2015 Hurricane Season

Last year, the east coast of the state was impacted by high surf from Hurricane Arthur as it moved north of the coast of Titusville before brushing the Outer Banks. Beyond that, 2014 was another quiet year for Florida. It's been a 10 years since Dennis, Katrina, Rita and Wilma rattled an already reeling state from the 2004 Hurricane season. We've enjoyed a rather quiet time since 2005, but Florida is always at risk during each hurricane season. It is important that you and your family have a hurricane kit and hurricane plan, so that when an impending hurricane threatens your area you are ready to act.

Here are some links to get you started:

Forecasters have issued their predictions for the upcoming season, calling for a below average hurricane season. Regardless of the forecast, residents of Florida should take the time to prepare as June 1st marked the beginning of the year's Hurricane Season, which runs until November 30th.

Southeast Climate Extension Project Enters Fifth Year

Team members for the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) sponsored Southeast Climate Extension project met in Quincy, Florida on May 11th and 12th to plan the activities for the final year grant. The project partners researchers at FSU, University of Florida, University of Georgia, Clemson University and Auburn University with Extension professionals to inform the agricultural community on climate variability and to promote new technologies for more sustainable agriculture in the Southeast. Highlights for the coming year include an Agriculture Solutions Day to be held at Orange Beach, Alabama on August 10th, where many of these adaptation technologies will be demonstrated for area farmers and Extension. The Florida Climate Center has been a key partner in the project throughout the past 4 years and the lead on climate science.

Florida 4-H Weather and Climate Toolkit Training in Georgia

Last year, Assistant State Climatologist Melissa Griffin and Northwest Regional Specialist 4-H Agent Ms. Heather Kent released a toolkit that will help 4-H agents and volunteers across the state of Florida teach the basics of weather and climate to middle school youth. This collaborative effort, under the USDA/NIFA Climate Education through Extension Grant, was highlighted in a workshop with University of Georgia (UGA) 4-H Agents in Perry, GA on May 15th. Joined by Pam Knox, an Agricultural Climatologist with UGA, Ms. Griffin and Ms. Kent spent time discussing the goals of each unit of the toolkit and demonstrated a variety of the hands on activities geared to teach about the importance of weather and climate. The lessons within the toolkit are being explored for adaptation within the Georgia 4-H curriculum.

Climatologists Provide Information to Local Grower

After meeting at a community event back in 2014, Assistant State Climatologist Melissa Griffin, along with University of Georgia Agricultural Climatologist Pam Knox, have been in contact with a citrus grower, providing him with climate information on freeze probabilities for locations in the Florida Big Bend and Southwest Georgia. Thankful for the continued data support and communication, both climatologists were invited out to tour his satsuma fields outside of Bainbridge, GA and see how the trees faired during the 2014-2015 winter.