Early Warning System for Tropical Storms in India

Abstract

The cyclone warning service of India Meteorological Department (IMD) is more than a century old. Cyclone warnings are provided by IMD from the Area Cyclone Warning Centres (ACWCs) at Calcutta, Chennai and Mumbai and Cyclone Warning Centres (CWCs) at Bhubanes-war, Visakhapatnam and Ahmedabad. IMD has developed the necessary infrastructure to originate and disseminate the cyclone warnings at appropriate levels. It has operationalised a satellite based communication system called Cyclone Warning Dissemination System for direct dissemination of cyclone warnings to the cyclone prone coastal areas. IMD runs operationally limited area Analysis and Forecast System (LAFS), based on OI analysis and limited area, PE model, to provide numerical guidance. Forecasting of Tropical Cyclones (TCs) is done mainly through conventional synoptic methods. This paper describes the facilities available in IMD for TC analysis and forecasting, the warnings and bulletins issued by it, the numerical model in vogue and lastly a case study of the recent Gujarat Cyclone of June 1998.