Important Cyclones 2019-2020

Source: PIB & IMD

NAME OF THE CYCLONE/STORM	ORIGIN, & AREAS OF AFFECTED	NAMED BY	SPECIAL FEATURE
PABUK	Origin: Pabuk originated as a tropical disturbance in the South China Sea(Gulf of Thailand) on December 28, 2018, which organized into a tropical depression on December 31. A day later, on January 1, 2019, the system intensified into a tropical storm and was named Pabuk Areas Affected: Malaya Peninsula, Andaman, and Nicobar, Myanmar, Vietnam, The adjoining areas of east-central and south-east Bay of Bengal	Pabuk is a name given by Laos and means a ‘big freshwater fish’.	It was the earliest-forming storm in both the Northwestern Pacific Ocean and North Indian Ocean basins on record. Forming on the last day of 2018, Pabuk persisted into 2019, spanning two calendar years, and crossed into the North Indian Ocean basin several days later.
FANI	Origin: Fani originated from a tropical depression that formed west of Sumatra in the Indian Ocean on 26 April. Areas Affected: Odisha, West Bengal, Andra Pradesh, East India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka	The name of the Cyclone ‘Fani’, pronounced as ‘Foni’ was suggested by Bangladesh. It means ‘Snake’ or ‘hood of the snake’.	The second named storm and the first severe cyclonic storm of the 2019 North Indian Ocean cyclone season According to the IMD, in the past 126 years (1891-2017) only 14 severe tropical cyclones have formed in April over the Bay of Bengal. Out of those, only one storm crossed the Indian mainland. Cyclone Fani was the second storm to form in April and cross the mainland.
VAYU	Origin: Vayu originated from a low-pressure area that was first noted by the India Meteorological Department (IMD) on 9 June, near the northern Maldives. After consolidating into a depression, the storm tracked slowly north-northwestward over the eastern Arabian Sea, and reached cyclonic storm intensity late on 10 June. Areas Affected: the ‎Maldives, India(Gujarat), Pakistan, Oman	The name Vayu was provided by India, and is derived from a Sanskrit and Hindi word meaning ‘wind’.	It was the strongest tropical cyclone to affect the Saurashtra Peninsula of northwestern India since the 1998 Gujarat cyclone Vayu was the third tropical depression, third cyclonic storm and second very severe cyclonic storm of the 2019 North Indian Ocean cyclone season, and the first of which to form in the Arabian Sea.
HIKAA	Origin: Arabian Sea Areas Affected: Gujarat, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Yemen	The name ‘Hikka’ or ‘Makunu Hikka’ has been given by the Maldives	–
BULBUL	Origin: Andaman Sea/ Bay of Bengal Areas Affected: Myanmar, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Eastern India, Bangladesh	After crossing the Indochinese Peninsula, Severe Tropical Storm Matmo’s remnants entered the Andaman Sea. It began to organize over the southern Bay of Bengal in the beginning of November, then it slowly intensified into a cyclonic storm as it moved north.	It is only the fourth tropical cyclone ever recorded to regenerate over the Andaman Sea, having crossed Southeast Asia overland (thus sharing with the name Matmo in operational JTWC advisories). In addition, it is only the second to make it to hurricane strength, the first being in 1960
KYAR	Origin: East-central Arabian Sea Areas Affected: Western India, Oman, Yemen, Somalia	Myanmar	It was a super cyclonic storm. It was an extremely powerful tropical cyclone that became the first super cyclonic storm in the North Indian Ocean since Gonu in 2007. It was also the strongest tropical cyclone in the Arabian Sea ever recorded and the second-most intense tropical cyclone in North Indian Ocean history, only behind the 1999 Odisha cyclone.
MAHA	Origin: Arabian Sea Areas Affected: Sri Lanka, Southern India, Maldives, Western India, Oman	Pakistan	It was an extremely severe cyclonic storm
PAWAN	Origin: Southwestern Arabian Sea, east of Somalia Areas Affected: India, Somalia	Sri Lanka	It was the 5th cyclone to enter the Arabian sea in 2019

The naming of cyclones over North Indian Ocean

The names of cyclones in the Bay of Bengal, the Indian Ocean and the Arabian Sea are decided by eight countries. Each of them lists out eight names which are approved by the weathermen of these countries. So each time the list has 64 names. The countries take turns to name the cyclones. The first cyclone named by India was Agni, in 2004, and the last one was Vayu in 2019

The countries that get to name the cyclones are India, Pakistan, Oman, Myanmar, Bangladesh, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Thailand

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Tags: Prelims