Glenn James
Hawaii Weather Today
Founder and maintainer for 30 years 

 

The latest update to this website was at 846pm Thursday (HST)

 

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

0.46  Kilohana , Kauai
0.09  Hawaii Kai GC, Oahu
2.35  Puu Alii, Molokai
0.02  Lanai City, Lanai
2.18  West Wailuaiki, Maui
1.32  Kawainui Stream, Big Island

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

30  Barking Sands, Kauai – NNE
32  Kuaokala, Oahu – NNE
22  Molokai AP, Molokai – NE
23  Lanai 1,  Lanai – NE
28  Kealaloloa Rg, Maui – NE
39  Kealakomo, Big Island – NNW 

Hawaii’s Mountains – Here’s a link to the live webcams on the summit of our tallest mountain Mauna Kea (~13,800 feet high) on the Big Island of Hawaii, and atop the Haleakala Crater (~10,023 feet) on Maui. These webcams are available during the daylight hours here in the islands, and at night whenever there’s a big moon shining down. Also, at night you will be able to see the stars, and the sunrise and sunset too…depending upon weather conditions.

 

https://weather.gc.ca/data/satellite/goes_gwdisk11_1070_100.jpg

Big Blue…click twice for largest version

 

https://cdn.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES18/ABI/SECTOR/tpw/13/GOES18-TPW-13-900x540.gif

Thunderstorms well south, a cold front far northwest

 

https://www.weather.gov/images/hfo/satellite/Hawaii_IR_loop.gif

Low clouds arriving along the windward sides…on the gusty trade winds / high level clouds moving by south of the state

 

https://radar.weather.gov/ridge/standard/HAWAII_loop.gif

https://radar.weather.gov/ridge/standard/PHKI_loop.gif

https://radar.weather.gov/ridge/standard/PHKM_loop.gif

  Showers locally…a few are heavy 

 

Please open this link to see details on the current Watches, Warnings and Advisories noted above

~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~

 

Glenn’s Thursday comments:  I’m here at home in upper Kula, Maui

533am Thursday morning, with partly cloudy skies here at my place, with the low temperature a chilly 47 degrees, along with the relative humidity 75%.

744am, showers falling along the windward sides of Maui, although it’s not reaching here in Kula, at least at my place…nice rainbow this morning.

1044am it’s windy here in Kula, with clouds and showers over towards the windward side of east Maui. I drove into Pukalani this morning and it was lightly raining.

354pm, mostly sunny and breezy here at my place, with still some low clouds along the windward side.

518pm, sunny with the winds having calmed way down…here in upper Kula…very warm day…almost feels like summer.

It’s pretty clear here on Maui just before 9pm, and at my place it’s cooled off to 53.6 degrees.

 

>>> Highest Temperature Thursday, March 26, 2026 – 108 degrees at Rio Grande Village, TX
>>> Lowest Temperature Thursday, March 26, 2026 – 5 degrees at Lake Metigoshe SP, ND

 

I’ve become aware that we may be having what’s called a Super El Nino this year. Records show that this phenomenon occurs typically every 10-15 years. The strongest El Nino’s we’ve had in the recent past were in 1982, 1997-98 and 2015-16.

My weather mentor, Dr. Daniel Swain, a climate  scientist with the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources, is being quoted as saying: “The vast majority of [the models], almost all, suggest at least a moderate strength El Niño by later this coming summer, and the majority really do go all the way into strong or extreme territory.”

Pulled from the State of the Climate report, here are some of the loudest echoes of the 2015 El Niño:

Record-smashing hurricane season in the central North Pacific

Sixteen tropical cyclones formed in or passed through the unusually warm central Pacific hurricane basin in 2015. That’s more than 3 times the 1981–2010 average of 4.7 cyclones per season, and 4 more than the previous record of 12, set in 1992 (also an El Niño year). In late August, the basin sustained three Category 4 hurricanes at the same time, which was a first, not just for the central Pacific basin, but for any basin during the modern record.

Here’s a satellite picture of what was going on in our Central Pacific during the summer of 2015

p.s. One more thing that Dr. Swain said yesterday, was that the extreme heat spell in the western United States over the past week or more, could easily become the new normal with time….yikes!


Hawaii’s Broad Brush Weather Overview…as of 826pm Thursday:  An increase of showers are expected over Oahu and parts of Maui county tonight and the Big Island Friday into Saturday, as a band of moisture moves in from the north. Our moderate northeasterly trade winds will focus the showers over windward and mountain areas, with brief downpours possible especially Friday into Saturday over the eastern half of the state.

A drier airmass will return over the western half of the state over the weekend, while showery conditions could persist over the windward areas of the eastern half of the state. Our current moderate to locally breezy northeasterly trade winds will strengthen this weekend and become breezy to locally strong by Saturday evening.

Short Term Update…as of 825pm Thursday:  A band of moisture over the island of Kauai currently will spread towards Oahu and parts of Maui County tonight, and the Big Island Friday into Saturday, which will bring an increase of passing showers especially over windward areas.

A strong inversion remains in place at around 6,000 feet as seen on the atmospheric sounding from Lihue and Hilo, which should limit the shower intensity at light to moderate showers. Although some brief downpours will be possible Friday into Saturday primarily over the windward areas of the eastern half of the state, as we see a slight increase of low level moisture.

Weather Details for the Hawaiian Islands…as of 331pm Thursday:  Satellite imagery show scattered clouds with embedded showers over windward areas and along the Kona coast of the Big Island, where a sea breeze has set up. Showers have been mainly light with just .01 to .10 of an inch of rainfall reported for the wetter locations. Leeward areas have been mostly sunny with a few clouds and light showers spilling over at times.

Latest high resolution model guidance continues to show a slight increase in showers as a shallow band of clouds and embedded showers moves over Kauai, then over Oahu and portions of Maui County this evening into early Friday morning. Elsewhere mostly clear skies overnight will lead to cooler overnight temperatures. Showers will remain mostly light with modest accumulations being confined mainly to windward and mountain areas, given the strong inversion heights around 6 to 7,000 feet.

Breezy northeasterly winds will hold through Friday, as a surface high remains northwest of state, and a low remains northeast. This pattern of mostly sunny days and cool nights will continue through the weekend. A weak front marked by another band of shallow clouds with embedded light showers is expected to arrive Friday night, and will push through the state into Saturday, with an area of moisture diminishing around windward Big Island through the day Saturday. Moisture availability will be less than tonight, so expecting modest precipitation totals and limited low level cloud cover with a few high clouds streaming overhead.

Temperatures will be notably cooler behind this front, making for a cooler than normal weekend. Breezy northeasterly trades will become locally windy Saturday into Sunday, as the aforementioned high strengthens and the low deepens and remains north of the state into early next week. By the middle of next week the low will have weakened and shifted far northeast of the state, allowing the high pressure system to shift north of the state. Trades will become more easterly and ease to more typical breezy speeds. Clouds and showers will continue to be mostly confide to windward and mountain areas with the best chance of rainfall, if any, during the overnight and early morning hours.

 

Here’s a near real-time Wind Profile of the Pacific Ocean – Zoom Earth – along with a Closer View of the islands / Vog map animation / 8-Day Precipitation model


https://www.weather.gov/images/hfo/graphics/npac.gif 

 

Hawaii’s Marine Environment…as of 303am Thursday:  A low pressure system northeast of the islands, and a high pressure system to the far northwest of Hawaii, will keep northeasterly trade winds in the forecast through the week. Wind speeds will briefly ease through Friday, and the Small Craft Advisory was cancelled. Fresh to strong trade winds bring a return of SCA conditions Saturday into the first half of next week, as high pressure builds north of the state.

A medium period swell will peak before gradually declining through the weekend. For east facing shores, short period wind wave energy from northeasterly trade winds will hold into the weekend. Strengthening northeasterly winds this weekend and a swath of gales associated with a low around one thousand miles northeast of the islands, will lead to the potential for high surf advisories along north and east facing shores Sunday into early next week. For south facing shores, small background energy pulses will keep surf heights above flat conditions into early next week.

 

Beach beautiful fit Asian bikini girl walking relaxing on Maui island beach vacation destination ,Hawaii, USA. Panoramic banner young people summer travel lifestyle. Stock-foto | Adobe Stock



World-wide Tropical Cyclone Activity

 

Atlantic Ocean:  There are no active tropical cyclones

Caribbean Sea:  There are no active tropical cyclones

Gulf of America:  There are no active tropical cyclones

 

Northeastern Pacific:  There are no active tropical cyclones

North Central Pacific: There are no active tropical cyclones

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

 

Northwest Pacific Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones

 

Southwest Pacific Ocean: 

Tropical Cyclone 27P (Narelle)…is located approximately 28 NM west-southwest of Learmonth, Australia

https://www.metoc.navy.mil/jtwc/products/27P_261800sair.jpg

 

North Indian Ocean:  There are no active tropical cyclones

South Indian Ocean:  There are no active tropical cyclones

Arabian Sea:  There are no active tropical cyclones

 

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

 

>>> Here’s a link to the Pacific Disaster Center’s (PDC Global) Weather Wall website

 

Interesting:  Human-Made Chemicals Found Throughout Ocean Environments

A new study analyzing more than 2,300 seawater samples from around the world has found that human-made chemicals — from plastic additives and industrial lubricants to pharmaceuticals and pesticides — are widespread in the marine environment, particularly in coastal and estuarine waters.

The international study, led by scientists from the University of California, Riverside and co-authored by researchers at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography, found that industrial chemicals, many of which are rarely monitored, were the most abundant and widespread, the researchers report in the journal Nature Geoscience. The study, published March 16, represents one of the most comprehensive chemical meta-analyses of the oceans to date, drawing on samples collected for many different research purposes.

“The human footprint is in everything,” said Lihini Aluwihare, a chemical oceanographer at Scripps and co-author of the study. “What determines whether you find it is whether you look for it in your data.”

Read more at: University of California San Diego

Waves crashing along the San Diego coast.