000 
ATHW40 PHFO 030027
SIMHI 

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS SATELLITE INTERPRETATION MESSAGE
BASED ON DATA THROUGH 0000 UTC JANUARY 3 2004

LAYERED CLOUDS WITH EMBEDDED SHOWERS CONTINUE TO BLANKET THE MAIN 
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS.

BROKEN TO OVERCAST LAYERED CLOUDS BLANKET THE MAIN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. 
THESE CLOUDS ARE PART OF A 500 MILE WIDE BAND CENTERED FROM 450 
MILES NORTHEAST OF OAHU TO 11N 163W. THE SOUTHEAST EDGE OF THE BAND 
RUNS FROM 300 MILES NORTHEAST OF HILO TO 250 MILES EAST SOUTHEAST 
OF HILO TO 11N 156W. THE NORTHWEST EDGE RUNS FROM 450 MILES 
NORTHEAST OF OAHU TO 50 MILES NORTHWEST OF KAUAI TO 12N 169W. 
THIS BAND HAS SPREAD NORTHEASTWARD AT 60 MILES AN HOUR AND THE 
CLOUDS HAVE BECOME THICKER AND MORE SOLID OVER THE PAST 12 HOURS. 
THE CLOUDS OVER THE MAIN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS OBSCURE LOWER LEVEL 
FEATURES. VISIBLE AND WINDOW INFRARED IMAGERY DO NOT SHOW ANY 
CUMULONIMBUS NEAR THE MAIN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS.

THE CLOUDS OVER THE MAIN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS ARE ASSOCIATED WITH A 
LARGE-SCALE TROUGH ALOFT EXTENDING NORTHWESTWARD FROM OVER THE 
ISLANDS. THE TROUGH IS HELPING PULL MOISTURE UP OVER THE MAIN 
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS FROM THE SOUTHWEST AND CREATING UNSTABLE CONDITIONS 
OVER THE ISLANDS. A SERIES OF SMALLER SCALE TROUGHS HAVE BEEN 
ROTATING NORTHEASTWARD WITHIN THIS TROUGH. ONE OF THESE SYSTEMS 
NORTH OF KAUAI IS MOVING AWAY TO THE NORTH. ANOTHER SHORTWAVE ABOUT 
400 MILES SOUTHWEST OF KAUAI IS MOVING EASTWARD AT 30 MILES AN 
HOUR.

DONALDSON