April 20-21 2008

Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures were recorded across the state of Hawaii Sunday: 

Lihue, Kauai – 78
Honolulu, Oahu – 85
Kaneohe, Oahu – 79
Kahului, Maui – 83
Hilo, Hawaii – 81
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii – 84

Air Temperatures ranged between these warmest and coolest spots near sea level at 5 p.m. Sunday evening:

Honolulu, Oahu – 80F
Molokai airport – 74   

Precipitation Totals – The following numbers represent the largest precipitation totals (inches) during the last 24 hours on each of the major islands, as of Sunday afternoon:

0.85 MOUNT WAIALEALE, KAUAI
1.14 MANOA LYON ARBORETUM, OAHU
0.06 MOLOKAI
0.00 LANAI
0.02 KAHOOLAWE
2.29 PUU KUKUI, MAUI
1.44 GLENWOOD, BIG ISLAND

Weather Chart – Here’s the latest (automatically updated) weather map showing a 1027 millibar high pressure system located to the NE of the islands, the source of our trade winds now. Those trades will remain moderately strong, with locally stronger and gusty conditions in those windiest areas through Tuesday.

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.


Aloha Paragraphs



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Nice waves breaking at our local beaches now
Photo credit:flickr.com

Locally gusty trade winds will continue, strongest during the afternoon hours as usual. The long range computer forecast models suggest that by this coming Wednesday, the trades will break down. This will be caused by a deep low pressure system moving by to our north. This low will have an associated cold front, which will approach the islands, but not make it all the way down into our area. During the second half of the week, this low and front will keep our ridge of high pressure down over the islands for several days. This in turn will bring back a period of light winds, which will likely will swing around to the southeast direction…carrying volcanic haze up over the Aloha state from the Big Island.

The trade winds will carry a few showers our way, although the leeward sides will remain generally sunny to partly cloudy during the days. The majority of these showers will fall along the windward coasts and slopes. There is good chance that afternoon clouds will gather over and around the mountains…as they did Saturday. The leeward slopes on the Big Island had a couple of thunderstorms, which may flare-up again this afternoon. Looking further ahead, during the second half of the new week, the light winds will cause a convective weather pattern, with most of the showers that fall, occurring during the afternoons in the upcountry interior areas.

It’s Sunday evening as I begin updating this last section of today’s narrative. Today was very near a repeat performance of Saturday, at least in terms of the weather. Many areas started off with clear skies, although clouds increased as the day wore on. The trade winds, as noted above, will still be on the breezy side, although not strong enough to trigger small craft wind advisories in our coastal waters now. You may have noticed in the paragraphs above, that our local trade winds will be faltering again by the middle of the new week. This is not great news, if you are one of those folks who have respiratory problems due to the volcanic haze that gathers over our islands. This last week we had just such conditions, and the light southeast winds may bring up that vog over us again starting Wednesday.

~~~ I got up very early Sunday morning, actually at 415am, the same time I do during the weekdays. I didn’t mind however, as it was for a good cause. I took the drive over to the Lahaina side, for a surfing excursion. I paddled out just as the warm sunshine was hitting the water, just to the south of Lahaina town here on Maui. There were only two guys out, and I knew one of them. Later more folks paddled out, but it never really got crowded. I must say that I got many thank you comments, for the surf page that I produce on this website. The tide got very low, and the water was clear enough, that I could see just how close the reef was just below my feet. My surfboard only hit the reef slightly once, when I got stuck inside, after riding a nice wave towards shore. I had some concern about my arms, and paddling, as I’ve been healing my shoulders from a skateboarding accident I had last year. I’m delighted to say that my upper arms were stiff, but they stretched out as I was out there paddling for waves, it is with relief that I now know I can go surfing more…like next weekend I hope!

~~~ I’m about ready to go down stairs from my Kula, Maui weather tower, to make dinner. I’ll make a nice red pasta sauce, and then just cook spaghetti each night during the week. I’ll sauteed three large portobello mushrooms, an onion, garlic, a couple of zucchini’s, along with a hot green pepper in extra virgin olive oil…then throw in a can of organic Muir Glen diced tomatoes. As I’ve mentioned many times here, I love having a ready made sauce, which I’ll add the sauce, and then grate some nice cheese over the plating each work night. I hope you have a great Sunday night! I’ll meet you here very early Monday morning with your next weather narrative from paradise. Aloha for now…Glenn.

In celebration of Earth Day weekend: If the Earth were only a few feet in diameter…floating a few feet above a field somewhere, people would come from everywhere to marvel at it. People would walk around it, marveling at its big pools of water, or little pools and the water flowing between the pools. People would marvel at the bumps on it, and the holes in it, and they would marvel at the very thin layer of gas surrounding it and the water suspended in the gas. The people would marvel at the creatures walking around the surface of the ball, and at the creatures in the water.

The people would declare it as sacred because it was the only one, and they would protect it so that it would not be hurt. The ball would be the greatest wonder known, and people would come to pray to it, to be healed, to gain knowledge, to know beauty and to wonder how it could be. People would love it, and defend it with their lives because they would somehow know that their lives, their own roundness, could be nothing without it. If the Earth were only a few feet in diameter.