000 
ATHW40 PHFO 270038
SIMHI 

HAWAIIAN ISLANDS SATELLITE INTERPRETATION MESSAGE
NWS CENTRAL PACIFIC HURRICANE CENTER HONOLULU HI
0030 UTC WED OCT 27 2004

BASED ON DATA THROUGH 0000 UTC OCTOBER 27 2004

WATER VAPOR IMAGERY THIS AFTERNOON SHOWED A BROAD UPPER LEVEL LOW 
CENTERED NEAR KAUAI. TROUGHS EXTENDED FROM THIS LOW TO THE 
NORTHWEST...AND TO THE SOUTHEAST OF THE CENTER ACROSS THE MAIN 
HAWAIIAN ISLANDS. THIS LOW CONTINUED TO BE NEARLY STATIONARY. A 
SHORTWAVE ROTATING CYCLONICALLY AROUND THE UPPER LOW WAS LOCATED 
NEAR 22N 166W.

THE UNSTABLE AIR ASSOCIATED WITH THE UPPER LOW WAS CAUSING ISOLATED 
DEEP CONVECTION IN A LARGE AREA...INCLUDING THE AREA AROUND KAUAI 
AND OAHU. THE DEEP CONVECTION WAS MAINLY BOUNDED BY 21N AND 30N FROM 
157W TO 164W. THUNDERSTORMS WERE DEVELOPING EARLY THIS AFTERNOON 
OVER THE WINDWARD AND NORTHERN PORTIONS OF OAHU...AND JUST SOUTH OF 
KAUAI. HIGHEST CLOUD TOPS ESTIMATED FROM INFRARED IMAGERY WERE JUST 
NORTH OF OAHU...NEAR 39 THOUSAND FEET.

A LARGE AREA OF LAYERED MAINLY MID AND HIGH LEVEL CLOUDS EXTENDED 
EAST FROM MAUI AND NORTH AND EAST FROM THE BIG ISLAND. THESE CLOUDS 
ARE THE REMNANTS OF CONVECTION THAT WAS OVER AND WEST OF THE BIG 
ISLAND LAST NIGHT. VISIBLE IMAGERY SHOWS THAT THE BACK EDGE OF THESE 
LAYERED CLOUDS WAS JUST ABOUT TO PUSH NORTH OFF THE HAMAKUA COAST OF 
THE BIG ISLAND...LEAVING MUCH OF THE BIG ISLAND AND MAUI ALMOST 
CLOUD FREE AT 2 PM HST. THE CLEAR SKIES OVER THE SUMMITS OF THE BIG 
ISLAND REVEALED THE SNOW WHICH FELL AT ELEVATIONS ABOVE ABOUT 10 
THOUSAND FEET OVERNIGHT AND THIS MORNING.

ELSEWHERE AROUND THE MAIN HAWAIIAN ISLANDS...KAUAI HAD SCATTERED 
CLOUDS AS OF 2 PM...THOUGH THUNDERSTORMS WERE LURKING ONLY ABOUT 10 
MILES TO THE SOUTH OF THE GARDEN ISLE. THERE WERE THUNDERSTORMS 
ALONG THE WINDWARD SIDE OF OAHU...WITH THE CORE OF THE CUMULONIMBUS 
CELL JUST OFFSHORE. OTHER WEAKER THUNDERSTORMS WERE JUST NORTH OF 
KAHUKU POINT AND JUST NORTHWEST OF KAENA POINT. MAUI COUNTY HAD ONLY 
SCATTERED LOW CLOUDS...AND IN FACT LANAI AND KAHOOLAWE WERE NEARLY 
CLOUD FREE.  

$$
R BALLARD