The 1979 North Indian Ocean cyclone season was part of the annual cycle of

tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its locat ...

formation. The season has no official bounds but cyclones tend to form between April and December. These dates conventionally delimit the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the northern

Indian Ocean The Indian Ocean is the third-largest of the world's five oceanic divisions, covering or approximately 20% of the water area of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia (continent), ...

. There are two main seas in the North Indian Ocean—the

Bay of Bengal The Bay of Bengal is the northeastern part of the Indian Ocean. Geographically it is positioned between the Indian subcontinent and the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese peninsula, located below the Bengal region. Many South Asian and Southe ...

to the east of the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

and the

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea () is a region of sea in the northern Indian Ocean, bounded on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel, on the northwest by Gulf of Oman and Iran, on the north by Pakistan, on the east by India, and ...

to the west of India. The official

Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre A Regional Specialized Meteorological Centre (RSMC) is responsible for the distribution of information, advisories, and warnings regarding the specific program they have a part of, agreed by consensus at the World Meteorological Organization as ...

in this basin is the

India Meteorological Department India Meteorological Department (IMD) is an Indian agency of the Ministry of Earth Sciences of the Government of India. It is the principal agency responsible for meteorological observations, weather forecasting and seismology. IMD is headquar ...

(IMD), while the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) releases unofficial advisories. An average of five tropical cyclones form in the North Indian Ocean every season with peaks in May and November. Cyclones occurring between the meridians 45°E and 100°E are included in the season by the IMD.

Summary

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Systems

Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm One (1B)

The system formed on 6 May close to the coast of Sri Lanka. It moved towards northwest in its existence after making a small loop. On 13 May, the cyclone made landfall near

Ongole Ongole (), natively known as Ongolu, is a city in Prakasam district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is the headquarters of Prakasam district. It is known for Ongole cattle, an indigenous breed of oxen. Etymology The name 'Ongole' i ...

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

and dissipated rapidly by the same day. The storm killed 700 people and 300,000 cattle. Nellore reported wind gusts up to 155 km/h (95 mph). In Peddaganjam and Kovuur, storm surges were up to 12 ft, which led to

coastal flooding Coastal flooding occurs when dry and low-lying land is submerged (flooded) by seawater. The range of a coastal Flood, flooding is a result of the elevation of floodwater that penetrates the inland which is controlled by the topography of the coas ...

in those areas. Together, 4 million people were affected by the storm and nearly 700,000 houses were damaged.

Tropical Storm Two (2A)

Tropical Storm Three (3B) (Hope)

Tropical Storm Four (4B/4A)

Tropical Depression Five (5B)

Tropical Storm Six (6B)

Tropical Storm Seven (7A)

Tropical Depression Eight (8B)

References

External links

India Meteorological DepartmentJoint Typhoon Warning Center

Some Large-Scale Characteristics Associated with Tropical Cyclone Development in the North Indian Ocean during FGGEIBTrACS Website
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