Kaicast

About Us

KaiCast was created by people who love the ocean and wanted a better way to share real snorkeling conditions across Hawai‘i. We bring together live data, community reports, and real-world experience so you always know when and where it’s best to jump in. Whether you’re looking for clear visibility, calm seas, or a good spot for spearfishing, KaiCast helps you plan your perfect day in the water.

How Our System Works

Kaicast uses its own proprietary forecasting system called abyss — the world's first dive visibility forecasting engine of its kind. Abyss pulls together data from multiple environmental sources — atmosphere, ocean waves, satellite imagery, ocean state, tides, and runoff — to predict underwater visibility conditions with a level of precision never seen before in the diving world.

Atmosphere

Wind, rain, pressure, UV. Drives wave generation and determines runoff risk after storms.

GFS

ECMWF / ERA5

NOGAPS

OpenWeatherMap

Ocean waves

Swell height, period, direction. Wave orbital velocity at depth = sediment resuspension.

WaveWatch III

NDBC buoys

Spectral decomp

Satellite remote sensing

KD490 light attenuation — the direct satellite measure of water clarity. 1.7 ÷ KD490 = Secchi depth.

CMEMS (KD490)

MODIS / VIIRS

Sentinel-3 OLCI

Jason-3 / SWOT

Ocean state

3D currents, temperature profiles, thermocline depth. Affects visibility below the surface layer.

HYCOM

CMEMS physics

CO-OPS currents

Tides + runoff

Tide phase controls sediment flushing. Post-rain runoff plumes are the #1 acute visibility killer.

NOAA CO-OPS

USGS stream gauges

Rain rollups (OWM)

Ground truth loop

Diver reports, community feedback, site calibration. The longer it runs, the smarter Abyss gets.

Kaicast reports

Site calibration

Hindcast (ERA5)