Mount Waiʻaleʻale
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Mount Waiʻaleʻale (Template:IPAc-en) is a shield volcano and the second highest point on the island of Kauaʻi in the Hawaiian Islands. Its name literally means "rippling water" or "overflowing water".Template:Sfn
Mount Waiʻaleʻale, at an elevation of Script error: No such module "convert"., averages more than Script error: No such module "convert". of rain a year since 1912, with a record Script error: No such module "convert". in 1982; its summit is one of the rainiest spots on earth.[1] However, recent reports mention that over the period 1978–2007 the wettest spot in Hawaii is Big Bog on Maui (Script error: No such module "convert". per year).[2]
Climate
Climate and rainfall statistics
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The summit of Waiʻaleʻale features a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen Af), with substantial rainfall throughout the course of the year. Template:Harvcol quotes Script error: No such module "convert". per year figure as being the 1912–45 average, an average that quite possibly will have changed since then, while The National Climatic Data Center quotes this figure as a 30-year average.[3] The Weather Network and The Guinness Book of Weather Records quotes Script error: No such module "convert". rain per year,Template:Sfn while Meteorology Today quotes Script error: No such module "convert". as the average annual rainfall at Mount WaialealeTemplate:Sfn and De Wereld van het Weer claims Script error: No such module "convert". falls here.Template:Sfn Similarly, The Weather Network and the Guinness Book of Weather Records quote 335 days with rain here, while Weird Weather suggests that rain falls on 360 days per year.Template:Sfn
The local tourist industry of Kauai has promoted it as one of the wettest places on earth, which it is. The rainfall at Waiʻaleʻale is evenly distributed through the year.
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Causes
Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Several factors give the summit of Waiʻaleʻale more potential to create precipitation than the rest of the island chain:
- Its northern position relative to the main Hawaiian Islands provides more exposure to frontal systems that bring rain during the winter.
- Its peak lies just below the so-called trade wind inversion layer of Script error: No such module "convert"., above which trade-wind-produced clouds cannot rise.
- The summit plateau is flanked by steep walled valleys over Script error: No such module "convert". deep on the three sides most consistently exposed to moisture bearing weather systems. These serve to funnel and concentrate any available precipitable water directly towards the mountain.
- The steep cliffs of the mountain's flanks generate intense orographic lift, causing the moisture-laden air to rise rapidly – over Script error: No such module "convert". in less than Script error: No such module "convert". – This combined with the 'barrier' of the trade-wind inversion, serves to very efficiently squeeze almost all of the moisture out of the incoming clouds directly over and immediately downwind of the peak.
Ecology
The great rainfall in the area produces the Alakaʻi Wilderness Preserve, a large boggy area that is home to many rare plants. The ground is so wet that although trails exist, access by foot to the Waiʻaleʻale area is extremely difficult.
A number of rare local plant species are named for this mountain, including Astelia waialealae, Melicope waialealae, and the endemic Dubautia waialealae.[4]
See also
References
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- ↑ USFWS. Determination of endangered status for 48 species on Kauai and designation of critical habitat; Final rule. Federal Register April 13, 2010.
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Sources
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