Earth and Space News: Hawaii sun directly overhead Lahaina Noon

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Saturday, May 11, 2019

Lahaina Noon: Unlike Five-0's Hewa Ka Lima Rarely the Hand Is at Fault

Summary: The adage The hand is at fault affirms Hawaii Five-0 episode Hewa Ka Lima May 10, 2019, and any less than astute acquaintance with Lahaina Noon.

Lahaina Noon's directly overhead sun; Kaka'ako neighborhood, Honolulu, southeastern coastal O'ahu; Sunday, May 27, 2018, 12:28:04: Daniel Ramirez (jdnx), CC BY 2.0 Generic, via Flickr

That the hand is at fault applies as much to Hawaii Five-0 television series episode Hewa Ka Lima May 10, 2019, as it accounts for less than accurate acquaintances with Lahaina Noon.

Director Peter Weller and writers Paul Grellong and Sean O'Reilly build an 'ōlelo a'o ("advice") about bad behavior, interpretations and results into Season 9's 24th episode. The series' 217th eisode overall considers the criminal conduct of a drunk driver cutting short the life of Hawaii Five-0 Officer Junior Reigns' (Beulah Koale) sister. It delves into the hand at fault when National Security Agency employees who deal with Aaron Wright (Joey Lawrence) die and the fugitive hacker does not.

Only Hawaii and everywhere between latitudes 23.436806 North and -23.436806 South experience twice yearly the zenith (from Arabic سَمْتُ الرَّأْس‎, "direction of the head") sun overhead.

Hawaiian forms the overhead sun into kau ka la i ka lolo ("the sun rests on the brains") anciently and, since 1990, Lahaina Noon ("cruel sun").

The Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum in Honolulu gives the biannual Lahaina Noon 2019 dates in Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time (HAST, 10 hours behind Coordinated Universal Time, UTC). It honors Ka Lae ("the point"), Hawai'i, 18.9111 North, -155.681111 West, May 15 at 12:19 HAST (22:19 UTC) and July 28 at 12:29 HAST (22:29 UTC). Its itineraries include Kailua-Kona, Hawai'i, at 19.65 North and -155.994167 West, May 18 at 12:20 HAST (22:20 UTC) and July 24 at 12:27 HAST (22:27 UTC).

It journeys over Hilo, Hawai'i, at 19.705556 North and -155.085833 West, May 18 at 12:17 HAST (22:17 UTC) and July 24 at 12:27 HAST (22:27 UTC).

Hāna, Maui County, 20.77 North and -155.994167 West, knows Lahaina Noon May 23 at 12:21 HAST (22:21 UTC) and July 19 at 12:30 HAST (22:30 UTC).

It locates over Kahului, Maui, at 20.881667 North and -156.4675 West, May 24 at 12:23 HAST (22:23 UTC) and July 19 at 12:32 HAST (22:32 UTC). It moves over Lahaina, Maui, at 20.886111 North and -156.674722 West, May 24 at 12:24 HAST (22:24 UTC) and July 19 at 12:33 HAST (22:33 UTC). It nestles over Lāna'i City, Maui, 20.8275 North and -156.921944 West, May 24 at 12:25 HAST (22:25 UTC) and July 19 at 12:34 HAST (22:34 UTC).

Lahaina Noon overtakes Kaunakakai, Maui, at 21.088889 North and -157.0125 West, May 26 at 12:25 HAST (22:25 UTC) and July 17 at 12:34 HAST (22:34 UTC).

Lahaina Noon prevails over Honolulu, at 21.3 North and -157.816667 West, May 27 at 12:29 HAST (22:29 UTC) and July 16 at 12:38 HAST (22:38 UTC).

It quests Kāne'ohe, Honolulu County, at 21.409167 North and -157.799167 West, May 27 at 12:28 HAST (22:28 UTC) and July 16 at 12:37 HAST (22:37 UTC). It reaches Hale'iwa, Honolulu County, at 21.59 North and -158.113889 West, May 28 at 12:30 HAST (22:30 UTC) and July 14 at 12:38 (HAST (22:38 UTC). It strikes Līhu'e, Hawai'i County, at 21.974722 North and -159.365556 West, May 31 at 12:35 HAST (22:35 UTC) and July 11 at 12:43 HAST (22:43 UTC).

The Bishop Museum tends not to tender faulty information and perhaps tempts Hawaii Five-0 task force employees and fans to trek to Lahaina Noon 2019 sites.

Hacker Aaron Wright (Joey Lawrence), last troubling the Hawaii Five-0 Task Force in season 8, resurfaces to seek help from (left to right) Jerry Ortega (Jorge Garcia), Junior Reigns (Beulah Koale), Tani Rey (Meaghan Rath), H50 Lieutenant Commander Steve McGarrett (Alex O'Loughlin) and Adam Noshimuri (Ian Anthony Dale) in CBS TV's Hawaii Five-0 season 9, episode 24, Hewa Ka Lima (The Hand Is at Fault): CBS Hawaii Five-0 episode 9.24 promotional photo, via SpoilerTV May 7, 2019

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Lahaina Noon's directly overhead sun; Kaka'ako neighborhood, Honolulu, southeastern coastal O'ahu; Sunday, May 27, 2018, 12:28:04: Daniel Ramirez (jdnx), CC BY 2.0 Generic, via Flickr @ https://www.flickr.com/photos/danramarch/42778433050/

"A'ole E 'Ōlelo Mai Ana Ke Ahi Ua Ana Ia: Fire Will Never Say That It Has Had Enough." Hawaii Five-0: Eighth Season. Los Angeles CA: Paramount Pictures Corporation, Sept. 29, 2017.

Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum @BishopMuseum. 31 May 2013. "Aloha Friday Fact! The term 'Lahaina Noon' is relatively new, actually invented in 1990 for a phenomenon long marked by cultures across the Pacific and the tropics more widely. . . ." Facebook.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/BishopMuseum/photos/a.167268692109/10151654494977110/

"E Uhi Wale No 'A'ole E Nalo, He Imu Puhi: No Matter How Much One Covers a Steaming Imu, the Smoke Will Rise." Hawaii Five-0: Eighth Season. Los Angeles CA: Paramount Pictures Corporation, Oct. 20, 2017.

"Hewa Ka Lima: The Hand Is at Fault." Hawaii Five-0: The Ninth Season. Los Angeles CA: Paramount Pictures Corporation, May 10, 2019.

"Lāhaina Noon." Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum > 2019 Astronomy Highlghts.
Available @ https://www.bishopmuseum.org/2019-astronomy-highlights/

Marriner, Derdriu. 4 May 2019. "'Imiloa Sky Charts and Hawaii Five-0's Ho'okani No La O Ka Malihini." Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/05/imiloa-sky-charts-and-hawaii-five-0s.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 27 April 2019. "Laysan Albatrosses: Earth Day 2019, Five-0 Season 9 Episode 22 Icons." Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/04/laysan-albatrosses-earth-day-2019-five.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 13 April 2019. "Pueo Hawaiian Short-Eared Owls and Hawaii Five-0's He Kama Na Ka Pueo." Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/04/pueo-hawaiian-short-eared-owls-and.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 6 April 2019. "Hau Hawaiian Sea Hibiscus, Ma'a Hawaiian Sling, Five-0's Way of the Gun." Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/04/hau-hawaiian-sea-hibiscus-maa-hawaiian.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 16 March 2019. “Five-0’s Hawaiian He’e Big Blue Day Octopus of the Deep Spews Its Ink.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/03/five-0s-hawaiian-hee-big-blue-day.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 9 March 2019. “Hawaii Five-0's Ai No I Ka 'Ape He Mane'o No Ko Ka Nuku: Itchy Mouths.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/03/hawaii-five-0s-ai-no-i-ka-ape-he-maneo.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 24 February 2019. “Offer Young Taro Leaves To Hawaii Five-0 Episode E'ao Lu'au A Kualima.” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/02/offer-young-taro-leaves-to-hawaii-five.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 23 February 2019. “Kanawao Shrub Fruits for Hawaii Five-0's Hapai Ke Kuko, Hanau Ka Hewa.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/02/kanawao-shrub-fruits-for-hawaii-five-0s.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 16 February 2019. “Five-0 Hawaiian Rain Gardens Not Made Prisoner by the Reign of the Rain.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/02/five-0-hawaiian-rain-gardens-not-made.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 2 February 2019. “Humpback Whales Depressed With the Heat in Keawalua on Hawaii Five-0.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/02/humpback-whales-depressed-with-heat-in.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 19 January 2019. “No 'Awa Or Kava Shrubs If Those Above Are Descending on Hawaii Five-0.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/01/no-awa-or-kava-shrubs-if-those-above.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 12 January 2019. “Kikui Tree Leaves for Hawaii Five-0 2010's Ka Hauli O Ka Mea Hewa 'Ole.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/01/kikui-tree-leaves-for-hawaii-five-0.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 5 January 2019. “Hawaii Five-0 Gone on the Road, Without Koa Wood Outrigger Canoes.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2019/01/hawaii-five-0-gone-on-road-without-koa.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 9 December 2018. “Ponderosa Pine Trees for When a Hawaii Five-0 2010 House Is Dark.” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/12/ponderosa-pine-trees-for-when-hawaii.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 8 December 2018. “Hawaiian Pili Grass Houses: Hawaii Five-0 2010 When the Light Goes Out.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/12/hawaiian-pili-grass-houses-hawaii-five.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 1 December 2018. “Ko'a Black Coral for Hawaii Five-0 2010's Truth Comes from the Night.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/12/koa-black-coral-for-hawaii-five-0-2010s.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 17 November 2018. “Hawaiian Goose Nēnē: Birds of a Feather Episode on Hawaii Five-0 2010.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/11/hawaiian-goose-nene-birds-of-feather.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 10 November 2018. “Hawaiian Horses, Chang and McGarrett: Hawaii Five-0 2010 200th Episode.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/11/hawaiian-horses-chang-and-mcgarrett.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 3 November 2018. “Olonā Hawaiian Nettle Shrubs for Hawaii Five-0 Emergency Landings?” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/11/olona-hawaiian-nettle-shrubs-for-hawaii.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 27 October 2018. “Gernika Genocide Survivor Art Before Hawaii Five-0 Prophetic Child Art.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/10/gernika-genocide-survivor-art-before.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 20 October 2018. “Hawaiian Beach Sand: Hawaii Five-0 2010's On the Slope of the Cliff.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/10/hawaiian-beach-sand-hawaii-five-0-2010s.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 13 October 2018. “Proverbial Cowrie Sea Snails for the Hawaii Five-0 2010 Ninth Season.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/10/proverbial-cowrie-sea-snails-for-hawaii.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 7 October 2018. “Lamian or Ramen Noodles: Hawaii Five-0's The Man Who Fell From the Sky.” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/10/lamian-or-ramen-noodles-hawaii-five-os.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 29 September 2018. “Gutta-Percha Trees and Hawaii Five-0 2010 Ninth Season Premiere Cocoon.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/09/gutta-percha-trees-and-hawaii-five-o.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 23 September 2018. “Ki'i Pōhaku Petroglyphs: Ancients Exposed on Five-0's Waiho Wale Kahiko.” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/09/kii-pohaku-petroglyphs-ancients-exposed.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 4 July 2018. "Second 2018 Shadowless Lahaina Noon Happens in July in Hawaii." Earth and Space News. Wednesday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/07/second-2018-shadowless-lahaina-noon.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 16 May 2018. "No Shadows Are Cast During May 2018 Lahaina Noon in Hawaiian Islands." Earth and Space News. Wednesday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/05/no-shadows-are-cast-during-may-2018.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 13 May 2018. “Hawaiian Rain Gardens for Five-0's Tough Branch That Does Not Break.” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/05/hawaiian-rain-gardens-for-five-0s-tough.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 6 May 2018. “Noni for Hawaii Five-0's Ka Hana A Ka Makua, O Ka Hana No Ia A Keiki.” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/05/noni-for-hawaii-five-0s-ka-hana-ka.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 29 April 2018. “'Āliamanu Salt Lake and Five-0's Kopi Wale No I Ka I'a A 'Eu No Ka Ilo.” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/04/aliamanu-salt-lake-and-five-0s-kopi.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 21 April 2018. “Hawaii Five-0 Episode Ahuwale Ka Nane Hina: Uku Hawaiian Gray Snappers.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/04/hawaii-five-0-episde-ahuwale-ka-nane.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 14 April 2018. “'Iwa Great Frigatebirds: Five-0's He Lokomaika'i Ka Manu O Kaiona.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/04/iwa-great-frigatebirds-five-0s-he.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 8 April 2018. “Chinese Juniper Shrubs on Hawaii Five-0 2010's Aohe Mea Make I Ka Hewa.” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/04/chinese-juniper-shrubs-on-hawaii-five-0.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 7 April 2018. “Bonsai Gardening on Hawaii Five-0 2010 Episode Aohe Mea Make I Ka Hewa.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/04/bonsai-gardening-on-hawaii-five-0-2010.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 31 March 2018. “'Ulu Hawaiian Breadfruit To Do One's Duty on Five-0's E Ho'oko Kuleana.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/03/ulu-hawaiian-breadfruit-to-do-ones-duty.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 11 March 2018. “Chlorine Gas on Hawaii Five-0 2010's Holapu Ke Ahi Koe Iho Ka Lehu.” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/03/chlorine-gas-on-hawaii-five-0-2010s.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 10 March 2018. “Golden Plovers and Stars of Heaven Know Where Pae Is on Hawaii Five-0.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/03/golden-plovers-and-stars-of-heaven-know.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 3 February 2018. “A Coral Reef Strengthens Out to Land on Hawaii Five-0 with Lobe Corals.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/02/a-coral-reef-strengthens-out-to-land-on.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 20 January 2018. “No Southern House Mosquitoes on Hawaii Five-0's Na Keikia Kalaihaohia.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/01/no-southern-house-mosquitoes-on-hawaii.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 13 January 2018. “What Is Gone Is Not Hawaiian Bobtail Squid on Hawaii Five-0 2010.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/01/what-is-gone-is-not-hawaiian-bobtail.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 7 January 2018. “Criminals Rare as Guernsey Dairy Cattle on Hawaii Five-0 The Roundup.” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/01/criminals-rare-as-guernsey-dairy-cattle.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 6 January 2018. “Hawaiian Cattle Roundups and Hawaii Five-0 2010 The Roundup Criminals.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/01/hawaiian-cattle-roundups-and-hawaii.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 12 July 2017. "Hilo Welcomes Second 2017 Lahaina Noon Monday, July 24." Earth and Space News. Wednesday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2017/07/hilo-welcomes-second-2017-lahaina-noon.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 10 May 2017. "Hilo Welcomes First 2017 Lahaina Noon Thursday, May 18." Earth and Space News. Wednesday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2017/05/hilo-welcomes-first-2017-lahaina-noon.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 6 July 2016. "Second 2016 Lahaina Noon Experience Begins Monday, July 11." Earth and Space News. Wednesday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/07/second-2016-lahaina-noon-experience.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 11 May 2016. "2016’s First Lahaina Noon Is May 15; Next 2016 Lahaina Noon Is July 11." Earth and Space News. Wednesday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/05/2016s-first-lahaina-noon-is-may-15-next.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 19 November 2010. “Hawaii Shave Ice Images and Take-Outs on Hawaii Five-0 2010 Ho'apono.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2010/11/hawaii-shave-ice-images-and-take-outs.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 14 November 2010. “Hawaiian Wild Boars Around Hawaii Five-0 2010's North Shore of O'ahu.” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2010/11/hawaiian-wild-boars-around-hawaii-five.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 13 November 2010. “Limu Lipoa Hawaiian Seaweed on Hawaii Five-0 2010 Episode Nalowale.” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2010/11/limu-lipoa-hawaiian-seaweed-on-hawaii.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 12 November 2010. “Hawaiian Blueberry Botanical Illustrations for Hawaii Five-0 Pancakes.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2010/11/hawaiian-blueberry-botanical.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 7 November 2010. “Hawaii Five-0 2010: Respect the Land and the Pizza Without Pineapples?” Earth and Space News. Sunday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2010/11/hawaii-five-0-2010-respect-land-and.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 6 November 2010. “Pygmy Hippopotamuses for Grace of the Hawaii Five-0 2010 Family?” Earth and Space News. Saturday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2010/11/pygmy-hippopotamuses-for-grace-of.html

Marriner, Derdriu. 5 November 2010. “Pineappley Hala Tree Botanical Illustrations for Hawaii Five-0 Pilot.” Earth and Space News. Friday.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2010/11/pineappley-hala-tree-botanical.html

"May 2019." 'Imiloa Astronomy Center > About 'Imiloa > Monthly Sky Charts for Hawai'i.

Wednesday, July 4, 2018

Second 2018 Shadowless Lahaina Noon Happens in July in Hawaii

Summary: The second 2018 shadowless Lahaina Noon happens in July in Hawaii as a directly overhead sun at solar noon shines away shadows from vertical objects.

second 2018 Lahaina Noon, July 11-July 27: SS&TC @ShortSleeveClub, via Twitter June 1, 2018

The second 2018 shadowless Lahaina Noon happens in July as a directly overhead sun at apparent local solar noon shines away shadows from people and other verticals in the Hawaiian archipelago’s windward islands.

The earliest instance of July 2018’s Lahaina Noon listed by Honolulu’s Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum occurs Wednesday, July 11, at Lihu’e, Kaua’i. Lahaina Noon is timed for Kaua’i’s second largest town at 12:43 p.m. Hawaii-Aleutian Standard (22:43 [10:43 p.m.] Coordinated Universal Time/Greenwich Mean Time).

The Bishop Museum gives July 2018 Lahaina Noon days and times for eight additional locales in Hawai’i’s windward islands.

Lihu’e, Kaua’i: Wednesday, July 11, at 12:43 p.m. HAST (22:43 UTC/GMT);
Kane’ohe, O’ahu: Sunday, July 15, at 12:37 p.m. HAST (22:37 UTC/GMT);
Kaunakakai, Moloka’i: Tuesday, July 17, at 12:34 p.m. HAST (22:34 UTC/GMT);
Hana, Maui: Wednesday, July 18, at 12:30 p.m. HAST (22:30 UTC/GMT);
Kahului, Maui: Wednesday, July 18, at 12:32 p.m. HAST (22:32 UTC/GMT);
Lahaina, Maui: Wednesday, July 18, a 12:32 p.m. HAST (22:23 UTC/GMT);
Hilo, the Big Island: Tuesday, July 24, at 12:26 p.m. HAST (22:26 UTC/GMT);
Ka Lae (South Point), the Big Island: Friday, July 27, at 12:28 p.m. HAST (22:26 UTC/GMT).

The Bishop Museum notes that an absolute Lahaina Noon does not happen this year at Honolulu, O’ahu, and Kailua-Kona, the Big Island. The museum explains that Lahaina Noon requires the sun’s apparent placement in the sky at 90 degrees over the location. In 2018, the sun only reaches 89 degrees for Honolulu and Kailua-Kona.

The Hawaiian archipelago’s tropical location in the central Pacific Ocean qualifies its windward islands for experiencing an apparently directly overhead sun twice each year. Local latitude explains the range in dates and times for the Hawaiian archipelago’s Lahaina Noon.

The Hawaiian archipelago’s first Lahaina Noon occurs annually in May. The sun’s late spring sweep of the archipelago favors the most southerly windward islands with earliest occurrences of Lahaina Noon before the most northerly windward islands.

Favoritism reverses in mid-summer. The archipelago’s second set of Lahaina Noons takes place in July. Mid-summer’s Lahaina Noon occurs earlier in the most northerly windward islands and later in the most southerly windward islands.

Nihoa is the only leeward island in the uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands’ (NWHI) stretch of 10 islands and atolls that undergoes Lahaina Noon. Its location, at 23.060556 degrees north latitude, falls within Earth’s equator-straddling tropical zone.

Nihoa is about 30 nautical miles (approximately 56 kilometers) closer to Kaua’i, northernmost of the archipelago’s windward islands, than to Necker Island, Nihoa’s leeward neighbor. Nihoa is approximately 130 nautical miles (about 240 kilometers) northwest of Kaua’i. Necker Island lies approximately 160 nautical miles (about 296 kilometers) northwest of Nihoa.

Necker Island’s placement at 23.576389 degrees north latitude disqualifies the hook-shaped island from the Lahaina Noon experience. The Northern Hemisphere’s Tropic of Cancer, at 23.4369 degrees latitude, and the Southern Hemisphere’s Tropic of Capricorn, at 23.4369 degrees south latitude, delimit Earth’s tropical band.

Before 900 C.E., Necker Island fell within the tropical zone, with the Tropic of Cancer lying just north. The Tropic of Cancer’s southward drift has excluded Necker Island from the Hawaiian archipelago’s Lahaina Noon experience.

The Tropic of Cancer’s southward drift toward the equator in the Northern Hemisphere mirrors the northward drift of its Southern Hemisphere counterpart, the Tropic of Capricorn, toward the equator. The equatorward drift of the two tropical extremes reflects the slowly decreasing obliquity of the ecliptic. The astronomical term references the equator’s angle of inclination with respect to the plane of Earth’s orbit, known as the ecliptic.

The takeaway for the second 2018 shadowless Lahaina Noon is that July’s solar phenomenon marks the Hawaiian archipelago’s uniqueness as the only U.S. location where the sun appears directly overhead.

Nihoa, only leeward island in the Hawaiian archipelago experiencing Lahaina Noon: Lieutenant Elizabeth Crapo, NOAA Corps, Public Domain, via NOAA Photo Library

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

second 2018 Lahaina Noon, July 11-July 27: SS&TC @ShortSleeveClub, via Twitter June 1, 2018, @ https://twitter.com/ShortSleeveClub/status/1002608373752303616

Nihoa, only leeward island in the Hawaiian archipelago experiencing Lahaina Noon; Image ID sanc1482, NOAA's Sanctuaries Collection: Lieutenant Elizabeth Crapo, NOAA Corps, Public Domain, via NOAA Photo Library @ http://www.photolib.noaa.gov/htmls/sanc1482.htm

For further information:

“2018 Lahaina Noon Days and Times.” Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum > 2018 Astronomy Highlights.
Available @ https://www.bishopmuseum.org/2018-astronomy-highlights/

Bryan, E.H. (Edwin Horace), Jr.; Richard Crowe; and Timothy F. Slater. Stars Over Hawaii. Third revised edition. Hilo HI: Petroglyph Press, 2015.

Marriner, Derdriu. “2016’s First Lahaina Noon Is May 15; Next 2016 Lahaina Noon Is July 11.” Earth and Space News. Wednesday, May 11, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/05/2016s-first-lahaina-noon-is-may-15-next.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “Hilo Welcomes First 2017 Lahaina Noon Thursday, May 18.” Earth and Space News. Wednesday, May 10, 2017.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2017/05/hilo-welcomes-first-2017-lahaina-noon.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Hilo Welcomes Second 2017 Lahaina Noon, Monday, July 24." Earth and Space News. Wednesday, July 12, 2018.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2017/07/hilo-welcomes-second-2017-lahaina-noon.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "No Shadows Are Cast During May 2018 Lahaina Noon in Hawaiian Islands." Earth and Space News. Wednesday, May 16, 2018.
Availble @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2018/05/no-shadows-are-cast-during-may-2018.html

Marriner, Derdriu. "Second 2016 Lahaina Noon Begins Monday, July 11." Earth and Space News. Wednesday, July 6, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/07/second-2016-lahaina-noon-experience.html

“Necker Island.” What-When-How > Ancient Astronomy.
Available @ http://what-when-how.com/ancient-astronomy/necker-island/

Ruggles, Clive. Ancient Astronomy: An Encyclopedia of Cosmologies and Myths. Santa Barbara, CA: Denver, CO; Oxford, England: ABC-CLIO, Inc., 2005.

SS&TC @ShortSleeveClub. Jun 1 “Twice every year, in the US state of Hawaii, shadows completely disappear.” Twitter. June 1, 2018.
Available @ https://twitter.com/ShortSleeveClub/status/1002608373752303616

Vsauce @tweetsauce. “The Sky Gate sculpture in Honolulu, HI is wavy, but twice a year (during Lahaina noon in May and July) the sun is directly above and the sculpture's shadow is a perfect circle.” Twitter. Dec. 20, 2017.
Available @ https://twitter.com/tweetsauce/status/943615594837843968

Wednesday, May 16, 2018

No Shadows Are Cast During May 2018 Lahaina Noon in Hawaiian Islands

Summary: No shadows are cast during 2018 Lahaina Noon May 16 to May 20 as the sun shines directly overhead at solar noon over the Hawaiian Islands archipelago.

Architect Mel Choy (University of Oklahoma 1965) designed ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center so that the atrium skylight fully illuminates Texas-born, Hawaii-transplant artist Clayton Young’s Voyage of Discovery floor mosaic twice annually, during May and July’s Lahaina Noon: Imiloa Astronomy Center @imiloaastronomycenter, via Facebook May 18, 2017

No shadows are cast during May 2018 Lahaina Noon as the sun appears directly overhead at apparent local solar noon across the Hawaiian Islands archipelago.

Apparent local solar noon refers to the time of the sun’s apparent contact with the local terrestrial meridian’s equivalent, coplanar celestial meridian. Astronomy and navigation’s celestial sphere is an abstract projection outward from the Earth to the sky. Earth’s imaginary meridians have analogous, imaginary meridians on the imaginary celestial sphere.

Solar noon designates the time of the sun’s local reach of its highest point in the sky. A directly overhead solar appearance only happens in the tropics. Earth’s tropical band stretches from the Northern Hemisphere’s Tropic of Cancer, at 23.43692 degrees north latitude, to the Southern Hemisphere’s Tropic of Capricorn, at 23.43692 degrees south latitude. The Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn number among five significant imaginary circles of latitude on Earth. (The Arctic Circle, the equator and the Antarctic Circle comprise the other three significant imaginary latitudinal circles.)

The sun’s directly overhead appearance takes place twice each year for each tropical location. The ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center explains that Lahaina Noon’s exact date and time in the archipelago depends on the local latitude.

The Hawaiian archipelago’s first Lahaina Noon happens annually in May. The most southerly windward Hawaiian islands experience May’s Lahaina Noon earlier than the most northerly windward islands during the sun’s late spring sweep of the Hawaiian archipelago.

The archipelago’s second Lahaina Noon occurs in July. The first and last occurrences of July’s Lahaina Noon reverse May’s solar phenomenon. The sun’s mid-summer sweep of the Hawaiian archipelago places July’s Lahaina Noon earlier in the most northerly windward Hawaiian islands and later in the most southerly windward islands.

Honolulu’s Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum begins May 2018’s Lahaina Noon sweep at Ka Lae on Hawai'i's Big Island. Ka Lae experiences 2018 Lahaina Noon Friday, May 11, at 12:19 p.m. Hawaii-Aleutian Standard Time (22:19 [10:19 p.m.] Coordinated Universal Time). Ka Lae (Hawaiian: “the point”) is also known as South Point in recognition of the rocky, windy site’s status as the southernmost point of the Big Island and also of the 50 United States.

The Bishop Museum gives May 2018 Lahaina Noon days and times for eight additional locales in Hawai’i’s windward islands.

Hilo, the Big Island: Friday, May 18, at 12:16 p.m. HAST (22:16 UTC/GMT);
Hana, Maui: Wednesday, May 23, at 12:22 p.m. HAST (22:22 UTC/GMT);
Kahului, Maui: Thursday, May 24, at 12:22 p.m. HAST (22:22 UTC/GMT);
Lahaina, Maui: Thursday, May 24, a 12:23 p.m. HAST (22:23 UTC/GMT);
Lana’i City, Lanai: Thursday, May 24, at 12:24 p.m. HAST (22:24 UTC/GMT);
Kaunakakai, Moloka’i: Friday, May 25, at 12:24 p.m. HAST (22:24 UTC/GMT);
Kane’ohe, O’ahu: Sunday, May 27, at 12:28 p.m. HAST (22:28 UTC/GMT);
Lihu’e, Kaua’i: Thursday, May 31, at 12:35 p.m. HAST (22:35 UTC/GMT).

The sun’s appearance directly overhead means that solar rays make contact at a perpendicular angle with the Hawaiian archipelago. Rays that are perpendicular to the Earth’s surface have the eerie effect of removing shadows from vertical objects, such as flag poles.

The Hawaiian Islands archipelago’s popular term of Lahaina Noon for the twice-yearly solar phenomenon stems from a contest sponsored in 1990 by Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum. Lā haina is Hawaiian for “cruel sun.”

Nihoa (Hawaiian: “tooth”) Island is the only island among the uninhabited Northwestern Hawaiian Islands’ (NWHI) chain of 10 islands and atolls that experiences Lahaina Noon. Its location at 23.060556 degrees north latitude places the leeward islands’ youngest island within Earth’s tropical band. Also known as Bird Island or Moku Manu, Nihoa lies approximately 130 nautical miles (approximately 240 kilometers) northwest of Kaua’I, northernmost of Hawaii’s eight major islands.

Nihoa lies about 160 nautical miles (about 296 kilometers) southeast of the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands’ Necker Island. Known as Mokumanamana in Hawaiian, Necker Island is sited at 23.576389 degrees north latitude. Before 900 C.E. Necker Island lay south of the Tropic of Cancer and, therefore, experienced Lahaina Noon. The southward drift of the Tropic of Cancer now places Necker Island outside of the tropics and in the subtropics.

The takeaway for no shadows during May 2018 Lahaina Noon in the Hawaiian Islands is that the Hawaiian Islands archipelago’s eight major islands and the leeward island of Nihoa owe their experience of a directly overhead sun in May to their status as the only U.S. tropical locations.

The curvy ring of 21st century Japanese American artist and landscape architect Isamu Noguchi’s Sky Gate sculpture celebrates Lahaina Noon in Honolulu by casting the shadow of a perfect circle onto the ground; photo looking upward at ring by Ross Togashi: Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum @BishopMuseum, via Facebook May 31, 2013

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

“2018 Lahaina Noon Days and Times.” Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum > 2018 Astronomy Highlights.
Available @ https://www.bishopmuseum.org/2018-astronomy-highlights/

Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum @BishopMuseum. "Aloha Friday Fact! The term "Lahaina Noon" is relatively new, actually invented in 1990 for a phenomenon long marked by cultures across the Pacific and the tropics more widely. . . . Photo © Ross Togashi.” Facebook. May 31, 2013.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/BishopMuseum/photos/a.167268692109.159760.57683067109/10151654494977110/

Bryan, E.H. (Edwin Horace), Jr.; Richard Crowe; and Timothy F. Slater. Stars Over Hawaii. Third revised edition. Hilo HI: Petroglyph Press, 2015.

“The Building and Landscaping.” ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center > About Us > Mission & History.
Available @ http://www.imiloahawaii.org/106/building-the-center

Imiloa Astronomy Center @imiloaastronomycenter. “Lahaina Noon happening at 'Imiloa! . . . . Mahalo Gary Petrison for sharing your photo!" Facebook. May 18, 2017.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/imiloaastronomycenter/photos/a.107428654186.116707.46156119186/10155338157969187/

“Lahaina Noon: Friday, May 18, 12:16pm HST.” ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center > Explore Sky Information >2018 Sky Calendar.
Available @ http://www.imiloahawaii.org/56/yearly-observational-astronomy-highlights-

“May 16-20: Lahaina Noon.” Love Big Island > 2018 Stargazing Calendar for Hawaii.
Available @ https://www.lovebigisland.com/stargazing/astronomy-calendar/year-2018/

“Necker Island.” What-When-How > Ancient Astronomy.
Available @ http://what-when-how.com/ancient-astronomy/necker-island/

Nelson, Mary Jo. “Prodigal Architects Return Cadre of OU Graduates Forms International Practice.” NewsOK. June 23, 1991.
Available @ http://newsok.com/article/2360901

Ruggles, Clive. Ancient Astronomy: An Encyclopedia of Cosmologies and Myths. Santa Barbara, CA: Denver, CO; Oxford, England: ABC-CLIO, Inc., 2005.

Valentine, Karen. “Bold and Dynamic: The Art of Clayton Bryant Young.” Keola Magazine > Art.
Available @ https://keolamagazine.com/art/the-art-of-clayton-bryant-young/

Vsauce. “How Earth Moves.” YouTube. June 13, 2016.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=IJhgZBn-LHg
Available @ https://twitter.com/tweetsauce/status/943615594837843968

Wednesday, July 12, 2017

Hilo Welcomes Second 2017 Lahaina Noon Monday, July 24

Summary: Hilo welcomes its second 2017 Lahaina Noon Monday, July 24, at 12:27 p.m. as the sun makes the second of two annual passes directly overhead.

Isamu Noguchi's Sky Gate sculpture marks annual Lahaina noon in May and in July in Honolulu: OnlyInHawaii.org @Only_In_Hawaii, via Twitter Jan. 30, 2017

Hilo welcomes its second 2017 Lahaina Noon Monday, July 24, at 12:27 p.m. Hawaii Standard Time with the sun’s second of two annual, directly overhead passes above the Big Island of Hawaii.

The two passes directly overhead occur twice yearly, in May and in July, in the Hawaiian archipelago. The Island of Hawaii, popularly known as the Big Island, is the last of the eight main Hawaiian islands to experience July’s placement directly overhead.

The Hawaiian language refers to the solar event as kau ka lā i ka lolo (“the sun rests on the brains”). Native Hawaiians consider Lahaina Noon as a time of great personal power. The disappearance of a person’s shadow allows for the internal buildup of spiritual power, known as mana, and induces alignment with universal forces.

A naming contest sponsored in 1990 by Honolulu’s Bernice Pauahi Museum is responsible for the popular term of Lahaina Noon. The word Lahaina means “cruel sun” (lā hainā) in the Hawaiian language.

Hawaii rates as the only one of the United States’ 50 states with directly overhead solar occurrences. The sun’s attainment of its zenith, or highest point in the sky, at solar noon happens only over Earth’s tropics. The solar event is restricted to latitudes lying from the equator northward to the Northern Hemisphere’s Tropic of Cancer and southward to the Southern Hemisphere’s Tropic of Capricorn.

Hilo’s location at 19 degrees 42 minutes 20 seconds north latitude and 155 degrees 5 minutes 9 seconds west longitude places the Big Island’s county seat south of the Tropic of Cancer and north of the Tropic of Capricorn. The Tropic of Cancer lies at 23.4371 degrees north latitude.

The sun’s attainment of the zenith directs rays toward perpendicular contact with the Earth’s surface. The place of sunlight’s perpendicular contact with the surface is identified as the subsolar point. The angle formed by sunlight with the local ground level always measures 90 degrees at the subsolar point.

Lahaina Noon affects shadows. Shadows usually cast by vertical objects are absent during Lahaina Noon.

July’s Lahaina Noon marks the sun’s apparent journey southward from the Tropic of Cancer to its southernmost zenith at the Tropic of Capricorn, known as the Southern Tropic, in the Southern Hemisphere. The December solstice signals the instant of the subsolar point’s occurrence on the Tropic of Capricorn.

The exact date and time of Lahaina Noon varies in accordance with latitude in the Hawaiian archipelago. The Big Island’s northerly location in the archipelago accounts for early instances of Lahaina Noon during the sun’s northward passage in May and late instances during the sun’s southward journey in July.

Oahu’s location northwest of the Big Island accounts for Lahaina Noon occurring there days later in May and days earlier in July. Oahu’s Skygate sculpture hosts a popular capture of Lahaina Noon that precedes Hilo’s sunlit-illumination of ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai’i’s atrium floor mosaic in July.

Unveiled in 1977, Sky Gate is a tripod sculpture by American artist Isamu Noguchi (Nov. 17, 1904-Dec. 30, 1988). The 24-foot (7.3-meter) sculpture is located between the Mission Memorial Auditorium (MMA) and Honolulu’s municipal building, known as Honolulu Hale. A curvy ring tops the tripod.

Twice yearly, in May and in July, the ring announces Lahaina Noon by casting a circular shadow onto the ground below. The ring’s horizontal placement allows for the shadows that elude vertical structures and people during Lahaina Noon.

Tory Laitila, registrar at the Mayor’s Office of Culture and Arts, says in a June 2008 article in Honolulu Magazine that the ring’s Lahaina Noon shadow is not mentioned in Noguchi’s notes about Sky Gate.

But, as Laitila explains, “Art is a subjective experience, and artists like to leave things for the viewer to discover.”

The takeaway for Hilo’s welcome of the second 2017 Lahaina Noon Monday, July 24, is the Hawaiian archipelago's appreciation of the solar phenomenon, including capturing the event's instant of occurrence via artworks in Hilo and in Honolulu.

July 2017 Lahaina Noon dates
Wednesday, July 12, at 12:42 p.m. at Lihue, Kauai
Sunday, July 16, at 12:34 p.m. at Kaunakakai, Molokai
Sunday, July 16, at 12:37 p.m. at Honolulu, Oahu
Tuesday, July 18, at 12:30 p.m. at Hana, Maui
Tuesday, July 18, at 12:32 p.m. at Kahului, Maui
Tuesday, July 18, at 12:33 p.m. at Lahaina, Maui
Tuesday, July 18, at 12:34 p.m. at Lanai City, Lanai
Monday, July 24, at 12:27 p.m. at Hilo, Hawaii (the Big Island)
Monday, July 24, at 12:30 p.m. at Kailua-Kona, Hawaii (the Big Island)

Located between Honolulu Hale (Honolulu's municipal building) and the Mission Memorial Auditorium (MMA), Sky Gate by American sculptor Isamu Noguchi is designed, intentionally or unintentionally, to mark May and July instances of Lahaina Noon in Honolulu by casting circular shadow of ringed top onto ground below; 530 South King Street, Honolulu HI 96815; Sep. 24, 2013, 15:53:21: brx0, CC BY SA 2.0 Generic, via Flickr

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Isamu Noguchi's Sky Gate sculpture marks annual Lahaina noon in May and in July in Honolulu: OnlyInHawaii.org @Only_In_Hawaii, via Twitter Jan. 30, 2017, @ https://twitter.com/Only_In_Hawaii/status/826017152431972353

Ali, Nancy Alima. “Noon Sun Not Directly Overhead Everywhere.” Star Bulletin > Archives. May 11, 2010.
Available @ http://archives.starbulletin.com/content/20100511_Noon_sun_not_directly_overhead_everywhere/

Bryan, E.H. (Edwin Horace), Jr.; Richard Crowe; and Timothy F. Slater. Stars Over Hawaii. Third revised edition. Hilo HI: Petroglyph Press, 2015.

‘Imiloa Astronomy Center. “2017 Sky Calendar.” ‘Imiloa > Explore > Sky Information > Yearly Observational Astronomy Highlights.
Available @ http://www.imiloahawaii.org/56/yearly-observational-astronomy-highlights-

Keany, Michael. “Skygate.” Honolulu Magazine. June 30, 2008.
Available @ http://www.honolulumagazine.com/Honolulu-Magazine/July-2008/Skygate/

"Lahaina Noon 2017 + Tips to Avoid Sunburn on Hawaii Vacations." Beat of Hawaii. April 6, 2017.
Available @ http://beatofhawaii.com/lahaina-noon-10-tips-to-avoid-sunburn-on-hawaii-vacation/

Marriner, Derdriu. "Hilo Welcomes First 2017 Lahaina Noon Thursday, May 18." Earth and Space News. Wednesday, May 10, 2017.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2017/05/hilo-welcomes-first-2017-lahaina-noon.html

Marriner, Derdriu. “Second 2016 Lahaina Noon Experience Begins Monday, July 11.” Wednesday, July 6, 2016.
Available @ https://earth-and-space-news.blogspot.com/2016/07/second-2016-lahaina-noon-experience.html

OnlyInHawaii.org @Only_In_Hawaii. “Sky Gate and Lahaina Noon -- Astrological Attraction in Honolulu, Hawaii.” Twitter. Jan. 30, 2017.
Available @ https://twitter.com/Only_In_Hawaii/status/826017152431972353

Pukui, Mary Kawena; Samuel Hoyt Elbert. “Lolo.” Hawaiian Dictionary. Honolulu HI: University of Hawai’I Press, 2003.
Available @ http://wehewehe.org/gsdl2.85/cgi-bin/hdict?a=q&j=pk&l=en&q=Lolo&af=0

“Sky Gate and Lahaina Noon – Astrological Attraction in Honolulu, Hawaii.” Only In Hawaii > Attractions > Architectural Landmarks.
Available @ http://onlyinhawaii.org/sky-gate-lahaina-noon-honolulu-hawaii/?platform=hootsuite

SubaruTelescopeNAOJe. “Lahaina Noon at Subaru Telescope’s Base Facility.” YouTube. Oct. 30, 2012.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCjEyITpRAI

Wednesday, May 10, 2017

Hilo Welcomes First 2017 Lahaina Noon Thursday, May 18

Summary: Hilo welcomes its first 2017 Lahaina Noon Thursday, May 18, at 12:16 p.m. as the sun makes the first of two annual passes directly overhead.

detail of Clayton Bryant Young's glass-tiled mosaic on ‘Imiloa Center’s atrium floor; the 14-foot circular mosaic is illuminated by the overhead skylight during Hilo’s twice annual experiences of Lahaina Noon; Saturday, April 12, 2008, 13:40:27: brewbooks, CC BY SA 2.0 Generic, via Flickr

Hilo welcomes its first 2017 Lahaina Noon Thursday, May 18, at 12:16 p.m. Hawaii Standard Time with the sun’s first of two annual, directly overhead passes above the Big Island of Hawaii.

The sun’s twice yearly placement directly overhead occurs in May and again in July. The Island of Hawaii is the first of the eight main Hawaiian Islands to experience May’s overhead placement.

The United States’ 50th state is the only state where the tropical phenomena of a directly overhead sun occurs. The sun reaches its zenith, or highest point in the sky, at solar noon only over the tropical band demarcated by the Southern Hemisphere’s Tropic of Capricorn and the Northern Hemisphere’s Tropic of Cancer.

The Tropic of Cancer circles the Earth as 23.4371 degrees north latitude. Hilo’s geographic coordinates are 19 degrees 42 minutes 20 seconds north latitude and 155 degrees 5 minutes 9 seconds west longitude.

Lahaina Noon announces itself with shadowless drama. Vertical objects cast no shadows because the sun’s rays are directed perpendicularly to the Earth’s surface.

The place on the surface receiving perpendicular rays is known as the subsolar point. Sunlight always forms an angle of 90 degrees with the subsolar point.

May’s Lahaina Noon reflects the sun’s apparent journey across Earth’s sky toward its northernmost zenith at the Tropic of Cancer. The June solstice marks the instant of the subsolar point’s placement on the Tropic of Cancer.

The term Lahaina Noon comes from a naming contest sponsored in 1990 by the Hawai’I State Museum of Natural and Cultural History, known as the Bernice Pauahi Museum, in Honolulu. Lahaina derives from the Hawaiian descriptor lā hainā, which means “cruel sun.”

The authentic Hawaiian phrase for the solar phenomenon is kau ka lā i ka lolo (“the sun rests on the brains”), according to Nancy Alima Ali during her tenure as manager of the Hokulani Imaginarium at Windward Community College in Kaneohe (Hawaiian: Kāneʻohe), southeastern Oahu. Native Hawaiians equate the disappearance of a person’s shadow with extreme personal power, expressed as a spiritual energy called mana. During Lahaina Noon, a person’s mana collects inside and effects an alignment with universal forces.

Located in Hilo, ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawai’i captures the astronomical event through illumination of the atrium floor’s mosaic by the center’s sunlit skylight. The atrium’s circular atrium measures 14 feet in diameter and comprises 140,000 individual glass tiles.

The glass-tile mosaic is an adaptation of “Voyage of the Navigator,” a center-commissioned oil painting by the island’s Puna district artist, Clayton Bryant Young. The original painting, which measures about 40 inches square, hangs in the ‘Imiloa Center’s conference room.

Tropical latitude in the Hawaiian archipelago determines the exact date and time of Lahaina Noon. As the most northerly of the eight main Hawaiian Islands, the Big Island of Hawaii claims first instances of Lahaina Noon during the sun’s northward passage in May.

The takeaway for Hilo’s welcome of the first 2017 Lahaina Noon Thursday, May 18, is the Hawaiian archipelago’s uniqueness as the only U.S. state with subsolar points.

May 2017 Lahaina Noon dates
Thursday, May 18, at 12:16 p.m. at Hilo, Hawaii (the Big Island)
Thursday, May 18, at 12:20 p.m. at Kailua-Kona, Hawaii (the Big Island)
Tuesday, May 23, at 12:20 p.m. at Hana, Maui
Tuesday, May 23, at 12:24 p.m. at Lanai City, Lanai
Wednesday, May 24, at 12:22 p.m. at Kahului, Maui
Wednesday, May 24, at 12:23 p.m. at Lahaina, Maui
Thursday, May 25, at 12:25 p.m. at Kaunakakai, Molokai
Friday, May 26, at 12:28 p.m. at Honolulu, Oahu
Wednesday, May 31, at 12:35 p.m. at Lihue, Kauai

Acknowledgment

My special thanks to talented artists and photographers/concerned organizations who make their fine images available on the internet.

Image credits:

Texas-born, Hawaii-transplanted artist Clayton Bryant Young's Voyage of Discovery mosaic is fully illuminated by the twice-yearly solar phenomenon of Lahaina Noon in 'Imiloa Astronomy Center' atrium, Hilo, the Big Island, Hawaii: Imiloa Astronomy Center @imiloaastronomycenter, via Facebook May 17, 2011, @ https://www.facebook.com/imiloaastronomycenter/photos/a.107428654186.116707.46156119186/10150257280579187/

For further information:

Bryan, E.H. (Edwin Horace), Jr.; Richard Crowe; and Timothy F. Slater. Stars Over Hawaii. Third revised edition. Hilo HI: Petroglyph Press, 2015.

Burnett, John. “Artistic Voyage: ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii’s Floor Mosaic Is Puna Man’s Vision.” Hawaii Tribune Herald. March 3, 2006.
Available @ http://www.claytonyoungstudio.com/uploads/1/2/5/2/12522754/clayton_young_artistic_voyage.pdf

Imiloa Astronomy Center @imiloaastronomycenter. "Voyage of the Navigator last year's Lahaina Noon 2010." Facebook. May 17, 2011.
Available @ https://www.facebook.com/imiloaastronomycenter/photos/a.107428654186.116707.46156119186/10150257280579187/

Jenn K. “Lahaina Noon.” Living Hilo Style. May 18, 2016.
Available @ https://livinghilostyle.com/2016/05/18/lahaina-noon/

"Lahaina Noon 2017 + Tips to Avoid Sunburn on Hawaii Vacations." Beat of Hawaii. April 6, 2017.
Available @ http://beatofhawaii.com/lahaina-noon-10-tips-to-avoid-sunburn-on-hawaii-vacation/

Living Hilo Style @livinghilostyle. “Lahaina Noon.” Twitter. May 18, 2016.
Available @ https://twitter.com/livinghilostyle/status/733116036090724352

“Sky Gate and Lahaina Noon -- Astrological Attraction in Honolulu, Hawaii.” Only In Hawaii > Attractions > Architectural Landmarks.
Available @ http://onlyinhawaii.org/sky-gate-lahaina-noon-honolulu-hawaii/?platform=hootsuite

SubaruTelescopeNAOJe. “Lahaina Noon at Subaru Telescope’s Base Facility.” YouTube. Oct. 30, 2012.
Available @ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCjEyITpRAI

Vrecinto. “Hilo Lahaina Noon 2015.” ‘Imiloa Astronomy Center of Hawaii > Blog. May 12, 2015.
Available @ http://blog.imiloahawaii.org/general-information/hilo-lahaina-noon-2015/