Cyclone Montha, a new cyclonic storm, is expected to make landfall on October 28. The states that will most be affected by this cyclone are Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and Tamil Nadu as per the Indian Meteorological Department
Image for representational purpose only. Photo Courtesy: File pic
Cyclone Montha, a new cyclonic storm, is expected to make landfall on October 28. The states that will most be affected by this cyclone are Andhra Pradesh, Odisha, and Tamil Nadu as per the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD). The weather department has further warned that a low pressure area has formed over the Bay of Bengal, and the depression is likely to strengthen over the period of next few days.
Each tropical storm is named by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO), to avoid confusion, facilitate disaster risk awareness, management and mitigation. As there can be more than one cyclone at a time in a particular geographical location or around the globe and the systems can last more than a week or more.
In the North Indian Ocean, which includes the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea, cyclones are named by the WMO/ ESCAP Panel of Tropical Cyclones. The panel includes 13 countries-- India, Maldives, United Arab Emirates, Myanmar, Iran, Yemen, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh, Oman, Qatar and Pakistan.
The term 'Montha' means beautiful or fragrant flower, specifically the white champaca (Magnolia alba) flower. This name was contributed by Thailand. This flower is admired in Thai culture for its beauty and fragrance.
Cyclones form over warm ocean waters. When the warm water provides the heat and moisture to fuel the storm, the process creates a cycle of rising air, cloud formation, condensation, which fules the storm. The Earth's rotation then causes this system to spin, with the direction of rotation being counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere.
Once a cyclone has formed and sustained wind speeds, typically 34 knots or more reach a threshold for naming. Each name can only be used once. If a cyclone causes exceptional loss of life and damage, its name is replaced and retired with a new one to avoid confusion.
The first cyclonic storm of the season was named 'Shakthi,' as suggested by Sri Lanka. The cyclone originated in the Arabian Sea and intensified into a cyclonic storm in early October. However it spared Maharashtra and Gujarat by moving away from the Indian coastline.
The next cyclonic storm will be named 'Seynar,' as per the naming sequence for the North Indian Ocean. 'Seynar' means 'a lion,' and the name is contributed by the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
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