Glenn James
Hawaii Weather Today
Creator, Author, and Administrator for 30 years

 

The latest update to this website was at 901am Monday morning HST


Here are the latest 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands Monday morning:

1.25  Kilohana, Kauai
0.27  Pupukea Rd, Oahu
0.88  Puu Alii, Molokai
0.00  Lanai
2.26  Puu Kukui, Maui
3.33  Kawainui Stream Big Island


The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph) Monday morning:

21  Nawiliwili, Kauai – NE
35  Oahu Forest NWR, Oahu – NE
30  Molokai AP, Molokai – NE 
35  Lanai 1, Lanai – NE
32  Kealaloloa Rg, Maui – NE
39  Waikoloa Rd, Big Island – NE


Hawaii’s Mountains – Here’s a link to the live webcam on the summit of our tallest mountain Mauna Kea (~13,800 feet high) on the Big Island of Hawaii. Here’s the webcam for the (~10,023 feet high) Haleakala Crater 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

Cold front far northwest…thunderstorms in the deeper tropics to our south 

 

https://cdn.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES18/ABI/SECTOR/hi/14/20261450630-20261451420-GOES18-ABI-HI-14-600x600.gif

Clear to variably cloudy…high clouds south, clipping the island locally 

 

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

Localized showers mostly windward 

 

https://www.weather.gov/wwamap/png/hfo.png

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




~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~

 

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

It’s mostly clear here in Maui County, along with the usual low clouds along the windward sides, with calm winds at my place, and with a chilly low of 50.5 degrees and the relative humidity is 74%


>>> Highest Temperature Sunday, May 24, 2026 – 106 degrees at Death Valley, CA
>>> Lowest Temperature Monday, May 25, 2026 – 24 degrees near Bynum, MT

 

NOAA predicts active Pacific hurricane season as El Niño returns

NOAA is predicting a 70 percent chance of above-normal activity in both the eastern and central Pacific basins this year. In the eastern Pacific, forecasters expect between 15 and 22 named storms, including up to 14 hurricanes, and as many as nine major hurricanes. In the central Pacific — the region that includes Hawaii — NOAA predicts between five and 13 tropical cyclones this season.

NOAA Administrator Dr. Neil Jacobs said El Niño is one of the biggest factors behind this year’s forecast.

“In the central and eastern Pacific, the El Niño reduces the vertical wind shear, essentially the opposite of the Atlantic, which is why we’re expecting an above-average season, in addition to the warmer sea surface temperatures,” Jacobs said.

Lower wind shear allows storms to organize and strengthen more easily over the Pacific Ocean.

Compared to last year’s outlook — when the central Pacific forecast called for just one to four storms and the eastern Pacific expected 12 to 18 named storms — this year’s projections point to a more active season overall.

 

Hawaii’s Broad Brush Weather Overview…as of Monday morning: A broad ridge north of the Hawaiian Islands will dominate our weather into Saturday, with moderate to locally strong easterly trade winds and only subtle day to day wind speed changes. A weak and narrow upper level trough will remain over our area, keeping periods of trade wind showers in the forecast.

Weather Details for the Hawaiian Islands…as of Monday morning:  A combination of satellite and radar imagery shows a fairly wet pattern for this time of year, with periods of shower bands passing through the islands favoring windward mountain areas. The upper air balloon sounding taken at Hilo shows subsidence temperature inversion heights around 6,000 feet elevation. This inversion height supports the passing shower regime across Hawaii.

Not much change in the short and mid range forecast guidance as we will see moderate to breezy trades through much of this week. Trade wind speeds begin to weaken this coming weekend, as the ridge north of the islands breaks down, due to a passing cold front and an upper level low moving into the islands area from the west.

Expect a hybrid light to moderate trade wind and daytime sea breeze wind pattern over all islands by Saturday afternoon. Clouds and a few showers will develop over island mountains and interior sections each afternoon into the evening time period on Saturday and Sunday. Wetter and more unstable trends possibly by early next week.

Looking into the extended range model solutions there are some early hints at an unstable cloud band, the remnants of a dissipated East Pacific front, moving through the islands next weekend. Additional lift for these unstable clouds along this band will be supported by a deepening upper level low drifting over the islands. The combination of low level instability from the remnant frontal band and upper level forcing from the low aloft will likely increase cloud cover and shower activity statewide, with possible thunderstorms at some point early next week.

The surface ridge weakens as the upper low appears strong enough to deepen a surface trough directly over the islands, creating a light wind pattern. Stay tuned as these wet weather impacts for the extended forecast period will likely evolve as the forecast time period grows shorter.


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


Here’s a near real-time Wind Profile of the Pacific Ocean – along with a Closer View of the islands / Here’s the latest Weather Map / Looping Surface Precipitation…through the next 8-days / Vog Map

 

Marine Environmental Conditions…as of Monday morning: Fresh to strong easterly trades will persist through the first half of the week as the ridge remains north of the state. This will allow the Small Craft Advisory to continue, particularly across exposed waters and channels. Expect a gradual downward trend through the second half of the week and next weekend, due to a weakness forming in the ridge as a front passes by far to the north.

Surf along south facing shores will gradually lower as a medium-period south swell lingers. A fresh long-period south swell will arrive Tuesday, then build to near the seasonal average through mid-week before slowly easing Thursday. A more significant long-period south-southwest swell is expected by next weekend, due to a storm-force low that passed southeast of New Zealand over the weekend.

Satellite data showed a large fetch of 40 to 50 knot winds generating seas of 35 to just over 40 feet, focused toward Hawaii. Expect surf to begin building locally Friday with 20+ second forerunners, then peak above/around the advisory level over the weekend. For the long range, expect a similar trend to persist through the first week of June, as the active pattern persists within our swell window down around New Zealand.

Surf along exposed north and west facing shores will lower  as a small north-northwest swell lingers, but will trend up once again on Tuesday, as the late season North Pacific activity continues. Although the bulk of the energy from this next swell will be focused northeast of the islands, expect long-period forerunners to arrive Tuesday, with this source gradually building down the island chain thereafter. Above-average surf is likely by daybreak Wednesday, near the peak before lowering Thursday.

Surf along east facing shores will remain rough through mid-week, then gradually lower later in the week as the trades ease.

 

Oahu. Hawaii. Beach. Trees. North shore. Mountains. Ocean. Sunrise. Sunset.


World-wide Tropical Cyclone Activity


>>> Here’s a link to the latest Pacific Disaster Center’s Weather Wall


>>> Atlantic Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones

Tropical cyclone formation is not expected during the next 7 days.

>>> Caribbean Sea: There are no active tropical cyclones

Tropical cyclone formation is not expected during the next 7 days.

>>> Gulf of America: There are no active tropical cyclones

Tropical cyclone formation is not expected during the next 7 days.

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

 

>>> Eastern Pacific: There are no active tropical cyclones

Tropical cyclone formation is not expected during the next 7 days.

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

 

>>> Central Pacific: There are no active tropical cyclones

Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will begin on June 1, 2026.

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

 

>>> Northwest Pacific Ocean:  There are no active tropical cyclone

>>> Southwest Pacific Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones

>>> North and South Indian Oceans / Arabian Sea: There are no active tropical cyclones

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



Interesting:  Ocean Acidification is Ruining Reef Fishes’ Social Lives

A new study from Adelaide University has found that when ocean acidification makes reef habitat less complex, the fish living there gather in smaller shoals that offer less social protection.

“Watch a reef long enough and you realize that fish are almost never alone. They move in groups, feed in groups, and react to danger as a group,” said lead author Dr Angus Mitchell, from Adelaide University.

“For small reef fish, being part of a shoal is a survival strategy – more eyes spot predators sooner, more bodies mean any one fish is less likely to be the unlucky one.”

Mitchell’s study found that the size of a fish shoal affects their collective and individual behavior.

Read more at: Adelaide University