A study conducted by Indian scientists found that the intensity of severe cyclonic storms in the North Indian Ocean region has shown an increasing trend in the past four decades. The increasing intensity of severe cyclonic storms with major Socio economic implications was due to atmospheric parameters like higher relative humidity, especially at mid-atmospheric level, weak vertical wind shear as well as warm sea surface temperature (SST). This indicates the role of global warming in bringing about this increasing trend, the study suggests.
A team of scientists, including Jiya Albert, Athira Krishnan, and Prasad K Bhaskaran from the Department of Ocean Engineering and Naval Architecture, IIT Kharagpur, jointly with K S Singh, Centre for Disaster Mitigation and Management, VIT University, Vellore, studied the role and influence of critical atmospheric parameters in large-scale environmental flow and El Nino-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on tropical cyclone activity in the North Indian Ocean.