Cyclonic storm building off Tamil Nadu, Sri Lanka coast: IMD
24 Apr 2019
The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecast the building up of a cyclone in the South-West Bay of Bengal off Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu with the low pressure area forming by Thursday.
The ‘low-pressure’ is expected to intensify into a depression by Friday and may develop into a tropical cyclone by Sunday, IMD said.
While the location would be to the South-East of Sri Lanka where the ‘low-pressure’ is expected to intensify as a depression by the day after and a tropical cyclone by Sunday, forecasts on the course of the cyclone are yet to come.
It could likely strengthen further before hitting the coast between Chennai and Puducherry by Wednesday, and weaken as it crosses into the neighbouring Rayalaseema and Coastal Andhra Pradesh, according to IMD.
The US Climate Prediction Centre sees chances of the cyclone re-entering the Bay off the Andhra Pradesh coast and intensifying again to a fresh cyclone.
It would then move into the open Bay and pick a north-north-east course towards the Arakan coast (Myanmar) or adjoining Bangladesh coast, it said.
Some other forecasts see the cyclone weakening over interior Tamil Nadu, and travelling westwards to enter the Arabian Sea off Kerala-Karnataka coasts where it could find fresh traction.
Yet another forecast sees the preparatory ‘low pressure’ shooting-off like a meteor from near South-East Sri Lanka and travelling an east-north-east direction towards Myanmar/Bangladesh.
While the final shape is yet to be forecast, the cyclone, taking shape during the pre-monsoon months, will have some impact on the monsoon.