Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures were recorded across the state of Hawaii Monday:
Lihue, Kauai – 77
Honolulu airport, Oahu – 82 (record high for the date: 87F degrees in 1983)
Kaneohe, Oahu – 78
Molokai airport – 79
Kahului airport, Maui 81
Kona airport 81
Hilo airport, Hawaii – 76
Air Temperatures ranged between these warmest and coolest spots near sea level – and on the highest mountain tops…as of 5pm Monday evening:
Barking Sands, Kauai – 79
Lihue, Kauai – 74
Haleakala Crater – 43 (near 10,000 feet on Maui)
Mauna Kea – 39 (over 13,500 feet on the Big Island)
Here are the 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands as of Monday evening:
0.51 Mount Waialeale, Kauai
0.04 Oahu Forest NWR, Oahu
0.00 Molokai
0.00 Lanai
0.00 Kahoolawe
0.06 Puu Kukui, Maui
0.28 Kawainui Stream, Big Island
Satellite and Radar Images: To view the cloud conditions we have here in Hawaii, please use the following satellite links, starting off with this Infrared Satellite Image of the islands to see all the clouds around during the day and night. This next image is one that gives close images of the islands during the daytime hours, and is referred to as a Close-up visible image. Finally, here's a Looping IR satellite image, making viewable the clouds around the islands 24 hours a day. 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 web cam on the summit of near 13,500 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. The Haleakala Crater webcam on Maui just came back online, after being on the blink for several weeks.
Tropical Cyclone activity in the eastern and central Pacific – Here’s the latest weather information coming out of the National Hurricane Center, covering the eastern north Pacific. You can find the latest tropical cyclone information for the central north Pacific (where Hawaii is located) by clicking on this link to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center. A satellite image, which shows the entire ocean area between Hawaii and the Mexican coast…can be found here. Here's a tropical cyclone tracking map for the eastern and central Pacific.
Aloha Paragraphs
A few passing showers…gradually easing winds into mid-week
As this weather map shows, we find a strong 1034 millibar high pressure system located far to the northeast of the Hawaiian Islands, with a second weaker 1024 millibar high pressure cell to our north-northwest Monday evening. The high pressure cell to our northeast has an elongated ridge of high pressure extending southwest from its center, in the area north and northwest of our islands. We see the bottom edge of the weak cold front that went through our islands this past weekend, just to the southeast of the Big Island. Our winds are expected to relax gradually through mid-week, then picking up again Thursday through Saturday on Kauai and Oahu…although remaining generally lighter over Maui County and the Big Island.
The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph), along with directions Monday evening:
35 Puu Opae, Kauai – NE
32 Kahuku Trng, Oahu – ESE
32 Molokai – NE
40 Kahoolawe – E
40 Kaupo Gap, Maui – NE
35 Lanai – NE
39 Pali 2, Big Island – NNE
We can use the following links to see what’s going on in our area of the north central Pacific Ocean Monday night. Looking at this NOAA satellite picture we find that high cloudiness located to the south and southeast of the state…as well as over parts of the Big Island too. We can use this looping satellite image to see low cloud bands being carried over the islands on the trade wind flow. At the same time, we find a considerable amount of thunderstorm activity far to our south and southwest over the ocean, with high cirrus clouds flying off the tops of those clouds over the Big Island at times. Checking out this looping radar image we see a few light showers falling locally over the ocean, especially over the Big Island and Maui's windward sides.
Sunset Commentary: This past weekend found a high pressure system team up with a weak cold front, in such a way that our local winds became inordinately strong and gusty as a result. These gusty winds prompted small craft wind advisories, wind advisories, and even gale warnings in some of the major channels. At the same time, several different swells, one from the north, and the other a wind generated swell from the northeast, caused very rough and choppy conditions…with a high surf advisory in force then too.
Wind speeds gusted all the way up to 50 mph in a few places around the state, including the small island of Lanai, and the Kaupo Gap area on east Maui. Besides these top numbers, winds were blowing generally in the 20-40 mph in many wind exposed areas. There were some lulls in the wind flow at times, although winds gusted right back unless there was blockage from the physical terrain features. These stronger than normal winds remained blustery today, with winds gusting up over 40 mph in those locally windiest areas.
The computer forecast models suggest that the winds will gradually ease up over the next couple of days, although not quit blowing by any means. The current small craft craft winds advisories will be pulled back to just those windiest areas around Maui County and the Big Island with time, or perhaps pulled altogether by Wednesday. The winds will increase again later Wednesday into the early part of the upcoming weekend on Kauai and Oahu, although perhaps remain generally lighter from about Wednesday onwards for Maui County and the Big Island.
The models go on to describe a pulling back of the winds later this weekend into early next week. This is all fairly common, with the winds strengthening and then relaxing again thereafter. All this up and down is caused by the interactions of high and low pressure systems. At any rate, lets move on to cold fronts, of which we again had one this past weekend. This frontal passage was relatively mild, although there were 1-2″ rainfall amounts at a few of those wettest locations…with one 3.00+ inch accumulation.
Looking ahead, there’s expected to be a another cold front approaching from the northwest, likely reaching Kauai and perhaps Oahu at some point between early Thursday into Friday. We’re expected to have a trough of low pressure, now to the east of Hawaii, migrating westward towards us at the same. This trough may be able to pick up enough moisture that we could see some showers edging in towards the Big Island or even parts of Maui later this week. Just how much of all this will actually happen is still a question, but as always time will tell. Even further ahead we should see drier weather by the weekend, until the next cold front reaches down in our direction from the mid-latitudes at some point next week.
Here in Kihei, Maui at around 530pm Monday evening, skies are clear to partly cloudy. It's clear to partly cloudy as I look out the windows of the Pacific Disaster Center. The trade winds are hanging in there yet, as they were over this past weekend. They were lighter today, although not by all that much. They should gradually relax later Tuesday into Wednesday, which is probably a good thing I would imagine. I know that the boats that go out to see the whales, and to go on snorkeling trips out to Molokini, will be delighted once the winds calm down to more normal levels. I'm about to take the drive back upcountry to Kula, and try and get home before dark, so I can get in a nice walk before dinner. I'll be back in the morning with your next new weather narrative, although I anticipate that our weather will be just fine through Wednesday at least. As I was noting up above, there are some changes ahead, but it looks like once everything is said and done, the rest of this week shouldn't be too much different than what we've seen the last couple of days, minus the strong and gusty winds that is. Kauai and Oahu may see some showers as a cold front approaches during the second half of this work week, but that isn't forecast to reach the rest of the state. We may see some showers on the Big Island later this week too, although it looks as if Maui County may miss both of those sources of potential showers, we'll see. Aloha for now…Glenn.
Interesting: Mexico is being battered its worst drought in seven decades, which has devastated farm life and is expected to continue into next year. The lack of rainfall has affected almost 70 percent of the country and northern states like Coahuila, San Luis Potosi, Sonora, Tamaulipas and Zacatecas have suffered the most acute water shortage.
Due to the drought and a cold snap at the start of the year, the government has cut its forecast for corn production two times in 2011. It now expects a harvest of 20 million tonnes compared to a previous estimate of 23 million. Crops that cover tens of thousands of acres have been lost this year and roughly 450,000 cattle have died in arid pastures.
Crucial dams, typically full at this time of year, are at 30 to 40 percent of capacity. "This is very serious," Ignacio Rivera, an official at the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, told Reuters. "Statistics on precipitation in the country show us that this year has been the driest in the last 70 years."
The country has total arable land of 22 million hectares (54.4 million acres) that can be tilled over two planting seasons while the national cattle herd last year was just over 32.6 million.
Mexico is one of the world's five top corn producers and the government expects output to recover to 25 million tonnes in 2012, aided by reorganization of the cultivated areas. Rivera said that of the 8.1 million hectares of farmland insured by the government against natural disaster, some 600,000 claims have been lodged to recover losses on 3.8 million hectares.
The Mexican government has so far set aside some 1.6 billion pesos ($113 million) to cover the losses. Forecasts do not signal any near-term relief, but rather more losses ahead as the winter season brings damaging frost.
"It's a troubling situation, and is more worrisome because the rainy season is over.
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