Air Temperatures – The following maximum temperatures (F) were recorded across the state of Hawaii Monday…along with the minimums Monday:
80 – 72 Lihue, Kauai
81 – 72 Honolulu, Oahu
84 – 62 Molokai AP
87 – 63 Kahului AP, Maui
83 – 74 Kailua Kona
83 – 67 Hilo AP, Hawaii
Here are the latest 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands, as of Monday evening:
4.79 Mount Waialeale, Kauai
3.47 Poamoho RG 1, Oahu
0.01 Molokai
0.00 Lanai
0.00 Kahoolawe
0.21 West Wailuaiki, Maui
1.25 Saddle Quarry, Big Island
The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph)…as of Monday evening:
21 Port Allen, Kauai – SE
18 Kii, Oahu – SE
24 Molokai – E
14 Lanai – SW
30 Kahaloowe – NE
16 Kaupo Gap, Maui – SE
24 South Point, Big Island – NNE
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
Pacific storm track remains well north of the islands…
with a cold front approaching to the northwest
Scattered low clouds over the islands, higher level clouds
moving offshore to the east…more northwest and south
Clear to mostly cloudy skies…higher clouds moving away
Showers falling locally around the state…especially Oahu
looping radar image
NWS Special Weather Statement:
Gusty north to northeast winds expected late tonight
through Thursday / Locally strong winds will be
possible during this time. If you have loose outdoor
objects…you may want to consider securing them
before the winds increase
~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~
Winds are easing up…coming in from the southeast and south now. Here’s the latest weather map, showing the Hawaiian Islands, and the rest of the North Pacific Ocean. We find a near 1029 millibar high pressure system to the northeast of Hawaii, moving eastward…with its trailing ridge extending well to the north of the islands. This area of high pressure will keep gusty winds in force for a little while longer. The trades have been tapering off today, veering south to southeast into Tuesday. This in turn is bringing a brief period of volcanic haze over the state. The forecast continues to show the next cold front arriving later Tuesday into Wednesday. As this front moves through, it will be followed by another surge of chilly north to northeasterly winds for several days. Trade winds will then return, and prevail through the weekend.
There will be some showers locally…ahead of the cold front arriving later Tuesday into Wednesday. The leeward sides will continue to see generally fine weather through the night into Tuesday morning. An area of lower level clouds is moving through the islands, which will continue to bring some passing windward showers…especially along the spine of the Koolau Mountains on Oahu. Satellite imagery is now showing the next cold front approaching the state now…with an increase in associated showers later Tuesday into Wednesday. We’ll find cool conditions arriving in the wake of this frontal passage. The windward sides will see off and on passing showers continuing into the weekend, with another cold front potentially approaching the state early next week.
Marine environment details: Easterly trade winds will continue to decrease and veer to the southeast tonight, and the north-northwest swell will continue to decline into Tuesday. Winds will become variable Tuesday ahead of an approaching front, with a rapid increase in northerly winds Tuesday night and Wednesday…behind the front. Strong and gusty northeast winds will continue on Thursday. An advisory will likely be posted for all waters in the wake of the front, with the coverage trimmed back to the typically windy waters around the Big Island and Maui by Friday into the weekend.
The next significant swell will be from the parent low associated with the front that will affect the islands. The swell will be out of the north, and will be mixed with large wind waves produced by expected strong northerly winds. This could produce advisory level surf Wednesday night and Thursday across exposed eastern shorelines and some surges in north facing harbors. The north swell may build further Friday into the weekend, with a moderate northwest swell arriving during the weekend as well. This would likely result in advisory level surf expanding from exposed east facing shores to north shores. In addition…small south swells are expected to continue through this week.
Here’s a wind profile…of the offshore waters around the islands – with a closer view
Here’s the Hawaiian Islands Sulfate Aerosol…animated graphic – showing vog forecast
Here in Maui County...It was partly cloudy early this Monday morning, depending upon location. Here in upcountry Kula, at my place, it was partly cloudy with the air temperature 49.8F degrees well before sunrise. The temperature at near the same time was 63 degrees down in Kahului under partly cloudy skies, 70 out in Hana, 70 at Maalaea Bay, and 45 atop the Haleakala summit. Meanwhile, Kahoolawe was 66 degrees, 61 at Lanai City, with 66 at the Molokai airport…with cloudy skies. / Now at 810am, the skies have cleared rather quickly, with clear to partly cloudy skies, and a bit of sugar cane smoke down in the central valley.
– Later afternoon, under clear to cloudy skies, with sunshine down near the beaches…and clouds upcountry. Speaking of upcountry, I’m here in Kula, looking down into the central valley, and its become very voggy all the sudden! Just as I expected, as the winds have veered from the trade wind direction…around to southeast. This morning, as I often do during the work week, after finishing my morning work session, I headed up the mountain for a couple hour break in my day. As you may recall my saying, I was down in Kihei late last week, and while down there, I stopped into the Aloha Skateboard shop. Those folks were so nice, and put new bearings in my wheels, so I was looking forward to testing my board out today. I definitely noticed a difference, a good change…as my ride was much smoother than it had been. While I was at that shop I also bought a pair of wrist guards. My Mom is always saying to me…”Glenn you don’t want to hurt your hands in a fall, as you depend upon your hands for typing all these words.” So Mom, I did get those wrist guards, and thanks for always reminding me!
– Early evening, with thick volcanic haze, along with variable clouds. It’s been nice without the vog lately, and fortunately this will be a brief period of these volcanic emissions. This of course will be due to the strong and gusty northerly winds, which will fill into the state…in the wake of the upcoming cold front.
World-wide tropical cyclone activity:
>>> Atlantic Ocean: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2015 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2016. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued if conditions warrant. Here’s the 2015 hurricane season summary
Here’s a satellite image of the Atlantic Ocean
>>> Caribbean Sea: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2015 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2016. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued if conditions warrant.
>>> Gulf of Mexico: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2015 Atlantic hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on June 1, 2016. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued if conditions warrant.
Here’s a satellite image of the Caribbean Sea…and the Gulf of Mexico
Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)
>>> Eastern Pacific: The last regularly scheduled Tropical Weather Outlook of the 2015 North Pacific hurricane season…has occurred. Routine issuance of the Tropical Weather Outlook will resume on May 15, 2016. During the off-season, Special Tropical Weather Outlooks will be issued if conditions warrant. Here’s the 2015 hurricane season summary
Here’s a wide satellite image that covers the entire area between Mexico, out through the central Pacific…to the International Dateline.
Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)
>>> Central Pacific: The central north Pacific hurricane season has officially ended. Routine issuance of the tropical weather outlook will resume on June 1, 2016. During the off-season, special tropical weather outlooks will be issued if conditions warrant. Here’s the 2015 hurricane season summary
Here’s a link to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC)
>>> South Pacific Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones
>>> North and South Indian Oceans / Arabian Sea: There are no active tropical cyclones
Here’s a link to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)
Interesting: This Florida Jail Doubles as an Animal Sanctuary – Usually the word “jail” brings some harsh imagery to mind: barbed wire fences, orange jumpsuits and tall concrete walls. That’s not the case in the Key West, though. Ask a local about the jail, and the most likely image is Mo, an adorable and charismatic sloth who’s become the unofficial mascot of the Stock Island Detention Center, which doubles as a sanctuary for unwanted animals.
“All the animals here are either abandoned, abused, confiscated or donated,” Jeanne Selander, the caretaker for the facility, explains to Care2. “The animals are here because they need a forever home and we give them one.”
Among the facility’s residents are: Boots, a small alligator whose original owner didn’t want to pay for his vet bills after he ate the silicone lining in his tank; Fat Albert, an African spurred tortoise who escaped his owners’ home and was found wandering around town; and Bam Bam, an abandoned miniature horse. In total, the prison holds 150 animals and up to 596 prisoners. Five of the latter get to work with the animals as volunteers.
“The prisoners are screened very carefully,” says Selander. “The qualifications include non violent, no child offenders of any kind, and obviously no animal abusers. They’re the cream of the crop, really, but the first thing is that they need to want to work in the farm. You need to want to help and like animals.”
Selander says most prisoners who work at the farm do it seven days a week despite not being required. It may take them a day or sometimes weeks for them to feel completely comfortable feeding or cleaning up some of the animal areas — specially the 14 foot long python enclosure— but for the most part they learn quickly and get used to it.
The animal farm was first established in 1994. Since the detention center is built on stilts 11 feet off the ground, part of the area underneath it was originally not used for anything. When a group of ducks kept getting hit by cars at a nearby golf course, the sheriff’s office used the classic Floridian structure to solve the very Floridian problem and re-homed the ducks there. Soon nearby animal rescue organizations heard of what was being done and the animal farm expanded into the green areas of the facility.
No taxpayer money is dedicated to the farm, it is completely funded by donations and fundraisers, and animals come in from all over the country from rescue organizations in desperate need of help after rescuing animals from misguided owners in over their heads.
Selander, a marine biologist who was working as assistant curator at the Key West Aquarium, came in 10 years ago when the veterinarian who had patients both at the aquarium and the animal farm encouraged her to check the place out. Seeing it as “a real diamond in the rough,” she stepped up to the job despite never having stepped foot in a prison before and began her development work putting up informational signs for each of the animals and creating an outreach program to spread the word about the farm to the community.
Today the animal farm is open to the public on the second and fourth Sunday of each month from 1 to 3 p.m. The last open house, according to Selander, brought in 330 visitors, most of them kids, who get to see the animals up close — but only if the animals want it too.
“I never force the animals to have attention they don’t want,” she says. “Some of them love attention and will come up to people, others don’t and no one is allowed close to them.”
One of the reasons why some of the animals are so people friendly is that they all have been domesticated — also why, Selander says, the animals are kept at the farm instead of being released into the wild.
“They’ve been raised by people. All the animals have been domesticated or lived in captivity their whole lives so they’re non-releasable.”
To avoid that from happening to a new generation of animals, part of Selander’s mission with the farm is to tell visiting kids that these wild animals do not make good pets, no matter how cute they are.
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