Spatiotemporal Trends of Tropical Cyclones in Bay of Bengal Basin, India

The vulnerable areas along the east coast of India and Bangladesh, as well as Myanmar and Sri Lanka, are prone to tropical cyclones originating from the Bay of Bengal. This research examined the frequency distribution patterns of these cyclones in the Bay of Bengal region from 1951 to 2020 using track data from the India Meteorological Department (IMD). The findings indicate that a majority of landfall events occurred in coastal districts of Bangladesh (25.34%). In India, Andhra Pradesh (22.17%), Tamil Nadu (15.84%), Odisha (14.93%), and West Bengal (8.60%) experienced the highest number of landfall events. When considering temporal distribution, post-monsoon seasons witnessed the most severe cyclonic storms (SCS) at 67.1%, while monsoon seasons had more cyclonic storms (CS) at 28.1%. Pre-monsoon seasons accounted for approximately 25.2% SCS and 17.7% CS between 1951 and 2020. Trend analysis revealed a higher occurrence rate for SCS during the period from 1971 to 1981 with an average of 3.30 storms per year, while there was a slight increase in overall tropical cyclone activity from 2001 to 2010 with an average annual count of 2.40 storms compared to 2.60 storms per year from 2011 to 2020. The findings of this research demonstrate that the changing patterns of cyclone distribution provide valuable insights for community adaptation, prioritizing relief efforts, and designing effective disaster management plans in the study area.