Hyderabad: Extremely high temperatures on land and warming of the oceans have created conducive conditions for weather disturbances in the Bay of Bengal leading to frequent and back-to-back cyclones in the months of April, May, October and November.
The recent cyclone Fani is a case in point.
According to meteorologists, the intensity and frequency of cyclones will be greater in the region in future.
“There is increased intensity in cyclones due to warming of the atmosphere. This leads to a rise in temperature of water in the sea. The sub-surface water temperatures are leading to severe cyclones,” says weather expert Mahesh Palawat.
The moisture in the air due to extreme heat conditions has also intensified due to extreme temperatures. The Bay of Bengal has witnessed an increase in cyclonic activity over the last 20 years as higher temperatures affect the geo-thermal energy in the region. A study on the increasing intensity of cyclones in the Bay of Bengal was carried out by researchers at the Atmospheric Sciences and Global Change Institute in the United States and it was found that intensity of storms had moved from an Average classification to Category 3 between 1981 and 1995.
It has further gone to Category 4 in the years 1996 to 2010.
K. Nagaratnam of the weather department in Hyderabad explained, “Severe intensity cyclones were noted in 1976 and 1999 in India. Studies state that there is increased intensity now. We can say that there were fewer cyclones earlier but now they are more frequent.”
With data predictions by the Indian Meteorological Department becoming more accurate, the warning signals are disseminated in advance, enabling better evacuation of people from the path of the cyclone or storm.
Experts state that apart from evacuation, there is no other option that can save human lives.
