2012 Atlantic hurricane season



The 2012 Atlantic hurricane season operationally extends from June 1 to November 30, dates that annually define the period of the majority of the tropical activity in the North Atlantic. However, the season began almost two weeks early on May 19, when Tropical Storm Alberto formed just off the United States Eastern Seaboard.

Tropical Storm Alberto
Tropical Storm Alberto originated from an area of low pressure about 100 miles southeast of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The system was forecasted ahead of time by multiple computer models. On the morning of May 19, the system quickly developed, and after organizing enough, the low pressure system was classified as Tropical Storm Alberto. Alberto became a moderate tropical storm before weakening. After wandering southwest and then northeast, Alberto became a tropical depression in the evening hours of May 21.

Invest 90L
Invest 90L was an area of low pressure that formed on February 5 in the Florida Straits region. During the day the storm became better organized and the storm was given a 30% chance of formation. However, as the storm moved northeast, it weakened and its circulation became loose. By the next morning, the storm had already fragmented apart. Nonetheless, Invest 90L brought heavy rains of up to 4 inches in the Florida Keys region.

Invest 91L
Invest 91L formed from an extratropical system that cut off from the jet stream and slowly acquired tropical characteristics a few hundred miles east of Bermuda on April 17. The storm was soon designated as an invest even though the National Hurricane Center did not operationally issue products for it. 91L dissipated the next day.

Invest 92L
Main article: Invest 92L (May 2012)

Invest 92L was an area of low pressure that formed on May 12 at an unusually high latitude near the Azores Islands. The hybrid system quickly developed intense thunderstorm activity near its center and a small eye like feature. The National Hurricane Center placed a 40% formation probability. 92L lost most of its convection during diurnal minimum but began to strengthen the next day. However, entering cool waters, the invest weakened and dissipated by May 15.

Invest 94L
Invest 94L was a large area of low pressure that formed in the Western Caribbean Sea on May 20. The system formed in the ITCZ and generated lots of monsoonal type downpours that caused flooding in the Cayman Islands, Cuba, Jamaica and Honduras. Currently the system is continuing to generate shower activity capable of dropping more than 5" of rain per day.

Storm names
The following names are currently being used to name tropical and subtropical cyclones in the 2012 Atlantic hurricane season. This list is the same one used in the 2006 season. Retired names, if any, will be announced by the World Meteorological Organization in the spring of 2013.