Hawaii under blizzard warning as 12 inches of snow and winds up to 100 mph expected
The National Weather Service has issued a blizzard warning until Sunday morning on the Big Island of Hawaii.
The warning remains in effect from 6 p.m. Friday until 6 a.m. Sunday as up to 12 inches or more of snow is expected on the island. NWS also warns residents to stay indoors as forecasters predict winds gusting over 100 mph.
"Travel could be very difficult to impossible. Blowing snow will significantly reduce visibility at times, with periods of zero visibility," NWS's weather warning reads.
Aside from the blizzard warning, a Kona low is expected near the islands starting on Saturday night. Kona storms are a type of seasonal cyclone in the Hawaiian Islands, usually formed in the winter from winds coming from the westerly "Kona" direction, according to N. Kona lows often bring about wet and "unsettled" weather.
However, as rare as snowfall seems in Hawaii, in certain mountainous regions it occurs every year.
Last January, snow blanketed a small part of Hawaii's Big Island, which is Hawaii's largest main island. Since the summits of Hawaii's Mauna Kea and Mauna Loa volcanoes both rise over 13,000 feet in elevation, when cold fronts and heavy rains form, snow falls, according to the Weather Channel.
The official coldest temperature witnessed in Hawaii is 12 degrees, which was recorded at the Mauna Kea Observatory on May 17, 1979, according to the Weather Channel.
| by Anonymous | reply 24 | December 4, 2021 11:10 AM
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Is this an article from "The Onion?"
| by Anonymous | reply 2 | December 3, 2021 6:30 PM
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We're in the new Ice Age folks
| by Anonymous | reply 3 | December 3, 2021 6:33 PM
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And yet Colorado still hasn't had any snow since last Spring.
This is fucking weird.
| by Anonymous | reply 4 | December 3, 2021 6:34 PM
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dumb question but, does Hawaii normally get any snow? I have never wondered that before.
| by Anonymous | reply 5 | December 3, 2021 6:36 PM
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Here you go, R5.
Big Island of Hawaii, taken from Hilo.
| by Anonymous | reply 6 | December 3, 2021 6:37 PM
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Observatories on top of Hawaii's mountains.
| by Anonymous | reply 7 | December 3, 2021 6:38 PM
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Only on the peaks of the highest mountains. There are pictures of people skiing down the slopes.
From the description in the article it sounds like this is a bigger storm though.
| by Anonymous | reply 8 | December 3, 2021 6:38 PM
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Amazing, thank you r6 and r7! I actually learned something new today!
| by Anonymous | reply 11 | December 3, 2021 6:39 PM
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You can go from skiing to snorkeling all in one day!
| by Anonymous | reply 12 | December 3, 2021 6:41 PM
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In Africa on the equator, the mountains get snow as well.
| by Anonymous | reply 13 | December 3, 2021 6:47 PM
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I guess I should have known this, I knew South America got snow and parts of Africa. If you had asked me, I would have confidently said Hawaii didn't get snow. Crazy. I hope everything is ok there, it must be pretty scary to get a foot of snow everywhere there if, for the most part, you only normally get snow in the mountains.
| by Anonymous | reply 14 | December 3, 2021 6:51 PM
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Same thing can happen in LA. It's not that unusual
| by Anonymous | reply 16 | December 3, 2021 7:10 PM
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[quote] Same thing can happen in LA. It's not that unusual
It's actually unusual for that latitude.
Hawaii is below the Tropic of Cancer, at 19 degrees North Latitude.
LA is at 34 degrees North Latitude.
So that's actually a huge difference.
| by Anonymous | reply 17 | December 3, 2021 7:37 PM
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I told you "global warming" was a hoax.
| by Anonymous | reply 18 | December 3, 2021 7:46 PM
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Wont this destroy flora and fauna?
| by Anonymous | reply 19 | December 3, 2021 7:49 PM
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"Wont this destroy flora and fauna? "
Probably not, that would take a hard freeze for several hours
| by Anonymous | reply 21 | December 4, 2021 9:59 AM
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Flora Falauna was my favorite entertainer from the 70s.
| by Anonymous | reply 22 | December 4, 2021 10:25 AM
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Oh no, the Bradys just arrived for their annual Christmas vacation.
| by Anonymous | reply 23 | December 4, 2021 10:40 AM
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The peak of Mauna Kea is13,803 ft above sea level. It's not like there's going to be a blizzard on Waikiki Beach.
| by Anonymous | reply 24 | December 4, 2021 11:10 AM
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