Subject: Central Pacific: Satellite Interpretation Message

From: LDM Weather <[email-masked]>
Date: Wed, 22 Sep 2010 00:29:15 -0500

079 
ATHW40 PHFO 220529
SIMHI 

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS SATELLITE INTERPRETATION MESSAGE
NWS CENTRAL PACIFIC HURRICANE CENTER HONOLULU HI
0530 UTC WED SEP 22 2010

BASED ON DATA THROUGH 0500 UTC SEPTEMBER 22 2010

THE PRESENCE OF A SURFACE HIGH FAR NORTH OF KAUAI CONTINUED TO 
MAINTAIN MODERATE TRADE WINDS ACROSS THE HAWAIIAN ISLAND CHAIN EARLY 
THIS EVENING. THE LOW-LEVEL TRADE WIND FLOW WAS TRANSPORTING BROKEN 
LOW CLOUDS AND SCATTERED SHOWERS ASSOCIATED WITH THE REMNANTS OF AN 
OLD FRONTAL SYSTEM ACROSS THE COASTAL WATERS ADJACENT TO WINDWARD 
MAUI AND THE BIG ISLAND. THERE WERE MAINLY SCATTERED LOW CLOUDS WITH 
EMBEDDED ISOLATED SHOWERS ELSEWHERE ACROSS THE HAWAIIAN COASTAL 
WATERS.  

THE GENERAL MOTION OF THE LOW CLOUDS ACROSS THE WINDWARD HAWAIIAN 
COASTAL WATERS WAS TOWARD THE WEST AT 15 TO 20 MPH. THE HIGHEST TOPS 
OF THE LOW CLOUDS OVER THE OCEAN SURROUNDING THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS 
WERE ESTIMATED TO BE ABOUT 8 THOUSAND FEET.

AS OF 700 PM HST TUESDAY...SCATTERED TO BROKEN LOW CLOUDS WERE OVER 
PARTS OF KAUAI...AS WELL AS ALONG THE KOOLAU AND WAIANAE MOUNTAIN 
RANGES ON OAHU. SCATTERED TO LOCALLY BROKEN LOW CLOUDS WERE OVER THE 
EASTERN TIP OF MOLOKAI AND THE EASTERN COAST OF LANAI. ON MAUI... 
BROKEN TO OVERCAST LOW CLOUDS WERE ABOVE THE LOWER SLOPES OF MOUNT 
HALEAKALA...THE WINDWARD SHORELINES...THE WESTERN MOUNTAINS AND THE 
SOUTH CENTRAL VALLEY. BROKEN TO LOCALLY OVERCAST LOW CLOUDS COVERED 
NEARLY ALL OF THE LOWER ELEVATIONS OF THE BIG ISLAND.

THE RAGGED BAND OF BROKEN CLOUDS AND SCATTERED SHOWERS ASSOCIATED 
WITH THE REMNANTS OF AN OLD FRONT WERE WITHIN 180 MILES SOUTH OF A 
LINE STARTING FROM A POINT 100 MILES NORTH OF KAHULUI ON MAUI TO 22N 
152W TO 25N 147W. THE WESTERN EDGE OF THIS BAND HAS SHIFTED WESTWARD 
AT ABOUT 15 MPH DURING THE PAST 6 HOURS. 

ACCORDING TO LOOPS OF WATER VAPOR IMAGERY AND SATELLITE DERIVED 
UPPER LEVEL WINDS...THE AXIS OF A RELATIVELY WEAK NORTHEAST TO 
SOUTHWEST ORIENTED UPPER TROPOSPHERIC TROUGH EXTENDED FROM A LOW 
ALOFT NEAR 28N 148W TO 23.5N 157W TO 24N 160W. THIS TROUGH ALOFT HAS 
MOVED SLOWLY WESTWARD DURING THE PAST 6 HOURS. THIS FEATURE HAS NOT 
BEEN HAVING A SIGNIFICANT IMPACT ON ISLAND WEATHER THIS EVENING. 
HOWEVER...THE TROUGH MAY BE SUPPORTING THE RAGGED BAND OF LOW CLOUDS 
AND SHOWERS ASSOCIATED WITH THE REMNANTS OF THE FORMER FRONT 
ADJACENT TO MAUI AND THE BIG ISLAND.

AN AREA OF DISORGANIZED SHOWERS AND SCATTERED THUNDERSTORMS WAS 
CENTERED ABOUT 530 MILES SOUTH SOUTHEAST OF HILO. 

AN AREA OF SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS CENTERED ABOUT 500 MILES SOUTH 
SOUTHEAST OF HILO. CONTINUES TO SHOW SIGNS OF IMPROVED ORGANIZATION. 
HOWEVER...THE COVERAGE AND INTENSITY OF THE THUNDERSTORMS WITHIN 
THIS AREA HAS BEEN FLUCTUATING DURING THE PAST 12 HOURS. GRADUAL 
DEVELOPMENT OF THIS FEATURE IS POSSIBLE AS IT CONTINUES MOVING 
SLOWLY TOWARD THE WEST NORTHWEST AT ABOUT 10 MPH DURING THE NEXT 
COUPLE OF DAYS. THE CLOUDS AND DEEP CONVECTION ASSOCIATED WITH THIS 
SYSTEM WERE IN THE AREA FROM 10N TO 15N BETWEEN 150W AND 155W. THE 
HIGHEST TOPS OF THE CUMULONIMBUS CLOUDS ASSOCIATED WITH THIS FEATURE 
WERE ESTIMATED TO BE ABOUT 43 THOUSAND FEET.

ELSEWHERE IN THE DEEP TROPICS FAR SOUTH OF THE HAWAIIAN ISLANDS...A 
SURFACE TROUGH EXTENDED FROM NEAR 10.5N 140W TO 10N 145W TO 11N 
149.5W. ISOLATED MODERATE THUNDERSTORMS WERE WITHIN 80 MILES SOUTH 
OF THIS TROUGH. THE INTERTROPICAL CONVERGENCE ZONE...OR ITCZ... 
EXTENDED FROM NEAR 10.5N 157.5W TO 09N 173W TO 07N 180W. SCATTERED 
MODERATE TO LOCALLY STRONG THUNDERSTORMS WERE WITHIN 150 MILES OF 
THE ITCZ WEST OF 170W...WHILE ISOLATED THUNDERSTORMS WERE WITHIN 80 
MILES OF THE ITCZ EAST OF 170W. THE HIGHEST TOPS OF THE CUMULONIMBUS 
CLOUDS ASSOCIATED WITH THE ITCZ WERE ESTIMATED TO BE ABOUT 52 
THOUSAND FEET.

$$

HOUSTON

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