Cyclone Fengal In Bay Of Bengal Due To Its Warming
Warming of Bay of Bengal is giving rise to more frequency of Cyclones, sea surface temperature in the Bay of Bengal has increased by 0.2 to 0.3°C.
As the planet warms, extreme weather events from cyclones are becoming more frequent and intense. Now Cyclone “Fengal’ over the Bay of Bengal is making landfall today. Cyclone Fengal is set to make landfall on the Tamil Nadu-Puducherry coast between Karaikal and Mahabalipuram. There is a red alert for the region.
Tamil Nadu – Puducherry and south Andhra Pradesh are facing localised flooding of roads, water logging in low lying areas and closure of underpasses due to cyclone.
The main reason for increase in the frequency and intensity of cyclones in The Bay of Bengal is that it has been warming due to climate change. This has led to more intense tropical cyclones and other impacts.
Topography
The Bay of Bengal is surrounded by land on three sides creating a basin like structure which traps and intensifies moisture laden air. The western Ghats prevents the moisture from moving to Arabian sea. This creates a conducive environment for a cyclone.
Warming
Due to climate change and global warming the sea surface temperature (SST) in the Bay of Bengal has increased by 0.2 to 0.3°C in the last 45 years, and is expected to rise by 2.0 to 3.5°C by the end of the century. Thus Bay of Bengal also has warmer temperature as compared to Arabian Sea. This warm water provides energy to fuel a cyclone.This makes it a primary hotspot for Indian Ocean Cyclones.
Marine Heat Waves
The area of the Bay of Bengal with a sea surface temperature greater than 31°C has increased from 0.1% to 29% between 2007 and 2021. In May 2021, a marine heat wave event lasted more than 20 days, which contributed to the rapid intensification of Cyclone Yaas. The northern Bay of Bengal has been experiencing an intense marine heatwave since June 28, 2023. Marine heatwaves, “are prolonged periods of anomalously high sea surface temperature”.
According to Genesis and trends in marine heatwaves over the tropical Indian Ocean and their interaction with the Indian summer monsoon, which Roxy Koll, climate scientist at the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, co-authored, there were 94 heatwave events from 1982 to 2018.
Cyclone Intensity
The Bay of Bengal has seen an increase in the intensity of cyclones in the last two decades. The high temperatures in the Bay of Bengal can intensify cyclonic storms by adding more convection.
Ocean Acidification
Ocean acidification is a problem that may have wide-ranging consequences for species throughout the ocean. The pH of the Bay of Bengal has decreased by 0.2 units since 1994. The coastal Bay of Bengal has seen a more rapid decrease in pH than the global ocean. Ocean acidification occurs when the ocean absorbs carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. Human activities like burning fossil fuels and changing land use increase the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere, which is then absorbed by the ocean.
The writer of this article is Dr. Seema Javed, an environmentalist & a communications professional in the field of climate and energy
