Glenn James
Hawaii Weather Today
Creator, Author, and Administrator for 30 years

 

The last update to this website was Saturday afternoon at 1250pm HST


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

5.17  Wailua, Kauai
0.31  Maunawili, Oahu
0.32  Puu Alii, Molokai
0.00  Lanai
0.32  Wailuku, Maui
2.20  Mountain View, Big Island


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

32  Lihue, Kauai – NE 
31  Kuaokala, Oahu – NNE
22  Molokai AP, Molokai – NE  
20  Lanai 1, Lanai – NE
24  Na Kula, Maui – SESNE


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 in the deeper tropics 

 

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High clouds arriving from the west-southwest…low clouds on the east-northeast trade winds 

 

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

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Showers locally…a few are heavy 

 

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




~~~ Hawaii Weather Narrative ~~~

 

Glenn’s Saturday comments:  I’m at home here in upper Kula, Maui, Hawaii

540am, we have a mix of high, middle and lower level clouds this morning, to start off our weekend. Here at my place the low temperature was 52 degrees, with the relative humidity 80%

1235pm, it’s cloudy and we’re having a very light shower at my place here in upper Kula…plus it looks very hazy.

 

>>> Highest Temperature Friday, May 9, 2026 – 109 degrees at Death Valley, CA
>>> Lowest Temperature Saturday, May 8, 2026 – 19 degrees at Mount Washington, NH

 

An interesting weather blog: Mauka Showers…A Recap of Hawaii’s 2025 – 2026 Wet Season

 

Hawaii’s Broad Brush Weather Overview…as of Saturday afternoon:  A weak surface trough will gradually move east to west across the islands through tonight, resulting in light winds and land/sea breeze showers. As this trough dissipates, trades will build in stronger through Monday, then will be on the increase further Tuesday onward.

Short Term Update…as of Saturday early afternoon: Showers were moving across most of Kauai and Niihau this morning, with mainly windward and mountain showers over Oahu and the islands of Maui County. Winds were mostly northeast at 5 to 15 mph, with occasional gusts of 20 to 25 mph in the typical windier locations. The inversion height at Hilo this morning was around 11,000 feet, and so we can expect showers well up the mountains this afternoon. Trade winds are still expected to continue building in today, and increase in strength tonight and Sunday.

Weather Details for the Hawaiian Islands…as of Saturday afternoon: Windward and mountain showers with some limited spillover to leeward areas are ongoing across the island chain. Satellite imagery indicates low clouds over or near the higher terrain on each island, along with high clouds streaming in from the southwest.

A weak surface trough near Maui will slowly drift westward, reaching Kauai Sunday. Trade winds will build in behind this trough from east to west through the weekend. Wind speeds will initially be light to moderate, but will become moderate to locally breezy into early next week. This trough will keep winds weak enough to allow for land/sea-breeze showers to occasionally develop over leeward areas, even as trade winds build in, bringing their typical windward and mountain focused showers.

While that is occurring at the surface, the flow aloft will change significantly. We will transition from weak troughing to our north this weekend, to the rapid development of a closed ridge to our northwest by Monday. This ridge will become elongated along an east-west axis, and remain with us all next week. Its presence will keep a surface ridge in place, allowing the trades to blow at least through the end of next week, and likely longer. This means mainly windward and mountain showers will hang around. There will be occasional fluctuations in available moisture throughout this period, and these will result in periods of enhanced shower activity from time to time.


https://www.weather.gov/images/hfo/graphics/npac.gif


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 / Vog Map

 

Marine Environmental Conditions…as of Saturday afternoon: A high pressure ridge will remain in place north of the islands, with gentle to fresh trade winds for most coastal waters, with periods of strong trade winds developing over the windier waters and channels near Maui and the Big Island from Sunday onward. A Small Craft Advisory may be needed for these windier waters by tonight or possibly by Sunday.

A declining medium period, northwest swell and associated surf heights along north and west facing shores will slowly fade through this weekend. Small north-northwest, medium period swell energy will keep surf heights on the small side through the first half of next week.

The current small south swell energy will fade through the weekend. Small pulses of background long period swell energy will keep surf heights along south facing shores above flat levels.

Surf along east facing shores will remain below normal this weekend, but will gradually increase next week as trade winds strengthen.

 

 

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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 05W (Hagupit) is located approximately 174 NM north of Angaur

https://www.metoc.navy.mil/jtwc/products/wp0526.gif

Here’s the link to the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC)

 

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

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



Interesting:  Industrial Waste Used to Develop Non-Toxic Wood Protection

The research originated in a project aimed at developing biofuels for ships but has since evolved into an environmentally friendly method for wood preservation. The path to new inventions is rarely straight or predictable, and this has certainly been the case for University of Copenhagen researchers Emil Thybring and Sune Tjalfe Thomsen. For several years, they have been working on a new, sustainable way to impregnate wood without harming the environment.

Today, the wood industry treats timber with heavy metals such as copper to extend its lifespan when used as a construction material. In the pressure treatment process, water with dissolved preservation chemicals is forced into the wood. The problem is that a large proportion of these substances is later leached out when the wood is exposed to rain, ultimately ending up in soil, marine environments and drinking water.

“The toxic substances we introduce into the wood using water to make it last longer also leave the wood with water and end up in nature. It is a serious problem, and one we aim to solve with our technology,” says Emil Thybring, associate professor at the Department of Geosciences and Natural Resource Management.

Read More at: University of Copenhagen

Hyperlignification gives the wood a brown coloration. The researchers are working on controlling the degree of coloration. At the same time, it avoids the acid-green color known from pressure-treated wood found in hardware stores, where heavy metals such as copper are used.