Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures (F) were recorded across the state of Hawaii Thursday:
84 Lihue, Kauai
87 Honolulu, Oahu
84 Molokai
86 Kahului, Maui
86 Kailua Kona
79 Hilo, Hawaii
Hawaii’s Mountains – Here’s a link to the live web cam on the summit of near 13,800 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.
Aloha Paragraphs
Tropical storm Wali approaches the state from the east-southeast
Our trade winds will continue, locally quite strong and gusty,
especially over the eastern islands…then lighter this weekend
into early next week
Some showers…primarily along our windward sides…before
locally heavy rains and muggy weather arrives Saturday
night into early next week - expect thunderstorms and
localized flooding
This looping satellite image shows the clouds in our area…
along with tropical storm Wali to the east-southeast
Small Craft Wind Advisory…in the windiest coasts and
channels around Maui County and the Big Island
Flash Flood Watch…state of Hawaii – 6pm Saturday
through 6pm Monday
We can use the following links to see what’s going on in our area of the north central Pacific Ocean. Here’s the latest NOAA satellite picture – the latest looping satellite image… and finally the latest looping radar image for the Hawaiian Islands.
~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~
Our local gusty trade winds will remain active through most of Saturday…then become lighter for several days. Here’s the latest weather map, showing the Hawaiian Islands, and the rest of the North Pacific Ocean, along with a real-time wind profile of the central Pacific…focused on the Hawaiian Islands. We have moderately strong high pressure located to the northeast of the state, along with a ridge running by to our north and northwest. Meanwhile, there’s a couple of low pressure systems, with cold fronts reaching southward…well to the northwest of our state. The forecast calls for the winds to remain active through the first half of the weekend, and then to become lighter as a large area of tropical moisture moves over the state from the southeast and east. This area will be associated with whatever that’s left of then (probably) retired tropical cyclone Wali.
Satellite imagery shows mostly lower level clouds in our general area. Looking at this larger looping satellite image, it shows low level clouds riding along in the trade wind flow from east to west. Here’s the looping radar, showing passing showers moving across our area, although generally over the offshore waters at the moment. These showers will fall locally, most actively along our windward sides. There are still showery clouds upstream of the islands, which will bring periodic showers our way, some of which will be locally generous during the nights. As we get into later Saturday, we’ll see increasing showers, first on the Big Island and Maui…and then spreading to the rest of the state Sunday through Monday.
The primary focus through the next several days…will be on the approach of this tropical cyclone towards the islands. This first tropical system to approach our Hawaiian Islands is currently at tropical storm strength, and won’t become a hurricane. As a matter of fact, the window for additional strengthening has now closed, as this storm will run over cooler sea surface temperatures, and even more importantly…increasing shearing winds aloft over the system from here on out. This is the one-two punch that takes the wind out of this storm’s sails, with steady weakening expected going forward. As a matter of fact, TS Wali will definitely have diminished into a remnant low pressure before this circulation moves over our area. However, this won’t keep very moist air from arriving over the state…bringing lots of rain with localized thunderstorms…and a definite threat of flooding in places. It will take until next Tuesday before this inclement weather situation moves to the west of Hawaii. I’ll be back many times during the day with more updates on all of the above. I hope you have a great Friday wherever you’re spending it, Aloha for now…Glenn.
World-wide tropical cyclone activity:
Atlantic Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones expected through the next 5 days
Here’s a satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean
Caribbean Sea: There are no active tropical cyclones expected through the next 5 days
Gulf of Mexico: There are no active tropical cyclones expected through the next 5 days
Here’s a satellite image of the Caribbean Sea…and the Gulf of Mexico.
Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)
North Eastern Pacific: There are no active tropical cyclones
Here’s a wide satellite image that covers the entire area between Mexico, out through the central Pacific…to the International Dateline.
Central Pacific Ocean: Tropical Storm 01C (Wali) remains active southeast of the Big Island…here’s the CPHC graphical track map of this first tropical cyclone of the 2014 hurricane season in the central Pacific.
Here’s a satellite image of this tropical storm.
Here’s a link to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC)
Northwest Pacific Ocean: Typhoon 09W (Rammasun) remains active moving across the South China Sea towards the China coast, here’s the JTWC graphical track map…along with a satellite image – animated image
Tropical Storm 10W (Matmo) is active in the northwest Pacific, here’s the JTWC graphical track map…along with a satellite image – animated image
South Pacific Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones
North and South Indian Oceans: There are no active tropical cyclones
Here’s a link to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)
Interesting: Rainwater discovered below the Earth’s fractured upper crust – When it rains, where does the water go? Well for one, a lot of rainwater will funnel its way off roads and impermeable surfaces and will make its way into storm sewers. Another path might be directly into rivers and lakes. Or, rainwater might get soaked up by soil where it will then infiltrate into the ground and replenish aquifers. But just how deep does this rainwater infiltrate?
According to new research, rainwater can penetrate below the Earth’s fractured upper crust – which is at least eight miles below the Earth’s surface!
It had been thought that surface water could not penetrate the ductile crust – where temperatures of more than 300°C and high pressures cause rocks to flex and flow rather than fracture – but researchers have now found fluids derived from rainwater at these levels.
The research could have major implications for our understanding of earthquakes and the generation of valuable mineral deposits.
Fluids in the Earth’s crust can weaken rocks and may help to initiate earthquakes along locked fault lines. They also concentrate valuable metals such as gold. The new findings suggest that rainwater may be responsible for controlling these important processes, even deep in the Earth.
Researchers from the University of Southampton, GNS Science (New Zealand), the University of Otago, and the Scottish Universities Environmental Research Center studied geothermal fluids and mineral veins from the Southern Alps of New Zealand, where the collision of two tectonic plates forces deeper layers of the earth closer to the surface.
The team looked into the origin of the fluids, how hot they were and to what extent they had reacted with rocks deep within the mountain belt.
“When fluids flow through the crust they leave behind deposits of minerals that contain a small amount of water trapped within them,” says University of Southampton researcher Catriona D. Menzies. “We have analyzed these waters and minerals to identify where the fluids deep in the crust came from … Although it has been suggested before, our data shows for the first time that rainwater does penetrate into rocks that are too deep and hot to fracture.”