Category: Hawai’i

Exploring the islands

Hurricane Lane Passes By

Weather? Currently overcast, no rain, and almost no breeze. Hard to believe there is a hurricane just offshore.

The worst wind was early last night, and then no worse than a strong trade wind event. We have had much worse several times this year.

The rain gauge has not even made it to an inch of precipitation. We have had none of the torrential rain the other side of the island has experienced.

All is quiet here, no damage beyond having to pick up the usual scattered palm fronds.

The video below is the storm passing by our island over the last 38 hours. I started saving the 4km IR images as soon as the eye of Hurricane Lane entered the close range image and have assembled them into a video.

This is our closest pass so far for a hurricane. May the remainder of the season be uneventful…

Here we go again…

Maybe a little closer to us this time.

Hurricane Lane is looking to swing north just east of the island. The worst of the storm should pass through tomorrow. All of our Keck staff has been told to stay home and take care of family and property, observing is cancelled for the next two nights.

Hurricane Lane approaches the islands as seen in this 4km resolution IR image

Where can you fly a drone in Hawaii?

For a new drone pilot, learning the rules can be a bit daunting.

Hawaiʻi is a state that is incredibly attractive to a drone pilot. The scenery, from reefs and beaches, to the soaring volcanoes, just begs to be flown over and photographed from the air.

Flying the DJI Mavic Air in the saddle at the base of Mauna Kea
Flying the DJI Mavic Air in the saddle at the base of Mauna Kea

I am determined to fly responsibly, that means going through all of the various rules. The rules are not simple! They are a patchwork of regulations from federal, state, and local authorities. How do you make sense of it all?

Below is the results of my research on the subject. More than a few hours of reading state and federal websites. The process of writing this post was in itself a means of educating myself. Hopefully others will find this useful. If you know of anything I have missed, drop me a line to let me know.

This post is focused on the Island of Hawaii, home for me. But much of what is discussed here applies to all of the islands.

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