IASA #4-30

 

(L-R) Kanoa, Toni, & Jaime watch image from drone during search for missing water tank.

Lowell Still Moving Westward

The forecast track for Category 4 Hurricane Lowell now shows it passing a slight bit farther away from Niʻihau than it was shown yesterday. It is also quite a bit farther away than Lālā was from Hawaiʻi Island. At 8 this morning Lowell had maximum sustained winds of about 150 mph & was moving westerly at about 8 mph. It is about 575 miles south-southwesterly of Honolulu & about 610 miles southerly of Lihue. It is expected to make a sharp turn to the north on Sunday.

Hurricane Karina entered the Central Pacific region just before 5 am this morning. It is about 955 miles easterly of Hilo & moving westerly at about 10 mph. Maximum sustained winds are now about 90 mph. Although Karina is expected to gradually weaken over the next 48 hours, it is still expected to maintain hurricane-force winds.

In the Eastern Pacific region, Hurricane Marie is about 550 miles west-southwesterly of the southern tip of Baja California & moving about 9 mph west-northwesterly away from land; it is extremely unlikely it will make it close to southern California. Maximum sustained winds are about 100 mph but are expected to decrease starting tomorrow.

Lowell Now Past Moku o Keawe

Hurricane Lowell is now 450 miles south-southwesterly of Hilo & 605 miles south-southeasterly of Lihue; it passed by Hawaiʻi Island some time last night. The forecast shows Lowell turning slightly more easterly as it heads north, bringing its path closer to Niʻihau & Kauaʻi early next week. Lowell currently has maximum sustained winds speeds of about 140 mph & while speeds are expected to decrease, it will still remain in the major hurricane wind category as it heads northerly.  

Hurricane Karina will likely enter the Central Pacific region some time on Friday but it is already affecting our weather. It is about 1195 miles easterly of Hilo & moving west-northwesterly at about 12 mph; it is beginning to block the tradewinds that keep us cooler. Karina is expected to maintain its west-northwesterly movement parallel to the islands as it continues as a major hurricane for a few more days.

Hurricane Marie is apparently creating anxiety in southern California. It is about 410 miles southwesterly of the southern tip of Baja California or about 800 miles from southern California. It is moving at about 10 mph in a west-northwesterly direction; so not really going inland towards southern California. The warning cone maps also show it moving away from California & also losing strength. I think people in Hawaiʻi would be happy to see a hurricane moving away from us & losing strength rather than becoming anxious about it. But then, we have had more experience with waiting it out to see what might happen. 

Night Market Bon Odori

A bon odori was held this evening as part of the Kohala Night Market; the Kohala Jodo Mission was the main organizer of the bon odori part of the market. Joy had asked Fran & me to staff the table for the bon odori, handing out water & hachimaki to the dancers. Since I had a meeting for the NKCDP Access group to attend, I showed up to help at around 5:15; it was a short meeting so I was able to get there about a half hour earlier than expected. 

We walked around to see what the vendors had during the night market. Sandra, the leader of the Kohala ʻOno Food Hui, was there with her business Kapanaia Farms. She had a bunch of baked goods; I opted for the Peanut Butter Bites; they are small & easier for me to enforce portion control on myself! Fran treated me to a dinner of chicken hekka.

Chicken hekka.

Temptation!

 

Later, we took all the equipment back to the Kohala Jodo Mission. There was a meal provided by the KJM for the dancers & helpers. 

I started out the day by meeting hoa hānau Leilani at Kohala Rainbow Cafe at 11 for lunch. Fran was supposed to join us but her 2:30 meeting got changed to 9 so she was unable to join us. 

I noticed a feral hen with 6 new chicks wandering around in Jessie's backyard today. But later I heard squawking & saw a hen running around all fluffed out & charging at Moʻo from the other side of the fence. I went out but did not find any downy little bodies so am assuming the chicks were under cover some place & mama hen was trying to drive Moʻo away. I will have to watch for them tomorrow.  

When I went to prepare Moʻo's food this evening, I found a surprise in the laundry tub in the Cat Genie room. It was ʻAlani! He was sleeping in the laundry tub!

He was annoyed with me.

ʻŌhuna, on the other hand, did not surprise me. The security cameras caught her out in the yard on several occasions & for a relatively long period of time.

Looks like 2 or 3 forays starting at about 2:45 am.

Wandering around while I was at the Night Market.

In an earlier post I noted how Lingopie gives you the English translation along with the Hanzi & Pinyin. I should have provided more information about the scene that I used to illustrate what Lingopie provides. SPOILER ALERT - The guy facing the camera is the owner of the house where this gathering is taking place. He is saying, "You all wore your clothes wrong" because he has noticed that the robes of the others have the right side over the left side. As in Japanese culture, the Chinese wear the robes with the left side over the right side; EXCEPT when you are dressing a deceased person. Yes, all the other people in the room are dead! (FYI Helpful hint so you get it right if you are wearing Chinese or Japanese clothing with this type of set up; if you can stick your right hand inside your robe like Napoleon did, then you have it on correctly. And not like you are dead. You're welcome!)

 

Today's lesson on Duolingo was Hanzi practice. On the surface, this looks easy since you are basically tracing where the strokes go. But the tough part is the stroke order; I have not yet figured out if there is a basic principle on where to start or what order to go in. I should probably spend more time on those 2 on-line sites I found on Hanzi. While doing the tracing, I also repeat the pronunciation of the word as well as try to come up with a mnemonic for linking the pronunciation with the ideograph with the English meaning. I think the only way I have been able to do as well as I have been is that my bio brain is used to rote memorization of traits of plants & animals & linking them with the scientific name, common name, & indigenous name.

Earlier today I posted an update on Hurricane Lowell. Not much has changed since then but here is a graphic I though you might find interesting. This is a color-enhanced satellite image of Lowell; the color gradient shows the amount of moisture in that part of the cloud cover, red being a very high level. You can also see the well-defined eye; the higher the wind speed, the more distinctive the eye becomes. This image also gives a better idea of how large an area a hurricane can affect when it passes through or nearby an area. In this case, it would easily wreak havoc on the 8 main islands if its path were to turn right today & head northerly.

The next episode of the eruption at Kīlauea is likely to be between the 7th & the 12th.

Hauʻoli lā Hānau e Dean, Sandra, & Steve! 

Lowell Now Category 5

Hurricane Lowell wasted no time getting to Category 5! By the 11 am update, Lowell had maximum sustained winds at 160 mph. It is now about 445 miles southerly of Hilo & moving westerly at about 10 mph. Though it is expected that the forward motion will slow down over the next few days, the forecast also says the maximum wind speed will remain quite high. The model at 11 am shows Lowell turning towards the north sooner than the 5 am models predicted.

What Is It Going To Do?

Hurricane Lowell has now become a Category 4 Hurricane on the Safir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale; it is also what is called a major hurricane. Major hurricanes are ones where the maximum sustained wind speed is over 110 mph; at 5 am this morning Lowell was at 155 mph & moving westerly at about 10 mph. It is about 455 miles south-southeasterly of Hilo. What we are watching now is not when Lowell will be passing closest to us, but when will it make that right turn & start heading northerly. The current forecast shows its potential path at about 164W longitude which should keep it far enough away to not cause severe damage to us. But if it should turn northerly earlier, say at the 160W longitude, Niʻihau & Kauaʻi would be in its path. Lowell may become stronger later today & we might have a Category 5 Hurricane. Currently hurricane force winds extend out from the center for about 50 miles, with tropical storm force winds extending about 90 miles.

Hurricane Karina is maintaining its Category 4 status with maximum sustained winds at about 145 mph as it moves west-northwesterly at about 10 mph. It is about 1455 miles easterly of Hilo & about 2 days away from entering the Central Pacific region. While Karina is expected to begin weakening, it will still be a strong hurricane for at least a few more days.

As noted in an earlier post, August is the most active month for hurricanes in the Central Pacific. September is the 3rd most active month with about 20% of hurricanes historically occurring in September. But hurricanes can't read so we will just have to see what happens this month. (FYI July is the 2nd most active month with 25% occurring in July. This year it was fairly quiet.)

Hurricane Lowell

Lowell has indeed become a hurricane overnight. It is now about 575 miles southeast of Hilo. Maximum sustained winds are about 80 mph & Lowell is moving west-northwesterly at about 12 mph. Hurricane force winds extend out from the center about 15 miles with tropical storm force winds extending out about 90 miles. The forecast is for Lowell to increase in strength, becoming a major hurricane sometime tomorrow. 

Hurricane Karina remains a Category 4 storm with maximum sustained winds of about 140 mph. It is moving westerly at about 12 mph & is expected to enter the Central Pacific region on Friday.