Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures (F) were recorded across the state of Hawaii Thursday…along with the low temperatures Thursday:

85 – 77  Lihue, Kauai
87 – 76  Honolulu, Oahu
88 – 76  Molokai AP
86 – 76  Kahului AP, Maui 
88 – 80  Kona AP
86 – 73  Hilo AP, Hawaii

Here are the latest 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands…Thursday evening:

2.40  Wainiha, Kauai
3.73  Moanalua RG 1, Oahu
0.45  Molokai
0.00  Lanai
0.00  Kahoolawe
1.66  Puu Kukui, Maui
1.33  Waiakea Uka, Big Island

The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph)…Thursday evening:

27  Port Allen, Kauai
37  Oahu Forest NWR, Oahu
31  Molokai
30  Lanai
40  Kahoolawe
37  Maalaea Bay, Maui
30  Upolu AP, 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.


Aloha Paragraphs

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Former Howard is approaching to the east of Hawaii…while Tropical Storm Ivette is moving westward, still well to the east-southeast of the islands

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What the computer models are showing for Tropical Storm Ivette which will weaken to a tropical depression…well before getting into range of the Hawaiian Islands

http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/goes/west/cpac/vis.jpg
Retired Howard is still a rather pronounced swirl of clouds with a few thunderstorms, to the east of the islands…along with thunderstorms south of Hawaii


http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/goes/west/hi/vis.jpg
Lots of low clouds upstream of the island chain…carried our way on the trade winds

 

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Showers over parts of the island chain…some are rather generous – Looping radar image


Small Craft Advisory…Maalaea Bay, Pailolo Channel, and the Alenuihaha Channel

~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~

Moderately strong and gusty trade winds will remain active…then likely become lighter as we move into the weekend. Here’s the latest weather map, showing a strong, near 1037 millibar high pressure system far north-northeast of Hawaii. The trade winds will continue, having peaked in strength today. The models suggest that by the weekend into early next week, our local trade winds may go through some changes, likely becoming lighter. It’s still too early to know what kind of wind conditions that Tropical Cyclone Ivette brings our way later next week…stay tuned.

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

Passing showers, especially windward sides, although not exclusively…

http://www.prh.noaa.gov/hnl/satellite/latest/State_VIS.gif

Friday and part of Saturday should turn drier again, with a typical trade wind weather pattern moving back over us briefly. Thereafter, we should see another area of tropical moisture (associated with what is now former TC Howard arriving. What’s left of Howard is forecast to track more or less westward during the next few days. At this point, it looks like rains may become locally heavy Saturday night into early next week. This will occur as deep tropical moisture associated with the remnants of Howard…moves over parts of the island chain.

We may see yet another area of tropical moisture approaching the state around next Thursday or so…as whatever is left of TC Ivette moves into range. Based on what some of the models are suggesting now, we could see Ivette bring the threat of another episode of rainfall, and possibly breezy conditions…stay tuned as this outlook will go through many changes between now and then.

Marine environment details: The Small Craft Advisory (SCA) has been trimmed back to cover only Maalaea Bay, Pailolo and Alenuihaha Channels. The SCA continues through Friday, with anticipated weakening of the trade winds Friday night due to the remnants of Tropical Cyclone Howard passing over the state this weekend.

The breezy trades will also cause rough and choppy surf along east facing shores, but surf heights are likely to remain below advisory heights. Friday night and Saturday, easterly swell from former Howard will build across the state. East shore surf generated from Howard is likely to boost heights above High Surf Advisory criteria. 

The east swell will linger through the weekend, and begin to drop off Sunday night. Monday or Tuesday easterly southeast swell from Tropical Storm Ivette will build across the islands. Because of Ivette’s lower latitude path, some east facing shores will initially be blocked by the Big Island and Maui…until midweek or later in the week.

A series of small south swells will continue to roll in over the next week…but surf will remain below advisory levels along south facing shores.

 

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Punaluu Black Sand Beach, Big Island of Hawaii, and yes…those are turtles not rocks!


World-wide tropical cyclone activity

 

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>>> Atlantic Ocean: No active tropical cyclones

Here’s a satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean

>>> Caribbean Sea: No active tropical cyclones

>>> Gulf of Mexico: 

Tropical Storm Earl remains active…located 135 miles east-southeast of Veracruz, Mexico. Here’s a NHC graphical track map, with a satellite image…and what the computer models are showing.

http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/storm_graphics/AT05/refresh/AL0516W5_NL+gif/155812W5_NL_sm.gif

Here’s a satellite image of the Caribbean Sea…and the Gulf of Mexico

1.) A trough of low pressure is expected to form over the northeastern Gulf of Mexico late in the weekend or early next week. Some subsequent development of this system is possible while it remains nearly stationary.

* Formation chance through 48 hours…low…near 0 percent
* Formation chance through 5 days…low…20 percent

Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)

>>> Eastern Pacific:  

Tropical Storm 10E (Ivette) remains active in the eastern Pacific…located 1465 miles west-southwest of the southern tip of Baja California. Here’s a NHC graphical track map, with a satellite image…and what the computer models are showing.

http://www.ssd.noaa.gov/PS/TROP/floaters/10E/imagery/vis0-lalo.gif
Tropical Storm Ivette still hasn’t become more organized…and will likely move into our central Pacific as a weakening tropical storm early next week


http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/xgtwo/two_pac_2d0.png


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: No active tropical cyclones

1.) Thunderstorms are periodically flaring up near an area of low
pressure marking the low associated with post-tropical Howard,
centered about 720 miles east of Hilo, Hawaii. Cooler sea surface
temperatures and unfavorable atmospheric conditions are expected
to inhibit redevelopment.

* Formation chance through 48 hours…low…near 0 percent

2.) The National Hurricane Center in Miami, Florida is issuing advisories on Tropical Storm Ivette, located over 1670 miles east-southeast of Hilo, Hawaii. Ivette is expected to cross 140W into the Central Pacific Hurricane Center area of responsibility Sunday night.

Elsewhere, no tropical cyclones are expected through the next 2-days

Here’s a link to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC)

>>> Northwest Pacific Ocean:

Tropical Storm 07W (Omais) remains active in the northwestern Pacific, located about 367 NM east-southeast of Iwo To…here’s the JTWC graphical track map, with a satellite image, and what the computer models are showing

>>> South Pacific Ocean: No active tropical cyclones


>>> North and South Indian Oceans / Arabian Sea: No active tropical cyclones

Here’s a link to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)


Interesting: Do eco-friendly wines taste better? – It’s time to toast environmentally friendly grapes. A new UCLA study shows that eco-certified wine tastes better — and making the choice even easier, earlier research shows it’s often cheaper, too.

Though consumers remain reluctant to spend more on wine from organic grapes, the new study from UCLA researchers shows that in blind taste-tests professional wine reviewers give eco-certified wines higher ratings than regular wines.

The study, published today in the Journal of Wine Economics, looked at reviews and scores for more than 74,000 California wines from the magazines Wine Advocate, Wine Enthusiast and Wine Spectator. On a standardized 100-point scale, eco-certified wines scored an average of 4.1 points higher. The standardized scale controlled for differences between the scoring systems — for example, easy graders versus hard graders.

“The bottom line is that however we look at it, we find that organic and biodynamic farming has these small but significant positive effects on wine quality,” said lead author Magali Delmas, a UCLA environmental economist and professor in the UCLA Anderson School of Management.

Though the paper studied only California wines, the research team expects the results to apply broadly, since California produces 90 percent of the wine in the United States. The preliminary findings on a study looking at French wine show similar results, added Delmas, who is also part of the UCLA Institute of the Environment and Sustainability. Her co-authors include Jinghui Lim, a UCLA postdoctoral researcher with IoES and UCLA Anderson, and Olivier Gergaud, an economics professor at the Kedge Business School in Bordeaux, France.

The study looked at eco-certified wines, which included wine made with grapes from organic and biodynamic farms, but did not include a third kind of eco-certified wine: organic wine. Organic wine refers not only to how the grapes were grown but also how the wine was made. Most notably, organic wine cannot contain added sulfites, an important preservative, Delmas said. Perhaps because even the experts shy away from strictly organic wine, the reviewing magazines had only wine from organic grapes or biodynamic farms in the 74,000-bottle sample used by the study, Delmas said

Delmas believes preservative-free organic wine, which was once known for souring quickly, may be one culprit behind consumers’ unwillingness to pay more for any kind of eco-certified wine, even as wine growers and wine reviewers praise the quality of vino from organic grapes and biodynamic farms, Delmas said.

But the misperception that all eco-certified wine is worse “is good news for consumers, because they will get higher-quality wine at a lower price,” she said.

Delmas hopes the research will inspire vintners to show off their eco-certifications more boldly, and encourage more wineries to take up environmental practices. A meager 1 percent of wines in the study were eco-certified, and two-thirds of eco-certified California wineries do not showcase the seals on their bottles because of the general customer sentiment that eco-labeled wines are of lower quality, Delmas said. But even though a 2014 study by Delmas showed that consumers won’t pay more for eco-wine — depressing the price — many vineyards still take on the expense of getting certified, facing 10–15 percent higher costs for three to four years.

“Wine makers say it’s better for the quality of the wine,” Delmas said. “It’s a purer taste with more sense of the terroir, because when you replace pesticides with labor, you have hands-on care for the vines and you improve the composition of the soil and you get back all the life — the microbes, insects, bees and worms that you need in agriculture.”

The study also found a larger effect for red wine than for white wine, with eco-certified red wines gaining 5.6 extra points, compared to 1.3 points for white wines. While the increase for white wines wasn’t statistically significant, Delmas suspects that mainly reflects the smaller sample size for white wines, and explained that the while the study was not conclusive, it does indicate that white wines also see a positive effect from eco-certification.

While Delmas’ previous research has shown that vintners’ top motivation for using environmental practices is to improve the quality of their wine, it’s of course not the only reason. Particularly at family farms, where the owners plan to pass the property on to their children, a key motivation is to provide a cleaner environment for future generations, her research has found.

So drink up your eco-wine, red or white. It’s good for the environment, cheaper than the alternative — and science shows it tastes just a little bit better.