Abstract
In the Bay of Bengal (BoB) area, landfalling Tropical Cyclones (TCs) often produce heavy rainfall that results in coastal flooding and causes enormous loss of life and property. However, the rainfall contribution of TCs in this area has not yet been systematically investigated. To fulfil this objective, firstly, this paper used TC best track data from the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) to analyze TC activity in this area from 1998 to 2016 (January–December). It showed that on average there were 2.47 TCs per year generated in BoB. In 1998, 1999, 2000, 2005, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013, and 2016 there were 3 or more TCs; while in 2001, 2004, 2011, 2012, and 2015, there was only 1 TC. On a monthly basis, the maximum TC activity was in May, October, and November, and the lowest TC activity was from January to April and in July. Rainfall data from the Tropical Rainfall Measurement Mission (TRMM) were used to estimate TC rainfall contribution (i.e., how much TC contributed to the total rainfall) on an interannual and monthly scale. The result showed that TCs accounted for around 8% of total overland rainfall during 1998–2016, and with a minimum of 1% in 2011 and a maximum of 34% in 1999. On the monthly basis, TCs’ limited rainfall contribution overland was found from January to April and in July (less than 14%), whereas the maximum TC rainfall contribution overland was in November and December (16%), May (15%), and October (14%). The probability density functions showed that, in a stronger TC, heavier rainfall accounted for more percentages. However, there was little correlation between TC rainfall contribution and TC intensity, because the TC rainfall contribution was also influenced by the TC rainfall area and frequency, and as well the occurrence of other rainfall systems.
Highlights
Neumann [1] reported that 7% of global Tropical Cyclones (TCs) took place in the North IndianOcean (NIO)
Weaker TCs (i.e., Cyclonic Storm (CS) and Severe Cyclonic Storm (SCS)) were more an eastern part and a western part through 90 °E longitude. ◦Weaker TCs (i.e., CSs and SCSs) were inclined to generate over the west part of Bay of Bengal (BoB), and made landfall on the east coast of more inclined to generate over the west part of BoB, and made landfall on the east
TC activity was strong in premonsoon (8 TCs in May) and post-monsoon months (12 TCs in October, and 13 TCs in November), and the weakest in the period of January–April with only 1–3 TCs per month
Summary
Neumann [1] reported that 7% of global Tropical Cyclones (TCs) took place in the North Indian. On a global basis, based on rain gauge observations, studies have been conducted to reveal the landfalling TCs’ rainfall contribution for regions such as Southeastern South America and surrounding islands [8,9,10,11,12], the Northern Australia coasts [13,14], and the Northwestern Pacific areas [15]. Jiang and Zipser [17] showed that the TC rainfall contribution (i.e., how much TC contributed to the total rainfall) was 8–9%, 7%, 11%, 5%, 7–8%, and 3–4% in the North Atlantic, east-central Pacific, western North Pacific, NIO, south Indian Ocean, and South Pacific, respectively. In the BoB, landfall TCs associated with heavy rainfall frequently caused flooding in the coastal regions of India, Bangladesh, and Myanmar, leaving the local agricultural crops, livestock, houses, and human lives in a vulnerable state.
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