The Cyclonic Storm ‘AMPHAN’ (pronounced as UM-PUN)
- Posted By
10Pointer
- Categories
Environment
- Published
19th May, 2020
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Context
- 'Amphan' which is pronounced as UM-PUN is an extremely severe cyclonic storm that is set to hit Odisha and West Bengal and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has given a cyclone alert to these states.
- The IMD also announced that the severe cyclonic storm has intensified into Super Cyclonic Storm.
- Amphan is the first super cyclone to hit the region in the last two decades since a super cyclone hit Odisha in 1999 causing widespread damage and loss of life.
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What is a cyclone, hurricane and a typhoon?
- They are all the names for the same storm system.
- A tropical cyclone is a rotating storm system that has a low-pressure centre. It is characterized by strong winds, spiral arrangements of the thunderstorm, and heavy rainfall.
- When this storm develops in the Atlantic Ocean and northeastern Pacific Ocean it is called a hurricane, in the north-western Pacific Ocean is called a typhoon and in the south Pacific or the Indian Ocean is referred to as "tropical cyclones" or "severe cyclonic storms.
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How are they named?
- In modern times, there is a proper procedure and authoritative bodies that determine the names of tropical cyclones and hurricanes.
- For tropical cyclones such as the present one, the Tropical Cyclone Regional Body responsible for that basin will finalise the names in its annual or biennial meeting.
- There are 5 tropical cyclone regional bodies- ESCAP/WMO Typhoon Committee, WMO/ESCAP Panel on Tropical Cyclones, RA I Tropical Cyclone Committee, RA IV Hurricane Committee, and RA V Tropical Cyclone Committee.
- Similarly, there is a Hurricane Committee to determine names of hurricanes. The names that are selected does not represent any person and it is ensured that it is familiar to the people in the region. After criticism about using only female names for naming storms male names were also included in the list.
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Why was the name Amphan chosen?
- According to information from WMO, in 2000, WMO/ESCAP Panel on Tropical Cyclones at its twenty-seventh Session held in 2000 in Muscat, Sultanate of Oman agreed to assign names to the tropical cyclones in the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea.
- And the naming began from 2004 with inputs from eight members. Since that time five more countries have joined the panel.
- Amphan happens to be the last name on that pre-determined list and the first one to be used in the year 2020. You may also remember others such as Fani and Maha which were also from the list.
- In the future the tropical cyclones will named from a new list of 169 names which starts with the name Nisarga, then Gati followed by Nivar.
- There is also Shaheen, Gulab, Tej, and Aag in the list.
- The RSMC New Delhi Tropical Cyclone Center is responsible to name the tropical cyclones that have formed over the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea when they have reached the relevant intensity.
