As the cool breeze rolls around the corner and the deciduous trees lose their vibrant touch of green, the time comes once more to recount the events of the passing summer. Looking back at the summer of 2012, much has happened. Other than the fact that homework and school work were  out of your reach happily for nearly 3 months, many important national and international events came and went. The most important events include the “Drought of 2012”, the landfall of Hurricane Isaac, and of course the London Olympic Games of 2012.

   During this summer, the United States felt the impact of one of the most extensive droughts in the past decade. As the drought continued to spread in the states, most parts of the mid-west experienced this mild to extreme (D1-D4) drought. The temperature and extremity of the drought continually increased throughout the summer months. The number of states that were affected by the drought increased from 33% in June to 38% in July, until nearly 57% of states were affected by the end of July. However, the most devastating part of this drought was the number of corn crops that were damaged throughout the Midwest region. Corn is one of the most heavily used product in the U.S. This year, up to 87% of the corn in the region was affected by the heat. This certainly is bad news for movie goers, as the price of popcorn is expected to rise. On top of that, corn is used to manufacture oil, sugar, adhesives, dyes, and even penicillin. This means  the prices of nearly all of these products are likely to rise on the market. In the meat market, the raising of livestock could also be affected by the corn crop. This is because chickens are fed a mixture of 70% corn, and cows are fed a 93% corn-based diet. Overall, this  led to farmers resorting to drilling underground for any hopes of water. However, in late August, their crop was endangered yet again. This time, ironically, it was Hurricane Isaac, which brought harmful flood waters. The farmers reluctantly harvested and sold their crops early.

    The beginning of June though November is known as Hurricane Season, peaking from August to October. This year, however, the season has been marked by one hurricane known as Isaac. Isaac started as a tropical storm in the lower Atlantic region. As the storm continued to advance toward the Bahamas, it matured to a category one hurricane. The first landfall of this storm happened on August 25th in the island country of Haiti. As the hurricane approached Cuba, the National Guard there was informed of the devastation in Haiti, leading many people to evacuate the region. On August 29th, the 7 year anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, Isaac hit New Orleans. This time around, the city was much more prepared, even featuring a working levee system that held off the 14 feet high water surges. Areas around New Orleans weren’t so lucky and faced conditions of 20+ feet of water. As the hurricane moved north, it decreased to a tropical storm and hit the states of the Midwest very mildly.

   The most exciting event that happened this summer was the Games of the 30th Olympiad in London. The final Olympic Medal Count for the U.S. stands at 104 total medals: 46 gold, 29 silver, and 29 bronze, putting them in first place overall. During these games, Queen Elizabeth congratulated Team Great Britain on having their greatest gold medal haul in decades. Usain Bolt lived up to his expectations and gained gold medals in the 100m, 200m, and 4x100m relay. The top medal count taken home by individuals was 6 by Michael Phelps and 5 by Missy Franklin. After the summer games, Phelps gained the title of “Most Decorated Olympian of all Time”, with 22 medals in all. The 2012 Olympics, from the queen parachuting at the Opening Ceremony to the collection of the Olympic Flag by Rio’s Mayor, was fantastic. (On a second note, rugby and golf will be added to the 2016 Olympics.)

   Summer 2012 was packed full of a carnival of events, from natural disasters to exciting games that brought the world together. As we are fitting into thus new schedule and new school year, recounting these events will keep them in our memory.