Sunday, December 26, 2010

Hawaiian Islands Satellite Interpretation Message

Hawaiian Islands Satellite Interpretation Message
Sun, 26 Dec 2010 23:20:00 -0600

Based on data through 0430 UTC December 27 2010.

Water vapor imagery late this afternoon shows an upper level trough 880 miles west northwest of Kauai. The points of the trough axis are as follows, 30°N 169°W to 24°N 175°W to 15°N 179°W. The axis extends further to the north to an upper level low at 37°N 163°W. Multilayered clouds occupy the area between the trough and Kauai and from 30°N to 20°N. There are pockets of embedded thunderstorms, one of which is located close to Kauai. The 630 pm HST satellite imagery shows a line of cumulonimbus clouds /cb/, and or thunderstorms, within 60 nm either side of a line from 25°N 160°W to 19°N 167°W, or 70 miles northwest of Kauai. The tops of the cb's are around 41000 feet. Southwest winds east of the trough have an area of maximum wind speed positioned to the northwest of Kauai. To the west of the upper trough, is the nose of a strong jet stream of 135 mph. Altogether, the upper trough is advancing eastward at about 12 mph, and appears to be deepening south of 20°N.

A large pool of tropical moisture, lying in wait between 17°N and 08°N from 162°W to 175°W, or 650 miles southwest of Kauai, may play a role later on on the island's weather should the upper level trough deepens further.

Also, the satellite imagery at sunset, shows the islands west of Molokai being influenced by various type of clouds from cirrus to scattered cumulus clouds, including an isolated cb's with tops to 35000 feet. Patches of cirrus clouds are passing through the rest of the state with only a small handful of low clouds here and there. Weather radar is detecting little shower activity from Oahu eastward. However, more cirrus clouds are heading in our direction from the south. So, look for increasing high clouds this evening.

Another item worth mentioning, a dry air mass has settled over Midway atoll and parts of the northwest Hawaiian islands refuge, or the area west of the upper level trough. Patchy stable stratocumulus clouds are noted here.

The low level wind flow over the smaller of the main Hawaiian islands is out of the south at 10 to 20 mph, while the Big Island is experiencing southeast of 10 to 15 mph.

Low cloud coverage is minimal within 160 miles northeast of Maui and the Big Island. Scattered to broken low clouds are closing in on the Big Island from the south and southeast however.

Hawaii Infrared Satellite image for 0430 UTC
Central Pacific Infrared Satellite image for 0500 UTC


LAU


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