Well, Maui comes close, but even
paradise has it's flaws. Maui is located at 20.80° N, 156.33°
W, amidst the climate zone the tropic of cancer and the northern
temperate zone, resulting in fairly consistent temperatures
year-round with warm summers and mild “winters”.
Summer spans
from May to September with average highs in the mid-80's and peaking
in the high-80's during August and September. “Winter”, or rather
the rainy season, begins in October and stretches to April with
average high temperatures in the low-80's, however temperatures have
been know to fall into the low-60's.
Clouds generally form on the eastern
side of the island, and due to that pesky little volcano in the
middle of the island adiabatic processes come into play. Orographic
lifting occurs where these clouds and warm air masses are forced
upslope over Haleakala. As this warm moist air changes elevation and
reaches the condensation point, precipitation occurs. As the clouds
lose their moisture and dissipate, the dry air descends down the
opposite (leeward) side of the mountain and a rain shadow forms, thus
cities on the west coast such as Lahaina, Wailea, and Kihei (Kihei
holla!) tend to be sunny and dry.
Maui's location leaves the weather
heavily influenced by the trade winds, which are easterly winds that
occur in the tropics as warm air 'rises' towards the poles, cooling,
and subsequently “sinking” back towards equator to be heated
again. Average humidity or amount of moisture held in the air in Maui
hovers around 70%, peaking in the morning. Rainfall plays a large
role in Maui's climate as a whole, and tends to happen frequently but
not usually for an extended period of time per storm. Rain is most
likely to occur in the morning, and most often during the winter
months, or the rainy season. Severe storms, particularly
thunderstorms are rare as precipitation is not usually the result of
frontal or convergent lifting.
Annual rainfall averages vary
depending on where and at what elevation you are at on the island.
Eastern and higher elevation areas such as Hana generally see about
85” of rain per year, exorbitant compared to lower and western
regions like Kihei (Kihei holla!) that collect on average only about
8” annually. This past year however, the western/leeward side of
the island saw less rainfall than usual, causing a draught. Severe
hurricanes rarely hit Maui as the mountainous terrain causes the most
sever typhoons to vitiate into tropical storms, yet tsunamis as a
result of seismic activity in other areas of the pacific rim are a
major concern, and their potential for devastation is monitored
closely by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.
