The 2024 North Indian Ocean cyclone season is an ongoing event in the annual cycle of tropical cyclone formation. It has been unreasonably less active in terms of formation of cyclonic storms.[1] The season has no official bounds, but cyclones tend to form between April and December, with the peak from May to Early November. These dates conventionally delimit each year when most tropical cyclones form in the northern Indian Ocean.
After four months of inactivity, on 21 May, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) began monitoring a cyclonic circulation in the Bay of Bengal.[3] Later that day, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) would also begin tracking the system, noting that it was likely to become a monsoon depression.[4] The next day, the IMD noted that a low-pressure area had formed adjacent to the cyclonic circulation.[5] Late on 23 May, the IMD upgraded the system into a well-marked low, stating that it was rapidly coalescing.[6] The next day, the IMD stated that the depression formed in the Bay of Bengal, designating it as BOB 01.[7] Subsequently, the JTWC issued a Tropical Cyclone Formation Alert (TCFA), noting the depression's broad circulation center and its improving rainbands.[8] The next day, BOB 01 intensified into a deep depression.[9] The JTWC would recognize the system as a cyclone, designating it as 01B.[10] Soon after, the depression intensified into a cyclonic storm, causing the IMD to name it Remal.[11] On 26 May, Remal intensified into a severe cyclonic storm with 3-minute sustained winds of 95 km/h (60 mph). Due to favourable conditions, including high sea surface temperatures over northern Bay of Bengal and low wind shear, Remal intensified further with wind speeds reaching 110 km/h. It made landfall over Bangladesh and adjoining West Bengal on the night of 26 May. Landfall process had been completed by the morning of 27 May and had weakened into a cyclonic storm. Cyclone Remal was the most powerful cyclonic Storm of the 2024 North Indian Ocean Cyclone Season.
On 19 July, IMD marked an area of low pressure off the coast of Odisha. The disturbance was later upgraded into a depression, designated as BOB 02.[12] The disturbance later moved inland, weakened back into a low-pressure area.[13]
On 31 July, a cyclonic circulation formed over Gangetic West Bengal. Tracking westward, on 2 August, the disturbance developed into a depression. Two days later, it intensified further, becoming a deep depression over southwest Bihar.[14] Continuing its westward track, on 5 August, the system weakened into a depression.[15] It dissipated the next day.[16]
Due to the westward shift of the monsoon trough, the depression formed on land instead of the usual formation in the Bay of Bengal.[17]
As a result of the depression, Dum Dum in Kolkata received 100 millimetres (3.9 in) of rain on 3 August.[18]
On 24 August, a cyclonic circulation formed over Madhya and Uttar Pradesh. Early the next day, on 25 August, the IMD noted that it had developed into a land depression over Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.[19] Later that day, the depression intensified into a deep depression southeast of Udaipur.[20] On 27 August, the JTWC began tracking the deep depression, noting that it was in a marginal environment for development.[21] Two days later, on 29 August, they issued a TCFA on the developing depression,[22] prior to designating it as Tropical Cyclone 02A early the next day.[23] Later that same day, on 30 August, the IMD upgraded it into a cyclonic storm, naming it Asna.[a][25][26] It further moved into the Arabian Sea.[27] On 1 September, Asna was stripped of any convection due to dry air entrainment and degenerated to a remnant low.[28]
Many parts of Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh were flooded due to heavy rains from the storm. p to 260 mm (10 in) of rain fell in Vadodara and Ahmedabad recorded 120 mm (4.7 in) of rainfall.[29][30] Flooding in Gujarat killed 49 people.[31][32] An initial survey reported that the Government of Gujarat suffered damages worth more than ₹250 crore (US$30 million) to government properties and public infrastructure.[33]
On 29 August, the IMD marked an area of low pressure in the Bay of Bengal. Two days later, early on 31 August, the IMD upgraded it into a depression, designated as BOB 03, off the coast of Andhra Pradesh. It made landfall that same day before weakening back to a low pressure inland.
27 deaths from rain related incidents were recorded in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.[34] Flooding caused by the depression resulted in a loss of ₹7,600 crore (US$906 million) and ₹5,438 crore (US$648 million) in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana respectively.[35][36]
Late on 5 September, the IMD marked an area of low pressure in the Bay of Bengal. On 7 September, it got upgraded to a depression by the IMD and marked as Invest 92B by the JTWC. Then, on 8 September, it got upgraded to a deep depression off the coast of Odisha. On 9 September, the deep depression made landfall in Odisha and weakened back down to a prominent low pressure system. Two days later, the IMD reupgraded the system into a depression over Madhya Pradesh. On 13 September, the depression finally dissipated over northwest Uttar Pradesh.
After degenerating into a remnant low, the weak remnants of Typhoon Yagi would begin tracking towards the North Indian Ocean,[37] causing the IMD to start tracking it as a cyclonic circulation over Myanmar on 11 September.[38] This disturbance would coalesce into a low-pressure area the next day,[39] further developing into a well-marked low-pressure just a few hours later.[40] Soon after, it developed into a depression.[41] Early the next morning, it became a deep depression over Bangladesh and West Bengal.[42] On 15 September, it weakened back down to a depression as it slowly moved westwards over western India.
Due to heavy rain from this system, seven people were killed by landslides in Cox's Bazar District.[43] Five fishermen also died[44] and over 500 more went missing in the district.[45] In Cox's Bazar, 378 mm (14.9 in) of rain was recorded within a 12-hour period from 11 to 12 September.[46] These heavy rains resulted in the flooding of over 200 villages within seven upazilas of the district.[44] Another 11 people were killed by flooding in Noakhali District,[47] where 100 fishermen went missing. Additionally, two people were killed when a boat capsized in Jagannathpur Upazila.[48] In India, heavy rains lashed Kolkata and West Bengal. 72.4 mm (2.85 in) of rain was recorded over a 24-hour period, with a total of 125.8 mm (4.95 in) was recorded in Kolkata.[49]
Due to the heavy rains, the Damodar Valley Corporation released more than 3.5 lakh cusec of water from its dams, resulting in inundation of Birbhum, Bankura, Howrah, Hooghly, North and South 24 Parganas, Purba and Paschim Medinipur, and Paschim Bardhaman districts of West Bengal. 28 people were killed due to these floods and 25,000 people had to moved to safer areas.[50]
On 11 October, the IMD marked an area of low pressure in the Arabian Sea. Two days later, late on 13 October, the IMD upgraded it into a depression, designated as ARB 01. On 15 October, it degenerated back to a low pressure due to increased dry air making it more disorganized. Later that same day, it stalled over the coast of Oman before dissipating.
On 14 October, a well marked low pressure area formed in the south of the Bay of Bengal. The IMD upgraded it to a depression, designating it as BOB 06, early on 15 October as it moved west-northwestwards before making landfall in Andhra Pradesh on 17 October at 04:30 IST. It weakened further into a low pressure area as it moved north-westwards into India and dissipated.[51]
In the wake of this system, heavy rains slashed Puducherry, Chennai and other parts of Andhra Pradesh, bringing these areas to a standstill. Bengaluru and its adjoining areas too received heavy rainfall. Residential neighbourhoods and roads were inundated with knee-deep water, causing widespread disruptions to daily life. The relentless downpour led to traffic congestion, crippled public transportation services, and forced the cancellation of several flights. The Southern Railway announced the cancellation and diversion of several trains due to waterlogging.[52]
A low pressure area formed in the south Bay of Bengal on October 20. On October 21, it organised into a well-marked low pressure area. It strengthened into a depression on October 22.[53] The same day in the evening, it had consolidated into a deep depression and moving in a west-northwest direction.[54] Over the next 6 hours, it intensified into cyclonic storm and was named Dana by the IMD.[b] On October 23, it further intesified into a severe cyclonic storm.[56] The system made landfall between 23:30 IST of October 24 and 08:30 IST of October 25 close to Habalikhati Nature Camp (Bhitarkanika) and Dhamra Port on the Odisha Coast, weakening into a cyclonic storm.[57] It weakened into a deep depression at a distance of 40 km north-northwest of Bhadrak[58] and then into a depression about 70 km east-southeast of Keonjhar and remained stationary over that area, weakening further into a remnant low and dissipated on October 26.[59]
On 14 November, the Bureau of Meteorology noted that a tropical low could form west of Sumatra.[60] Several days later, they noted that the tropical low was developing.[61] Further consolidation due to a westerly wind burst led to the formation of a low-pressure area over Southeast Bay of Bengal on 23 November.[62] By 24 November, it intensified into a well-marked low pressure area. It intensified further into a depression on 25 November, moving northwestwards towards Tamil Nadu and Sri Lanka coast. On 26 November, it intensified further into a deep depression, later moving into Sri Lanka. On 29 November, the system strengthened into a cyclonic storm and was named Fengal by the IMD.[63] On 30 November, the cyclonic storm made landfall between Karaikal and Mahabalipuram close to Puducherry as a cyclonic storm.[64][65] The next day, on 1 December, the remnants of the cyclone weakened to a deep depression and then further into a depression over the same region.[66] It weakened further into a remnant low over north interior Tamil Nadu on 2 December.[67] Subsequently, the system emerged over coastal Karnataka and proceeded into the Arabian Sea,[68] and dissipated 2 days later.
Storm names
Within this basin, a tropical cyclone is assigned a name when it is judged to have reached cyclonic storm intensity with winds of 65 km/h (40 mph). The names were selected by a new list from the Regional Specialized Meteorological Center in New Delhi by mid-2020.[69] There is no retirement of tropical cyclone names in this basin as the list of names is only scheduled to be used once before a new list of names is drawn up. Should a named tropical cyclone move into the basin from other basins, then it will retain its original name. The next four available names from the list of North Indian Ocean storm names are below.[70]
This is a table of all storms in the 2024 North Indian Ocean cyclone season. It mentions all of the season's storms and their names, duration, peak intensities according to the IMD storm scale, damage, and death totals. Damage and death totals include the damage and deaths caused when that storm was a precursor wave or extratropical low. All of the damage figures are in 2024 USD.
^The name Asna was provided by Pakistan, which means the one to be acknowledged or praised in Urdu.[24]
^The name Dana, was suggested by Qatar, which is an Arabic word meaning "generosity". It holds cultural significance in Arabic culture, signifying ‘the most perfectly sized, valuable, and beautiful pearl.’[55]
^Tropical Weather Outlook no.1 (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 20 July 2024. Archived from the original on 26 October 2019. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
^Tropical Weather Outlook no.2 (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 21 July 2024. Archived from the original on 26 October 2019. Retrieved 21 July 2024.
^Tropical Weather Outlook (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 4 August 2024. Archived from the original on 4 August 2024. Retrieved 4 August 2024.
^Tropical Weather Outlook (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 5 August 2024. Archived from the original on 5 August 2024. Retrieved 5 August 2024.
^Tropical Weather Outlook (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 6 August 2024. Archived from the original on 6 August 2024. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
^Tropical Weather Outlook(PDF) (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 25 August 2024. Archived(PDF) from the original on 6 September 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
^Tropical Weather Outlook(PDF) (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 25 August 2024. Archived(PDF) from the original on 7 September 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
^Tropical Weather Outlook(PDF) (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 25 August 2024. Archived(PDF) from the original on 5 September 2024. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
^Tropical Weather Outlook(PDF) (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 12 September 2024. Archived(PDF) from the original on 12 September 2024. Retrieved 12 September 2024.
^Tropical Weather Outlook(PDF) (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 13 September 2024. Archived(PDF) from the original on 13 September 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
^Tropical Weather Outlook(PDF) (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 13 September 2024. Archived(PDF) from the original on 13 September 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
^Tropical Weather Outlook(PDF) (Report). New Delhi, India: India Meteorological Department. 13 September 2024. Retrieved 13 September 2024.
