4c Group5 Burma

Group 5 Burma ~Tropical Cyclone Nargis

Grou p5

Group members: Shiu Hoi Man (13) Tang Tse Him (14) Tsang Man Kit (15) Tsui Ka Lam (32) Wong Hiu Ying (33) Wong Man Wa (34)

The location of Burma

Tropical cyclone • Storm system characterized by a low pressure center and numerous thunderstorms • Fueled by a different heat mechanism than other cyclonic windstorms → "warm core" storm systems • Produce extremely powerful winds and torrential rain • Produce high waves and damaging storm surge

The factors of tropical cyclone • Water temperatures of at least 26.5 °C (79.7 °F) are needed • A depth of at least 50 metres (160 ft) • Rapid cooling with height • High humidity is needed • Low amounts of wind shear are needed • Need to form more than 555 kilometres (345 mi) or 5 degrees of latitude away from the equator • Needs a pre-existing system of disturbed

Physical structure • Rainbands are bands of showers and thunderstorms that spiral cyclonically toward the storm center • A strong tropical cyclone will harbor an area of sinking air at the center of circulation → develop into an eye • The central dense overcast is the concentrated area of strong thunderstorm activity near the center of a tropical cyclone

Storm history • The last week of April 2008 - an area of deep convection and concern persisted near a low-level circulation in the Bay of Bengal • With good outflow and low wind shear, the system slowly organized as its circulation consolidated. • With a ridge to its north, the system tracked slowly north-northwestward as banding features improved

• On April 28 - Nargis became nearly stationary while located between ridges to its northwest and southeast • The cyclone developed a concentric eye feature • The cyclone became disorganized and weakened due to subsidence and drier air → deep convection near the center markedly decreased • The storm began a motion to the northeast around the periphery of a ridge to its southeast

• The circulation remained strong despite the diminishing convection, the cyclone could have weakened to tropical storm status • By late on April 29 convection had begun to rebuild,though immediate restrengthening was prevented by increased wind shear • On May 1 - Cyclone Nargis began rapidly intensifying, due to greatly improved outflow in association

• It developed a well-defined eye with a diameter of 19 km • On May 2 - Cyclone Nargis made landfall in the Ayeyarwady Division of Burma

Satellite image of Nargis near landfall

• The storm gradually weakened over land, with its proximity to the Andaman Sea preventing rapid weakening

Rainfall rate from cyclone Nargis, as measured by the TRMM

Impact Of Western Bay of Bengal • The cyclone produced heavy rainfall → flooding and landslides • Strong waves and gusty winds • 4,500 people homeless • More than 35,000 people were affected • Three people were reported injured

Impact Of Burma ( Myanmar ) • 1.5 million people were "severely affected" • Estimates of the people still missing are 55,917 • 77,738 confirmed dead • 2 to 3 million are homeless • Thousands of buildings were destroyed • the conditions in the city had degenerated • most businesses and markets were closed • local food prices have already been increased

Satellite images from US space agency NASA showed virtually the entire coastal plain of the country, one of the poorest nations on the planet, under water

NASA satellite images show before and after Cyclone Nargis hit the Irrawady region

The cyclone, which flattened thousands of buildings, ripped power lines, uprooted trees on key roads and disrupted water supplies, came days ahead of Saturday’s controversial referendum on a constitution which critics say will entrench military rule.

Cyclone Nargis crashed into the coast on Saturday at 120mph, destroying entire villages and battering Rangoon

Flooded villages are seen in this aerial view near an airport in Yangon

With the number of dead or missing growing by the hour a huge humanitarian crisis is looming with hundreds of thousands left homeless and without drinking water People collect water on a street in Yangon

The normally isolationist dictatorship issued a rare appeal for international assistance

Burmese soldiers unload boxes of medicine and food supplies for cyclone victims off a Thai military plane

While the Red Cross has managed to distribute water purification tablets and mosquito nets, Save the Children estimated more than 50,000 are without shelter in three towns in the Rangoon region alone

A flooded street in Yangon

Reference •http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tropical_cyclone •http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyclone_Nargis

•http://gospelherald.com.hk/news/wor_1466.htm

•http://hk.myblog.yahoo.com/jw!UokZYveeHwSW

TH E EN D Gro u

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