Hawaiian Islands weather details & Aloha paragraphs
Posted by Glenn
January 30-31 2008
Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures were recorded across the state of Hawaii Wednesday:
Lihue, Kauai – 75
Honolulu, Oahu – 78
Kaneohe, Oahu – 75
Kahului, Maui – 70
Hilo, Hawaii – 76
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii – 78
Temperatures ranged between these warmest and coolest spots near sea level at 4 a.m. Thursday morning:
Lihue, Kauai – 70F
Hilo, Hawaii – 60
Precipitation Totals – The following numbers represent the largest precipitation totals (inches) during the last 24 hours on each of the major islands, as of Thursday morning:
1.39 MOUNT WAIALEALE, KAUAI
0.81 OAHU FOREST NWR, OAHU
0.17 MOLOKAI
0.00 LANAI
0.01 KAHOOLAWE
5.04 WEST WAILUAIKI, MAUI
1.62 PAHOA, BIG ISLAND
Weather Chart – Here’s the latest (automatically updated) weather map. High pressure systems, located far to the north and NE of the islands, will keep moderate to locally strong and gusty trade winds blowing across our area through Friday…and beyond. Here’s a Weather Map Symbol page for clarification about what all those weather symbols mean on the map.
Satellite and Radar Images: To view the cloud conditions we have here in Hawaii, please use the following satellite links, starting off with the Infrared Satellite Image of the islands to see all the clouds around the state during the day and night. This next image is one that gives close images of the islands only during the daytime hours, and is referred to as a Close-up visible image. This next image shows a larger view of the Pacific…giving perspective to the wider ranging cloud patterns in the Pacific Ocean…out from the islands. To help you keep track of where any showers may be around the islands, here’s the latest animated radar image.
Hawaii’s Mountains – Here’s a link to the live webcam on the summit of near 14,000 foot Mauna Kea on the Big Island of Hawaii. The tallest peak on the island of Maui is the Haleakala Crater, which is near 10,000 feet in elevation. These two webcams are available during the daylight hours here in the islands…and when there’s a big moon rising just after sunset for an hour or two! Plus, during the nights and early mornings you will be able to see stars, and the sunrise too…depending upon cloud conditions.
Unusual snow atop the Haleakala Crater Wednesday (clickable)
Photo Credit: David Salemme
Light coating of sugar on Maui Wednesday (clickable)
photo credit: Rich Nezelek
Abundant moisture upstream of the islands, will keep off and on showers marching along the windward coasts and slopes. These incoming showery clouds, carried by the trade winds, will be quite numerous…some of which will be briefly quite heavy today, less so Thursday. These active showers will for the most part be restricted to the windward coasts and slopes. Although, with the trade winds blowing this strongly, there’s always the chance that a few of these windward biased showers will sneak over into the leeward sides…especially on the smaller islands.
It’s Wednesday evening as I begin updating this last paragraph of today’s narrative. Snow falls often during the winter months atop the summits on the Big Island of Hawaii. Although Maui is quite a different story, where years often go by without a dusting of the white stuff! Early in the hours on Tuesday, we had such an occurrence, which caused quite a stir in our local population. Unfortunately, the snow and icy conditions caused the road to the summit to be closed. The snow was visible from the coastal areas, so it made for such a pretty sight. During the morning, the clouds partially hid the white capping atop the Haleakala Crater, but during the afternoon, it was quite a sight to behold. I know that on the mainland, snow isn’t all that big a deal, but here in the tropics, snow on Maui is major headline news! There are nice pictures of the snow on the front page of the Maui News in Wednesday’s online edition. ~~~ The cold air aloft which triggered the snowfall, will begin to warm up soon. I really enjoyed this unusual treat, and will showed many of the pictures that people sent me via email yesterday…on my morning TV show. By the way, I should be able to share that weather program with you soon online, with a link on this website. I will talk more about that soon, when I can work out the details. ~~~ Here’s a picture of the snow atop the Mauna Kea summit on the Big Island. The webcam on the Haleakala Crater here on Maui, is still down. I’ll be back with your next new weather narrative very early Thursday morning. I hope everyone has a great Wednesday night, wherever you’re spending it! Aloha for now…Glenn.
Interesting: The proposed future of air travel is quite a marvel. Seems unfathomable compared to the pollutant, oil-guzzling airliners of today. With the endless and testing delays, the awkward security, and greenhouse gas-emitting beasts, it’s a wonder why solutions have not yet come to fruition.
It just so turns out, it is all happening rather quickly behind the scenes. One proposed aircraft that seems wildly impossible is actually on the slate for possible funding for testing. The concept hypersonic jet has been developed by Reaction Engine and it is aptly called the A2. It is a Mach-5 (3,400 mph) wicked aircraft capable of holding 300 passengers and produces, get this, ZERO emissions!
The project has been supplemented in part through funding from the European Union’s Long-Term Advanced Propulsion Concepts and Technologies project, otherwise known in short as (Lapcat). Lapcat is in search for an airliner that can cruise from Brussels to Sydney in less than 4 hours. The A2 can meet the expectations without leaving its footprint behind.
Interesting2: A leatherback turtle was tracked by satellite traveling 12,774 miles (20,558 kilometers) from Indonesia to Oregon, one of the longest recorded migrations of any vertebrate animal, scientists announced in a new report on sea turtle conservation.
Leatherback sea turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) are the largest of all living turtles and are widely distributed throughout the world’s oceans. They have been seen in the waters off Argentina, Tasmania, Alaska and Nova Scotia.
Adult leatherbacks periodically migrate from their temperate foraging grounds to breeding grounds in the tropics.
Scientists at the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) tracked one female nester, who was tagged on Jamursba-Medi beach in Papua, Indonesia, on her journey back to her foraging grounds off the coast of Oregon. She was tracked for 647 days covering a distance about equal to two round trips between New York and Los Angeles.
The turtle’s trip set a new record for sea turtles, and is among the longest documented migrations for any marine vertebrate.
The longest measured annual migration for any animal is the 40,000-mile (64,000-kilometer) journey between New Zealand and the North Pacific of the sooty shearwater (Puffinus griseus), a medium-sized seabird.
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