1997 North Indian Ocean cyclone season

Season summary

ImageSize = width:781 height:175 PlotArea = top:10 bottom:80 right:50 left:20 Legend = columns:3 left:30 top:58 columnwidth:270 AlignBars = early DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/05/1997 till:01/12/1997 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal ScaleMinor = grid:black unit:month increment:1 start:01/05/1997 Colors = id:canvas value:gray(0.88) id:GP value:red id:TD value:rgb(0,0.52,0.84) legend:Depression_(31–50_km/h) id:DD value:rgb(0.43,0.76,0.92) legend:Deep_Depression_(51–62_km/h) id:TS value:rgb(0.3,1,1) legend:Cyclonic_Storm_(63–88_km/h) id:ST value:rgb(0.75,1,0.75) legend:Severe_Cyclonic_Storm_(89–117_km/h) id:VS value:rgb(1,0.85,0.55) legend:Very_Severe_Cyclonic_Storm_(118–165_km/h) id:ES value:rgb(1,0.45,0.54) legend:Extremely_Severe_Cyclonic_Storm_(166–220_km/h) id:SU value:rgb(0.55,0.46,0.9) legend:Super_Cyclonic_Storm_(≥221_km/h) Backgroundcolors = canvas:canvas BarData = barset:Hurricane bar:Month PlotData= barset:Hurricane width:10 align:left fontsize:S shift:(4,-4) anchor:till from:14/05/1997 till:20/05/1997 color:ES text:"BOB 01 (ES)" from:26/06/1997 till:30/06/1997 color:DD text:"BOB 02 (DD)" from:29/07/1997 till:03/08/1997 color:DD text:"BOB 03 (DD)" from:04/08/1997 till:07/08/1997 color:DD text:"BOB 04 (DD)" from:20/08/1997 till:27/08/1997 color:DD text:"BOB 05 (DD)" barset:break from:28/08/1997 till:30/08/1997 color:TD text:"BOB 06 (D)" from:19/09/1997 till:27/09/1997 color:ST text:"BOB 07 (SCS)" from:02/11/1997 till:14/11/1997 color:DD text:"ARB 01 (DD)" from:03/11/1997 till:09/11/1997 color:TS text:"Linda (CS)" from:04/11/1997 till:10/11/1997 color:TS text:"03A (CS)" bar:Month width:5 align:center fontsize:S shift:(0,-20) anchor:middle color:canvas from:01/05/1997 till:31/05/1997 text:May from:01/06/1997 till:30/06/1997 text:June from:01/07/1997 till:31/07/1997 text:July from:01/08/1997 till:31/08/1997 text:August from:01/09/1997 till:30/09/1997 text:September from:01/10/1997 till:31/10/1997 text:October from:01/11/1997 till:30/11/1997 text:November

Five tropical cyclones were observed, making 1997 an average season. However, 3 reached Cyclone strength.

Systems

Extremely Severe Cyclonic Storm BOB 01 (01B)

|3-min winds=90 |1-min winds=115 Main article: May 1997 Bangladesh cyclone

On May 13, a near-equatorial trough developed. The poorly organized system slowly tracked towards the north-northwest. The following day, deep convection consolidated around the center of circulation and the Joint Typhoon Warning Center (JTWC) classified the system as Tropical Cyclone 01B. Favorable upper-level conditions and good outflow allowed the storm to intensify. Shortly after, the cyclone attained tropical storm-force winds and turned towards the northeast. While gradually increasing in forward motion, the storm continued to strengthen. On May 17, the cyclone attained winds of 120 km/h (75 km/h), equivalent to a Category 1 hurricane on the Saffir–Simpson scale. By May 18 an eye developed and the storm reached its peak intensity with winds of 215 km/h before making landfall near Chittagong. After landfall, the storm rapidly tracked northeastward inland and dissipated early on May 20. It caused significant damage and 67 fatalities.

Deep Depression BOB 02

|3-min winds=30

Deep Depression BOB 03

|3-min winds=30

Deep Depression BOB 04

|3-min winds=30

Deep Depression BOB 05

|3-min winds=30

Depression BOB 06

|3-min winds=25

Severe Cyclonic Storm BOB 07 (02B)

|3-min winds=55 |1-min winds=65 On September 19, a tropical depression formed from an area of disturbed weather in the western Bay of Bengal. It drifted northwestward towards the Indian coastline, but a mid-latitude trough pulled it northeastward, The depression strengthened to a tropical storm on the 24th, and it reached cyclone strength while paralleling the Indian coastline on 26th. It made landfall in Bangladesh on the 27th, and dissipated shortly thereafter. Tropical Cyclone 2B was responsible for 51 fatalities and left an additional 137 people missing.

Deep Depression ARB 01 (04A)

|3-min winds=30 |1-min winds=35 On November 2, a tropical depression developed over Sri Lanka. It drifted southward, northward, then westward over India. On the 10th, it was upgraded to a tropical storm over the Arabian Sea, and it reached its peak of 65 mi/h winds the next day. Wind shear caused the storm to dissipate over the open waters on the 14th.

Cyclonic Storm Linda (BOB 08)

|3-min winds=35 |1-min winds=65 Main article: Tropical Storm Linda (1997)

Typhoon Linda killed 30 while crossing the Malay Peninsula, emerged into the Bay of Bengal on November 4. It continued westward, reaching cyclone strength again, but vertical shear caused it to dissipate on the 9th.

In southern Thailand, 30 people were killed and 102 others were listed as missing as a result of the storm. Linda damaged at least 100 homes and sank 30 ships in the region. An estimated 6,400,000 m2 of farmland were destroyed by Linda.

Tropical Cyclone 03A

|1-min winds=35 A broad trough of low pressure formed into a tropical depression on November 4 in the central Arabian Sea. It moved westward, slowly intensifying into a tropical storm on the 8th. Vertical shear weakened it to a depression later that day, but on the 9th, just before making landfall on eastern Somalia, it restrengthened to a tropical storm. Tropical Storm Three dissipated on the 10th without causing any reported damage.

References

References

1. Joint Typhoon Warning Center. (1998). "Tropical Cyclone 01B Preliminary Report". World Meteorological Organization.
2. "Bangladesh: Cyclone [ACT: 21-May-97]".
3. "Bangladesh: Cyclone [DHA-02: 01-Oct-97]".
4. Ian Stewart. (November 4, 1997). "5,000 Missing In Storm -- Typhoon Hit Vietnam Coastal Province Like A 'Howling Animal'". The Seattle Times.
5. Suphat Vongvisessomjai. (June 15, 2007). ["Impacts of Typhoon Vae and Linda on wind waves in the Upper Gulf of Thailand and East Coast"](http://rdo.psu.ac.th/sjst/journal/29-5_online/0125-3395-29-5-1199-1216.pdf}}{{Dead link). Songklanakarin J. Sci. Technol..