The seasonal occurrence of cyclones is something that humans are still getting used to as they pose as one of the most destructive natural phenomena on the planet. These intense storms or wind pressure systems are usually formed between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn due to the earth’s rotation and the Coriolis force that it creates.
Another reason for their formation between the tropics is due to the availability of warm water because the sunlight is mostly concentrated in these parts of the earth. The hot water and varying pressure systems provide essential fuel to the engine that runs the cyclone. This warm water evaporates, rises into the atmosphere, and condenses to form clouds and precipitation, releasing latent heat in the process, which further fuels the storm’s development.
In a recent event a cyclonic storm named ‘Remal’ slammed into the coasts of Bangladesh, bringing destructive winds reaching speeds of up to 120 kilometers per hour along with storm surges that flooded hundreds of villages. According to the Meteorological Department, ‘Remal’ weakened into a cyclonic storm on the morning of May 27, maintaining sustained wind speeds of 80-90 kilometres per hour after making landfall around midnight on Sunday.
But how are the Cyclones, Hurricanes and Typhoons actually named? let’s find out.
Before 1953, tropical storms and hurricanes were identified and tracked based on the year and the sequence in which they occurred during that year, rather than being assigned specific names like they are today.
Initially, the United States exclusively used female names for storms. It wasn’t until 1978 that male names were introduced, but initially, they were only assigned to storms in the Northern Pacific. It wasn’t until the following year that storms in the Atlantic basin began to be named.
But before we delve deeper into how these storms are known regionally we must understand these storms are known by different names in different parts of the world. Meteorologists use the term ‘Tropical Cyclone’ to signify these intense wind pressure systems, but in the North Atlantic and the eastern/central North Pacific oceans, they are termed Hurricanes.
While in the western South Pacific and Indian oceans, they are known as Cyclones a term we are most familiar with. Typhoons, on the other hand, are specific to the western North Pacific, commonly affecting regions around the Philippines, Japan, and China.
The adoption of short, distinctive names for storms, as opposed to using cumbersome latitude-longitude identifications, has proven advantageous in disseminating vital storm information among numerous scattered stations, coastal bases, and ships at sea.
Additionally, the use of easily recalled names helps minimize confusion, especially during periods when two or more tropical storms occur simultaneously.
In the past, the lack of standardized naming often led to confusion and the spread of false rumours. Storm advisories broadcasted by radio stations sometimes pertained to entirely different storms located hundreds of miles away, exacerbating the confusion among the public.
The process of naming storms is overseen by an international committee of the United Nations World Meteorological Organization. The Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre (RSMC) for Tropical Cyclones is tasked with monitoring and predicting tropical cyclones within their designated regions. Additionally, they have the responsibility of assigning names to the cyclones.
For naming the cyclones in the Indian Ocean Region in 2000, during its twenty-seventh session in Muscat, Sultanate of Oman, the WMO/ESCAP Panel on Tropical Cyclones agreed to assign names to tropical cyclones in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea. Commencing from September 2004, after extensive discussions among member countries, the naming process began. Names are listed alphabetically by country and used sequentially column-wise.
For instance, the first name starts from the first row of column one and continues to the last row in column eight, for example, Onil, Hibaru, Pyarr, Baaz, Amphan etc. The RSMC tropical cyclones in New Delhi assign identification names from this list, covering both the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal.
For Atlantic hurricanes, there are six alphabetical lists of names, each rotated through every six years. In essence, each list is repeated every seventh year. However, changes to the list may occur if a storm causes significant devastation or loss. In such cases, the offending name is removed from the list at the committee’s annual meeting, and a replacement name is chosen.
In conclusion, the naming of cyclones, hurricanes, and typhoons serves not only as a practical means of communication but also as a crucial tool in mitigating confusion and disseminating vital storm information. With standardized naming procedures overseen by international committees, communities can better prepare and respond to these destructive natural phenomena.
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