I are meeting at the small French restaurant here in Kula for dinner. This will be my first time trying it out, although I’m hearing it’s a good place to eat. I’m looking forward to being out, as I rarely go to a restaurant to eat…especially so close to home.
Friday Evening Film: The film that I just saw, is one that I told myself that I wasn’t going to see…because it was too scary! However, my friend Jeff asked me to join he and another friend of ours, who were going to see it. I looked up what the critics were saying about the film, and they seemed to be raving…with scores in the lower 90’s. Thus, I reluctantly changed my mind, and decided to go get scared after all. This film is called 10 Cloverfield Lane, starring Mary Elizabeth Winston, John Goodman, John Gallagher Jr., Maya Erskine, Mat Vairo…among many others. The synopsis: a young woman wakes up after a terrible accident to find that she’s locked in a cellar with a doomsday prepper, who insists that he saved her life and that the world outside is uninhabitable following an apocalyptic catastrophe. Uncertain what to believe, the woman soon determines that she must escape at any cost.
You know, this film reminded me in no uncertain terms, that I don’t like horror films…they’re just a bit too much for me. Although, with that said, it wasn’t too bad, although there were some pretty freaky parts. I went with Jeff and another professor from Brazil, and we all liked it enough. The grades ranged from a B, to a strong B, to a B+ grade. It turned out to be quite original, although some of the first words out of my mouth, as the three of us walked back to the car, where “that was so far-fetched”…which it certainly was. However, I guess that’s what it takes to make a film like this. In the end, it was a clever, thrilling film, that for the most part was fun to watch, and I liked. It would drag on for a little while, and then bang, some loud and scary thing would happen, and it brought you right back to the edge of your seat again! If you feel like taking a short peek…here’s the trailer.
World-wide tropical cyclone activity:
>>> Atlantic Ocean: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2015 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2016. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued if conditions warrant. Here’s the 2015 hurricane season summary
Here’s a satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean
>>> Caribbean Sea: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2015 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2016. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued if conditions warrant.
>>> Gulf of Mexico: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2015 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2016. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued if conditions warrant.
Here’s a satellite image of the Caribbean Sea…and the Gulf of Mexico
Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)
>>> Eastern Pacific: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2015 North Pacific hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on May 15, 2016. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued if conditions warrant. Here’s the 2015 hurricane season summary
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, 2016. During the off-season, special tropical weather outlooks will be issued if conditions warrant. Here’s the 2015 hurricane season summary
Here’s a link to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC)
>>> South Pacific Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones
>>> North and South Indian Oceans / Arabian Sea: There are no active tropical cyclones
Here’s a link to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)
Interesting: ‘Ugly’ fruits and vegetables will get a chance to be sold – Depending on the source, anywhere from 20 to 40 percent of produce in America ends up wasted. One reason why so many fruit and vegetables are thrown out is because they do not conform to what retailers and consumers believe fresh food should look like. Tomatoes too wide for a hamburger bun, carrots that look like something out of an anatomy textbook, and cucumbers that dare to be curved almost never make the shelves at grocery chains from Walmart to Whole Foods.
But Whole Foods, the supermarket that has arguably made organic and socially-conscious foods mainstream, announced that it will start selling “ugly” fruits and vegetables. As mentioned in a bevy of news sources from USA Today to Fortune, the Austin-based retailer will start selling these misshaped beauties at a discount. Imperfect Produce, a Bay Area startup that delivers oddly-shaped fruits and veggies at a discount in the Oakland and Berkeley areas, will partner with Whole Foods on this new marketing tactic.
Taking credit for this shift is Jordan Figueiredo, an advocate for waste diversion and founder of UglyFruitandVeg.org. After he launched a petition on Change.org last fall and paired it with a social media campaign, Figueiredo claimed a meeting with Whole Foods executives led to this change.
For Imperfect Produce, this agreement with Whole Foods is a sweet victory in its quest to halt the growing problem of food waste. Last year the company launched a partnership with the Northern California grocer Raley’s, but lukewarm consumer interest caused that campaign to sputter and eventually end.
Imperfect Produce’s quest this round should be a (pardon the pun) fruitful venture, largely because Whole Food’s success can be attributed in part to how well it educates its customers on a wide range of issues related to food. In addition, competition coming from all directions, including Safeway and Sprouts Farmers Market, present the retailer with an opportunity to differentiate itself even further within the cutthroat grocery business.
Consumers’ demands for healthful, yet inexpensive foods comprise one reason why the company will launch its price-conscious 365 by Whole Foods Markets stores this year — and a roll out of funky-looking fruits and vegetables could resonate with the crowd expected to shop at these stores. “Produce is a sight to behold,” says Whole Foods’ marketers, and it certainly will be once these oddly-shaped apples, carrots and oranges appear in its stores.
Whole Foods’ experiment follows the lead other retailers have taken on ugly produce and food waste over the past few years. The French chain Intermarche scored worldwide press for its roll out of fresh yet weirdly-shaped produce, a shift made easier by the French government’s passage of a law that bans the disposal and destroying of fresh food. Across the Channel, the venerable British grocer Sainsbury’s started to sell nonconforming produce in 2012. North of the border, the retailer Loblow’s success with its sales of curiously-shaped potatoes and apples convinced the company to expand such offerings even further this month.
All of these companies found that, while it is difficult to change consumers’ habits, the results include the reaping of more profits and, of course, less waste and hunger.
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