The TBH desk
Another cyclone is coming to the Bay of Bengal without drying the wounds of Cyclone Midhili which recently hit Bangladesh.
In the first week of December, the cyclone called ‘Migjaum’ is likely to hit Barisal and Chittagong regions of the country.
Cyclones ‘Moka’ and ‘Hamun’ have wreaked havoc on the country’s coast this year. And if ‘Migjaum’ hits, Bangladesh will see a record cyclone in a season.
Meteorological experts are worried about the repeated attacks of cyclones. At the same time, they blame global warming and climate change for so many storms.
Shahnaz Sultana, a Met department meteorologist told the media that a seasonally normal low pressure is present over the South Bay of Bengal, which may turn into a low pressure next Wednesday (November 29). Whether or not the low pressure will develop into a cyclone will be known by the speed and nature of the cyclone.
Citing various meteorological organizations, the Indian media reported that the ‘Migjaum’ cyclone is going to form in the Bay of Bengal. Which can affect the coasts of Bangladesh, India and Myanmar. This will be the fourth cyclone to form in the Bay of Bengal in 2023.
It is known that a strong cyclone will enter the Bay of Bengal from the Gulf of Thailand next Monday. Which will gradually accumulate energy towards the northwest. It may intensify into a cyclonic storm on Wednesday.
In response to the question, Mustafa Kamal Palash, a weather and climate researcher at Saskatchewan University in Canada, said that whether a low pressure in the Bay of Bengal will turn into a full-fledged cyclone depends on several weather-related factors. For example, the trajectory of the jet steam in the Indian subcontinent and various weather characteristics, especially the direction and value of the air flow at different heights of the atmosphere, air pressure, wind shear, sea surface temperature, water temperature of 26 degrees Celsius for the formation and strengthening of cyclones, the amount of thermal energy required for the cyclone to accumulate in the ocean.
He said, due to the increase in greenhouse gases in the atmosphere and the increase in temperature, the speed of cyclones has been decreasing for 30 years. Due to the slowness, the cyclone has more time to wreak havoc in its path. In this regard, meteorologist Bajlur Rashid of the Meteorological Department said that El Nino has a relationship with warming and increase in the number of cyclones. As a result, the number of cyclones in our country has increased.
Meteorologist Md. Abul Kalam Mallik said that from 1891 to 2022 there have been 1,620 cyclones and severe cyclones in the country. And 941 depressions have formed. Out of this, there were 255 in October, 219 in November and 105 in December. There were 42 cyclones in October, 74 in November and 28 in December. From 1891 to 2022, there have been 129 depressions in October, 71 in November and 45 in December.
Bangladesh has been hit by three cyclones in one year. Professor Saiful Islam of Bangladesh University of Engineering (BUET) Institute of Water and Flood Management does not consider that normal. He said that earlier in 2021 there were three cyclones in one year. This time all three cyclones hit the coast of Bangladesh. This is not normal, it has not happened in 50 years.