At 5.30 a.m. on Monday (May 9), severe cyclonic storm Asani was 550 km southeast of Visakhapatnam and 680 km south-southeast of Puri, moving at roughly 25 km/h towards the Andhra Pradesh-Odisha coast, according to the India Meteorological Department (IMD).
The first cyclone of 2022, Asani, emerged in the North Indian Ocean area, which includes the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea. Sri Lankans gave him the moniker Asani, which means fury in Sinhala.
In May, systems forming over the Bay of Bengal were among the most powerful in the North Indian Ocean area. Warm oceans are ideal for cyclogenesis and the fueling of these systems in the water.
Cyclones Fani and Amphan, both classified as “very severe,” caused damage in Odisha and West Bengal, respectively. Cyclone Asani, on the other hand, is likely to brush the coast rather than make landfall. Even while Asani’s course does not match that of cyclone Jawad, which developed in the Bay of Bengal in December, its expected recurving behaviour as it gets close to the south Odisha coast would likely be similar.
On May 6, a low-pressure system formed over the southeast Bay of Bengal, near the Andaman Sea, which is the initial stage of a cyclone. On May 7, less than 24 hours later, this system had intensified three times, moving from well-defined low pressure to depression to profound depression. It’s unusual for a system to intensify that quickly when at sea.
Cyclone Asani had created and was travelling north-westwards towards India’s east coast by early Sunday morning (May 8). The storm had strengthened into a’severe’ cyclone by the evening of the same day, with wind gusts of 100 to 110 km/h.
As cyclone Asani approaches the shore, rains and strong winds will intensify, mostly along the coasts of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha. Fishermen have been urged not to go out to sea until the storm passes. Beginning Monday, sea conditions near the shore will deteriorate (May 9).
From Tuesday evening, the districts of Gajapati, Ganjam, and Puri in Odisha will experience mild to moderate rainfall, with isolated areas receiving severe rainfall (70 mm to 100 mm in 24 hours). Rainfall will continue to fall in these areas on Wednesday, spreading to Jagatsinghpur, Khorda, and Cuttack. Rain will continue to fall on Thursday in Puri, Cuttack, and Jagatsinghpur, as well as Bhadrak, Balasore, and Kendrapara districts.
According to the IMD, Asani is unlikely to cross into land.
According to the storm’s planned trajectory and current projections, it will continue to travel northwestwards towards the north Andhra Pradesh-Odisha coast until Tuesday, when it will recurve, avoiding these states and continuing north-northeastward away from India’s coastline.
Asani will weaken into a ‘cyclone’ with speeds of 60 to 80 km/hr between Tuesday and Thursday, then weaken further into a deep depression and eventually a depression by May 12.
