Maryland  is a state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States.   Maryland is a life sciences hub with over 350 biotechnology firms, making it the third-largest such cluster in the nation. Institutions and agencies located throughout Maryland include the University System of Maryland, The Johns Hopkins University, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Celera Genomics, Human Genome Sciences , the J. Craig Venter Institute , the Food and Drug Administration , MedImmune (recently purchased by AstraZeneca), the National Institutes of Health , and the National Institute of Standards and Technology .Climate
   Maryland has wide array of climates for a state of its size. It depends on numerous variables, such as proximity to water, elevation, and protection from colder weather due to downslope winds.
   The eastern half of Maryland lies on the Atlantic Coastal Plain, with very flat topography and very sandy or muddy soil. This region has a humid subtropical climate, with hot, humid summers and a short, mild to cool winter.
   Precipitation in the state is characteristic of the East Coast. Annual rainfall ranges from 35 to 45 inches with more in higher elevations.Nearly every part of Maryland receives 3.5–4.5 inches per month of precipitation. Snowfall varies from 9 inches  in the coastal areas to over 100 inches.
   More often, Maryland might get the remnants of a tropical system which has already come ashore and released most of its wind energy. Maryland averages around 30–40 days of thunderstorms a year, and averages around six tornado strikes annually.