June 1 marks the beginning of the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season, which runs until November 30. Already this year, two storms have been named before the traditional June 1st start date. Tropical Storm Alberto formed off the South Carolina coast and drifted offshore from Georgia before it dissipated. Tropical Storm Beryl formed in the same region as Alberto and drifted southwest before moving east and making landfall near Jacksonville Beach on the morning of May 28. The storm provided much-needed rain to drought-stricken parts of Florida. However, both storms were reminders that tropical systems can form outside of the typical 6-month season.

On May 30, researchers at Florida State's Center for Ocean-Atmospheric Prediction Studies (COAPS) released their fourth annual Atlantic hurricane season forecast, which predicts 13 named storms and 7 hurricanes. For more information on their forecast, as well as the forecasts of other major organizations, please click on the following link: http://coaps.fsu.edu/hurricanes/.  

After being under the influence of La Ni�a conditions for the past two years, the transition to neutral conditions of El Ni�o-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) has taken place. To see what this transition means for our ongoing drought, the upcoming hurricane season, and the state's wildfire threat, please click the following link: http://www.agroclimate.org/forecasts/current_climate_outlook.php.  

Assistant state climatologist Melissa Griffin appeared at the Tallahassee National Weather Service's WeatherFest, held May 3 at the Tallahassee Regional Airport. This year's event focused on hurricane preparedness and brought together a variety of organizations to showcase the operations, procedures, and emergency responses that take place during hurricane season. Dr. Lydia Stefanova, Ms. Heather Holbach, and Ms. Meredith Field from the Center for Ocean-Atmospheric Prediction Studies (COAPS) at Florida State University joined Ms. Griffin at WeatherFest. COAPS activities included a cloud in a bottle, a visual demonstration of storm surge and coastal erosion, and a rain gauge relay race. An estimated 1,250 people attended the event, including over 1,000 school children from local Florida and Georgia school districts.

State climatologist David Zierden, along with other members of the Southeast Climate Consortium, met with a group of minority farmers on May 24 in Epes, Alabama. The group is the Southern Federation of Southern Cooperatives, a partnership of farming groups that help promote opportunities for minority farmers. The workshop was titled "Helping Black Farmers Manage Future Drought" and aimed at making climate information and predictions more useful for small farmers. Southeast Climate Consortium researchers learned about the climate-based challenges of growing such commodities as goats, vegetables, corn, and cattle. Mr. Zierden presented on long-term climate trends in western Alabama and year-to-year variability as controlled by the El Ni�o/La Ni�a cycle.

In late May, assistant state climatologist Melissa Griffin attended the annual planning meeting of the WERA 1012 group, which is tasked with managing and utilizing precipitation observations from volunteer networks. WERA 1012's primary focuses are to promote, improve, educate and conduct research within the collaborative group from land grant universities across the U.S. Ms. Griffin currently serves as the state coordinator for the Florida Community Collaborative Rain, Hail & Snow Network (CoCoRaHS) and the chair of the Training and Education sub-committee, and will spend the next year working on a variety of projects as part of this corporative effort.

On May 23, assistant state climatologist Melissa Griffin attended Career Day at STARS Middle School in Tallahassee, FL. Mr. Austin Todd, an oceanography PhD student at COAPS, joined Ms. Griffin in giving a presentation on the different jobs that are available in atmospheric and oceanographic sciences. They highlighted some of the current and ongoing research done at the center and talked about their experiences in their respective fields.