April 15th, 2009 Category: Tropical Cyclones

Tropical Cyclone 01B - April 15th, 2009

TC 01B - enhanced image

Tropical Cyclone 01B, located approximately 375 nautical miles east of Chennai, India, has tracked west-northwestward at 6 knots over the past 6 hours.

Recent imagery indicates that increased deep convection has persisted over a well organized low level circulation center (LLCC).

TC 01B has begun to increase track speed over the past 6 hours from a quasi-stationary position and is tracking to the west-northwest.

A mid-level ridge located over India and another mid-level ridge located over southeast Asia have caused a weak steering environment over the past 24 hours.

However, in the last 6 hours the increase in track speed suggests that the ridging to the west of the cyclone has become more of a dominant influence and will help to track the system to the west-northwest and eventually turn it more northward.

Upper level analysis indicates that there is subsidence on the northern periphery of the LLCC, which will hinder outflow in the poleward channel, leaving only the equatorward outflow.

Track of TC 01B

Based on the single channel outflow and interaction with the upper level subsidence over the northern portion of the Bay of Bengal, the forecast intensifies TC 01B at a climatological rate through TAU 48 with only small increases beyond that time.

Sea surface temperatures and vertical wind shear are favorable for increased development
throughout the forecast period. Maximum significant wave height is 12 feet.

Tags: 01B Bay of Bengal Chennai India Indian Ocean Tropical Cyclone |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

March 26th, 2009 Category: Rivers

Bay of Bengal - March 24th, 2009

In the lower part of this image, many rivermouths can be seen pouring brown sediments into the Bay of Bengal, along the coasts of Bangladesh and northeastern India. The wide rivers visible to the North, below the Himalayas, are also loaded with sediments.

The Ganges River comes into view at the center left, entering Bangladesh from India. The Brahmaputra River, on the other hand, flows down from the upper right. Its name changes to Jamuna once it enters Bangladesh, near the curve where its course changes to the South.

These two rivers and many others, including the Padma, Meghna, Ayeyarwady, Godavari, Mahanadi, Krishna and Kaveri, all flow into the Bay of Bengal.

Tags: Ayeyarwady River Bangladesh Bay of Bengal Brahmaputra River Ganges River Godavari River Himalayas India Jamuna River Kaveri River Krishna River Mahanadi River Meghna River Padma River |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

February 24th, 2009 Category: Fires

Fires in Indochina - February 24th, 2009

Detail of fires

Southeast Asia is veiled by smoke from hundreds of fires burning in Myanmar (right), Bhutan (center right) and India (left).

Bangladesh (center), is free of actual fires although it there is heavy smoke over the area. The cloud of smoke can also be seen blowing out over the Bay of Bengal.

The burning of fires in order to prepare land for crop planting is a common practice in Myanmar and India (please click here for previous articles on agricultural fires in India). Although the fires do not usually pose a direct threat, they can have a strong negative impact on things such as natural resources and air quality.

Tags: Bangladesh Bay of Bengal Bhutan Burma Fires India Myanmar |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

February 20th, 2009 Category: Snapshots

Southern tip of India - February 19th, 2009

The tip of India is divided into two states: Tamil Nadu, the more orange-colored terrain to the East, and Kerala, the greener land to the West. The Bay of Bengal can be seen to the right, the Arabian Sea to the left.

Tamil Nadu covers an area of 130,058 square kilometres (50,216 sq mi), and is the eleventh largest state in India. The southernmost tip of the Indian Peninsula is located in Tamil Nadu.

The western, southern and north western parts  are hilly and rich in vegetation. Tamil Nadu is the only state in India which has both the Western Ghats and the Eastern Ghats, these two ranges meet at the Nilgiri hills.

Tamil Nadu is heavily dependent on monsoon rains, and thereby is prone to droughts when the monsoons fail. The climate of the state ranges from dry sub-humid to semi-arid.

The Eastern parts are fertile coastal plains and the Northern parts are a mix of hills and plains. The Central and the South Central regions are arid plains and receive less rainfall than the other regions.

The Western Ghats dominate the entire western border with Kerala, effectively blocking much of the rain bearing clouds of the South West Monsoon from entering the state.

Kerala is wedged between the Arabian Sea and the Western Ghats. Its coast runs for some 580 km (360 miles), while the state itself varies between 35 and 120 km (22–75 miles) in width.

Geographically, Kerala can be divided into three climatically distinct regions: the eastern highlands (rugged and cool mountainous terrain), the central midlands (rolling hills), and the western lowlands (coastal plains).

Eastern Kerala consists of high mountains, gorges and deep-cut valleys immediately west of the Western Ghats’ rain shadow.

Kerala’s western coastal belt is relatively flat, and is criss-crossed by a network of interconnected brackish canals, lakes, estuaries, and rivers known as the Kerala Backwaters.  Kerala’s rivers face many problems, including summer droughts, the building of large dams, sand mining, and pollution.

With 120–140 rainy days per year, Kerala has a wet and maritime tropical climate influenced by the seasonal heavy rains of the southwest summer monsoon. In eastern Kerala, a drier tropical wet and dry climate prevails.

In summers, most of Kerala is prone to gale force winds, storm surges, cyclone-related torrential downpours, occasional droughts, and rises in sea level and storm activity resulting from global warming.

Tags: Arabian Sea Bay of Bengal Eastern Ghats India Kerala Kerala Backwaters Nilgiri Hills Tamil Nadu Western Ghats |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

February 10th, 2009 Category: Rivers

Bangladesh - February 2nd, 2009

Islands in the Bay of Bengal, off the coast of Bangladesh, in the country’s Chittagong region, can be seen here.

The various wide rivermouths are some of those of the Ganges River. The radar (ASAR) image makes the water currents visible; they can be clearly seen flowing south into the Bay of Bengal.

Tags: Bangladesh Bay of Bengal Chittagong Ganges River |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

February 3rd, 2009 Category: Rivers

Eastern central India - January 22nd, 2009

The Eastern Ghats are a discontinuous range of mountains along India’s eastern coast. They run from the West Bengal state in the north, through Orissa and Andhra Pradesh (the region in the upper half of the image) to Tamil Nadu in the south.

They are eroded and cut through by the four major rivers of southern India, the Godavari, Mahanadi, Krishna, and Kaveri. The Godavari River can be seen at the bottom center.

Other secondary rivers are visible as well, including the Vamsadhara River, to the North in Orissa and Andhra Pradesh, and the Sabari River, further inland, running parallel to the coastline. All of the rivers appear tan colored due to sediments.

The mountain ranges run parallel to the Bay of Bengal. Between the two there is an area of coastal plains. These plains appear green or greenish brown, whereas the mountains are darker brown in color.

The Deccan Plateau lies to the west of the range, between the Eastern Ghats and Western Ghats. The Eastern Ghats are not as high as the Western Ghats, although they are older.

Tags: Andhra Pradesh Bay of Bengal Eastern Ghats Godavari River India Orissa Sabari River Sediments Vamsadhara River Western Ghats |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

January 30th, 2009 Category: Snapshots

South India and Sri Lanka - January 22nd, 2009

Southern India and Sri Lanka, in the Indian Ocean about 31 km (19.3 mi) south of the mainland, can be observed here.  The two countries are separated by the Palk Strait and the Gulf of Mannar. The Bay of Bengal is on the upper right.

A phytoplankton bloom reaches across Palk Bay, filling the space between India and Sri Lanka. This bloom seems to have increased in intensity since the last time the area was observed on this website (click here for article).

The Cardamom Hills, part of the southern Western Ghats mountain range, can be observed on the southwestern part of South India.

The hills cover about 2,800 km² of mountainous terrain with deep valleys, and include drainage of the west-flowing Periyar, Mullakudy and Pamba rivers.

The crest of the hills form the boundary between Kerala and Tamil Nadu. The highest peak in the range is Anamudi, with a height of 2,695 metres (8,842 ft) .

These hills experience average daily temperatures of 15°C in winter to 31°C in summer (April-May).

On the western side, two-thirds of the precipitation is received during the southwest monsoon from June to September. The areas also receive rainfall from the northeast monsoon (October-December) and from pre-monsoon showers (April-May).

The Cardamom Hills are comprised largely of several contiguous protected areas intended to restrict human access, protect specific endangered species and preserve some of the still undeveloped forest biomes.

Tags: Bay of Bengal Cardamom Hills Ceylon Gulf of Mannar India Indian Ocean Palk Bay Palk Strait Phytoplankton Sri Lanka Western Ghats |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

January 22nd, 2009 Category: Snapshots

Sri Lanka - December 2nd, 2008

Sri Lanka, formerly known as Ceylon, is located about 31 kilometres (19.3 mi) off the southern coast of India, in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal and southeast of the Arabian Sea.

It is separated from the Indian subcontinent by the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait. A phytoplankton bloom reaches across either end of Palk Bay, between Sri Lanka and India.

Sri Lanka’s terrain consists mostly of flat-to-rolling coastal plains, with mountains rising only in the south-central part. Amongst these are Sri Pada (Adams Peak) and the highest point Pidurutalagala, at 2,524 meters (8,281 ft).

On the southern end of the island, the Walawe Ganga (Walawe River) can be seen. Sri Lankan rivers provide freshwater to the population.

Sri Lanka’s climate can be described as tropical, and quite hot. Its warm climate is moderated by ocean winds and considerable moisture.

The island is frequently affected by tropical cyclones, which bring rains to the southwest, northeast, and eastern parts of the island. Between December and March, monsoon winds come from the northeast, bringing moisture from the Bay of Bengal.

Tags: Adams Peak Arabian Sea Asia Bay of Bengal Ceylon Gulff of Mannar India Indian Ocean Monsoon Winds Palk Bay Palk Strait Phytoplankton Pidurutalagala Sri Lanka Sri Pada Tropical Cyclone Walawe Ganga Walawe River |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment

December 25th, 2008 Category: Image of the day

Ramree Island, Myanmar (Burma) - November 24th, 2008

In today’s image, phytoplankton are visible in the waters of the Bay of Bengal, along the coast of Myanmar (Burma).

The large island in the lower right quadrant is Ramree Island. It has an area of about 1350 km².

The smaller island below it is Cheduba Island (also known as Manaung Island). It has an area of approximately 202 km².

Ramree Island is also the location of a proposed gas pipeline system to be built from the Myanmarese Indian Ocean coast to the province of Yunnan in China.

Tags: Bay of Bengal Burma Cheduba Island Manaung Island Myanmar Ramree Island |  Print This Post |  Email This Post | | Leave a comment