The Atmospheric Science Librarians International (ASLI) announced their ASLI Choice Award winners for 2012 on Wednesday afternoon at the ASLI exhibit. The awards, now in their eighth year, are presented for the best books of the year in the atmospheric sciences and are judged in the following criteria: uniqueness, comprehensiveness, usefulness, quality, authoritativeness, organization, illustrations/diagrams, competition, and references.
Awards were given in four categories: science, history, popular, and reference (a new category this year), and in one case a series was honored rather than a book. The winners by category are:
Science
The Future of the World’s Climate (Second Edition), edited by Ann Henderson-Sellers and Kendal McGuffie, published by Elsevier, 
chosen for “the broad scientific context that it provides for current efforts to model and predict climate change.”
Honorable mention–Atmospheric Physics: Background–Methods–Trends, edited by Ulrich Schumann, published by Springer, for its “up-to-date essays on facets of the atmosphere, the methods and instruments used to conduct research in the field, and upcoming research trends.”
History
Hawai’i’s Mauna Loa Observatory: Fifty Years of Monitoring the Atmosphere, by Forrest M. Mims III, published by the University of Hawai’i Press, 
for “its engaging perspective on the scientists, discoveries, and ground-breaking atmospheric measurements done at Mauna Loa Observatory.”
Honorable mentions–Lake Effect: Tales of Large Lakes, Arctic Winds, and Recurrent Snows, by Mark Monmonier, published by Syracuse University Press, for “its clear and accessible examination of lake-effect snow, a regionally important meteorological phenomenon, and how it has shaped the history of the Great Lakes region”; History of the Meteorological Office, by Malcolm Walker, published by Cambridge University Press, for “a thorough account of the scientists, science, and achievements of the Met Office from its earliest beginnings to the present day”; and The Discovery of Weather: Stephen Saxby, the Tumultuous Birth of Weather Forecasting, and Saxby’s Gale of 1869, by Jerry Lockett, published by Formac Publishing, for “a readable history of the evolution of weather forecasting, the Gale of 1869, and Saxby’s prediction of the storm.”
Reference
The Atmospheric Chemist’s Companion: Numerical Data for Use in the Atmospheric Sciences, by Peter Warneck and Jonathan Williams, 
published by Springer, for “its well-organized assembly of frequently needed numerical data and measurement techniques.”
Honorable mention–Kinikmi Sigum Qanuq Ilitaavut–Wales Inupiaq Sea Ice Dictionary, compiled by Winton Weyapuk Jr. and Igor Krupnik, edited by Igor Krupnik, Herbert Anungazuk, and Matthew Druckenmiller, published by the Smithsonian Institution, for “preserving, documenting, and illustrating the terms for sea ice and associated phenomena in the Kingikmiut dialect.”
Popular
Princeton Primers in Climate series, edited by Alison Kalett, published by Princeton University Press, for “for brief, readable books on key topics in climate science that provide essential knowledge and point to further investigation.”
Congratulations to all the winners! Go to the ASLI Choice Award page to find out how to nominate a book for the 2013 awards.