The 1972 North Indian Ocean cyclone season was part of the annual cycle of

tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depen ...

formation. The season had 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 ~19.8% of the water on Earth's surface. It is bounded by Asia to the north, Africa to the west and Australia to the east. To the south it is bounded by t ...

. 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, bounded on the west and northwest by India, on the north by Bangladesh, and on the east by Myanmar and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands of India. Its southern limit is a line betwee ...

to the east of the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a list of the physiographic regions of the world, physiographical region in United Nations geoscheme for Asia#Southern Asia, Southern Asia. It is situated on the Indian Plate, projecting southwards into the Indian O ...

and the

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea ( ar, اَلْبَحرْ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Bahr al-ˁArabī) is a region of the northern Indian Ocean bounded on the north by Pakistan, Iran and the Gulf of Oman, on the west by the Gulf of Aden, Guardafui Channel ...

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 p ...

in this basin is the India Meteorological Department (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.

Systems

Cyclone One (01B)

Tropical Storm Five (05B)

Cyclone Nine (09B)

This storm was formed on 7 September, possibly due to a storm's remnant from the West Pacific Ocean. it gradually intensified to a Very Severe Cyclonic Storm by 9 September. The storm made landfall at Ichhapuram in

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

on 10 September. Due to the storm, 100 people and 8000 cattle were perished.

Puri Puri () is a coastal city and a municipality in the state of Odisha in eastern India. It is the district headquarters of Puri district and is situated on the Bay of Bengal, south of the state capital of Bhubaneswar. It is also known as '' ...

Odisha Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...

recorded gust winds up to 185 kmph (115 mph). Heavy damages to agricultural crops took place at Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. Nearly 2 lakh people were affected by the storm. Ganjam District in Odisha was the worst affected by the storm. It was one of the most intense cyclones to hit India in the month of September.

Cyclone Ten (10B)

This cyclone was formed on 20 September and intensified to a Very Severe Cyclonic Storm despite being present over the upwelled waters due to Cyclone 09B. It made landfall at Gopalpur in

on 22 September and dissipated by the next day. Wind gusts of up to 140 kmph (85 mph) were recorded at the time of landfall. Despite severe damage to crops and houses, no deaths due to the storm were reported.

Cyclone Twelve (12A)

Cyclone Fourteen (14B)

This cyclone was formed on 15 November and gradually intensified to a Severe Cyclonic Storm. After making an erratic loop, the storm made landfall at Sriharikota on 22 November. The lowest pressure was 983 hPa/millibars (29.0 inches) and wind gusts of up to 165 kmph (100 mph) were measured by the ship ATAF. 80 people were reportedly killed due to the storm. Several trees were uprooted and thousands of people were rendered homeless.

Cyclone Sixteen (16B)

This storm has killed 80 people and 150 cattle. 30,000 people were rendered homeless.

Cuddalore Cuddalore, also spelt as Kadalur (), is the city and headquarters of the Cuddalore District in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Situated south of Chennai, Cuddalore was an important port during the British Raj. While the early history of Cudda ...

recorded gust winds up to 150 kmph (95 mph) at the time of landfall. Total damages in Indian Rupees were estimated to be 40 crores. The cyclone is visible on ''

The Blue Marble ''The Blue Marble'' is an image of Earth taken on December 7, 1972, from a distance of around from the planet's surface. Taken by the crew of the Apollo 17 spacecraft on its way to the Moon, it is one of the most reproduced images in history ...

'' photo taken by Apollo 17.

References

External links

India Meteorological DepartmentJoint Typhoon Warning Center
{{TC Decades, Year=1970, basin=North Indian Ocean, type=cyclone 1972 North Indian Ocean cyclone season