Glenn James
Hawaii Weather Today
Founder and maintainer for 30 years


The latest update to this website was 355pm Thursday HST


Here are the latest 24-hour precipitation totals (inches) for each of the islands Thursday:

0.64  N Wailua Ditch, Kauai 
0.02  Punaluu Stream, Oahu
0.00  Molokai
0.00  Lanai
0.01  Keokea, Maui
0.13  Honaunau, Big Island


The following numbers represent the strongest wind gusts (mph) Thursday:

06  Port Allen, Kauai – NE
16  Oahu Forest NWR, Oahu – SE
18  Makapulapai, Molokai – E
18  Lanai 1,  Lanai – NE 
18  Maalaea Bay, Maui – NNW
23  Waikaloa 2, Big Island – ENE


Hawaii’s Mountains – Here’s a link to the live webcam on the summit of our tallest mountain Mauna Kea (~13,800 feet high) on the Big Island of Hawaii. Here’s the webcam for the (~10,023 feet high) Haleakala Crater on Maui. These webcams are available during the daylight hours here in the islands, and at night whenever there’s a big moon shining down. Also, at night you will be able to see the stars, and the sunrise and sunset too…depending upon weather conditions.

https://weather.gc.ca/data/satellite/goes_gwdisk11_1070_100.jpg

Big Blue…click twice for largest version

 

https://cdn.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES18/ABI/SECTOR/tpw/13/GOES18-TPW-13-900x540.gif

Thunderstorms far south 

 

https://cdn.star.nesdis.noaa.gov/GOES18/ABI/SECTOR/hi/GEOCOLOR/20261061710-20261070100-GOES18-ABI-HI-GEOCOLOR-600x600.gif

Multi-level clouds moving over some parts of the state…from the southwest

 

https://radar.weather.gov/ridge/standard/HAWAII_loop.gif

https://radar.weather.gov/ridge/standard/PHKI_loop.gif

https://radar.weather.gov/ridge/standard/PHKM_loop.gif

 

https://www.weather.gov/wwamap/png/hfo.png

Please open this link to see details on the current Watches, Warnings and Advisories noted above




~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~

 

Glenn’s Thursday comments:  I’m here in Vancouver, BC, Canada with my friend Bob, continuing on in my working vacation.

251am Hawaii time, it’s mostly clear to partly cloudy and calm, with a very chilly 33.5 degree low temperature

340pm Hawaii time, we’re back to Bend, Oregon from Vancouver, Canada, after a 9.5 hour drive.

We leave early this morning for the long drive back down to Bend, Oregon, where Bob lives. As a result I won’t be able to update this particular page of the website until I get to Bob’s and set up my laptop, which should be around the middle of this afternoon Hawaii time.

 

 

>>> Highest Temperature Thursday, April 16, 2026 – 102 degrees at Rio Grande Village, TX
>>> Lowest Temperature Thursday, April 16, 2026 –  9 degrees near Sun Valley, ID

 

Hawaii’s Broad Brush Weather Overview…as of Thursday morning:  A low pressure system lingers far to the north of Hawaii, supporting continued light and variable winds with chances for light to moderate showers today. A passing high pressure system will bring a brief return to easterly trade winds, with subtle drying trends tonight into Saturday. A series of low pressure systems passing just north of the state will produce light to moderate southeasterly winds Sunday into the middle of next week along with enhanced shower trends over the western islands on Monday and Tuesday.

Short Term Update…as of Thursday morning: Relatively benign weather with broken to overcast high clouds (especially across the eastern half of the state) continues. Winds today are transitioning back to a more easterly trade wind regime, but will remain light enough to support sea breeze development in sheltered areas. Kauai and Oahu may have slightly more shower activity versus the other islands, due to less overcast cloud cover and increased daytime heating. However, not anticipating much more than brief showers statewide.

Weather Details for the Hawaiian Islands…as of Thursday morning:  Looking into the satellite imagery we continue to see a divergent Sub Tropical Jet stream over the Hawaiian Islands, producing extensive high level cirrus and middle level alto-cumulus clouds. These cloudy skies will linger into early next week, with enough instability in the atmosphere to support brief chances for passing showers each day.

A high pressure system will pass by just north of the state later tonight into Saturday, briefly building in easterly trade winds across the region. Wind speeds will become strong enough to limit sea breezes to terrain sheltered leeward western slopes of each island. Subtle drying trends will develop during this time period, due to a slight increase in subsidence, downward vertical motions creating warming and drying effects, making the atmosphere a bit more stable.

However, the return to easterly trade winds will be fleeting and vanish quickly by Sunday, as a series of low pressure systems develop and break down the ridge north of the state. These passing lows appear to track far enough north to limit any heavy rainfall or flooding issues for the islands. A passing upper level trough may increase cloud and shower trends over the western islands of Niihau, Kauai, Oahu and Molokai from Monday through Tuesday.

A weak ridge will settle in over the eastern islands producing a fairly stable southeasterly wind pattern across the region. Any additional enhanced showers in this wind driven pattern will favor southeast slopes of Maui and the Big Island, with modest additional rainfall amounts. Elsewhere rainfall will be limited as the passing cloud bands will move more parallel to island mountains and the Big Island will produce a lee side rain shadow across much of the islands in Maui County.

The long range forecast guidance shows another round of returning easterly trade winds from next week Thursday into the following weekend. A building upper level ridge will keep shower activity to a minimum, with brief passing showers favoring the typical windward and mountain areas in the overnight to early morning hours.


Here’s a near real-time Wind Profile of the Pacific Ocean – along with a Closer View of the islands / Here’s the latest Weather Map / Looping Surface Precipitation…through the next 8-days

 

Marine Environmental Conditions:  Troughing to the west maintains gentle to locally moderate ESE winds through today. The strongest breezes will occur through the typical windy channels surrounding Maui and the Big Island. Building high pressure then supports moderate to locally fresh trades across the waters into the weekend.

A small, short-period, NW swell diminishes today, and remains subdued through the weekend. A small, medium-period, south swell will boost surf along south shores through Friday then lower over the weekend.

Surf along east shores remains below the seasonal average as trades remain light. However, increasing trades by week`s end should bring a slight bump to surf. Low pressure advancing south along the west coast of the US next week, sends a small, medium period NE swell toward the islands by mid-week.

 

the best beach oahu hawaii kawaaa beach


World-wide Tropical Cyclone Activity


>>> Here’s a link to the latest Pacific Disaster Center’s Weather Wall


>>> Atlantic Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones

>>> Caribbean Sea: There are no active tropical cyclones

>>> Gulf of Mexico: There are no active tropical cyclones

Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)

 

>>> Eastern Pacific: There are no active tropical cyclones

Here’s the link to the National Hurricane Center (NHC)

>>> Central Pacific: There are no active tropical cyclones

Here’s the link to the Central Pacific Hurricane Center (CPHC)

 

>>> Northwest Pacific Ocean:

Tropical Cyclone 04W (Sinlaku)…is located approximately 42 NM west-northwest Agrihan

https://www.metoc.navy.mil/jtwc/products/04W_161800sair.jpg

 

>>> Southwest Pacific Ocean: There are no active tropical cyclones

>>> North and South Indian Oceans / Arabian Sea: There are no active tropical cyclones



Interesting:  U of A Research Finds Improved Weather Forecasts Could Reduce Heat Deaths as Climate Warms

When extreme weather looms, timely and accurate warnings can give people the chance to adjust their plans, brace for danger and, in the most severe cases, make decisions that keep them safe. Does that mean improving weather forecasts could save more lives in a warming climate?

Derek Lemoine, Arizona Public Service professor of economics at the University of Arizona Eller College of Management, is part of a team that recently answered that question. The team’s research, published in the journal PNAS, suggests that improving short-term temperature forecasts in alignment with expert predictions of technological development could reduce U.S. mortality from heat by 18% to 25% in the year 2100.

“That could offset the extra heat-related deaths caused by climate change,” Lemoine said. “To be clear, we would still rather not experience the climate change – but at least we can find ways to potentially cancel out the increased mortality. While extreme cold is very deadly, people primarily use weather forecasts to avoid the heat. Considering climate change will increase the frequency of extreme heat, accurate weather forecasts will become more valuable.”

Read More: University of Arizona

Image: Depending on the range of technological improvements and climate change, researchers found that improving short-term temperature forecasts in alignment with expert predictions of technological development could reduce U.S. mortality from heat by 18% to 25% in the year 2100.

Plants are growing higher up mountains across the Himalayan region, new research shows.The study – led by the University of Exeter – examined the alpine “vegetation line” (the upper limit of continuous plants) in six regions across the Himalaya, from Ladakh, India in the far west of the mountain range, to the extreme east in Bhutan.From 1999 to 2022, the vegetation line shifted upwards in all six regions – ranging from 1.42 metres per year in Khumbu (home of Mount Everest) to 6.95 metres per year in Manthang, Nepal.With the climate warming, the team highlighted reduced snow depth as a key potential explanatory driver of these changes.Read More at: University of ExeterImage: Karakoram region – a westward view from 3,900 m a.s.l. on Khosar Gang mountain, located close to our westernmost study region, Ladakh