Cyclone Fani has been a slow system, be it in terms of its intensity or its movement. It remained as a low pressure area for quite a long time in Bay of Bengal, gradually intensifying into a depression that too stayed for over 24 hours.
Fani did manage to pick up some pace after it became deep depression and its intensification into a cyclonic storm over Southeast Bay of Bengal and Equatorial Indian Ocean was comparatively much quicker.
Well, the reason behind this slow progress of the system could be linked with another tropical storm brewing in Indian Ocean but on other side of the Equator. Tropical storm Lorna is brewing in Indian Ocean in Southern Hemisphere and is centered at Latitude 12°S and Longitude 90°E. However, it is a much stronger system i.e. of category 1 storm.
Meanwhile, Cyclone Fani is n Southeast Bay of Bengal and Equatorial Indian Ocean in Northern Hemisphere. It is presently centered at Latitude 5.4°N and Longitude 88.5°E, about 870 km east-southeast of Colombo, Sri Lanka, 1200 km southeast of Chennai and 1440 km southsoutheast of Machilipatnam.
According to weathermen, both the tropical storms are aligned on either side of the Equator. Whenever any two powerful systems form in the close proximity, both the systems hold on to each other, making their progress slow, especially when they are in the opposite hemisphere.
Also, during such times, one system gets stronger, while the other one gets consumed.
However, in this scenario both Lorna and Fani are moving in opposite direction and gaining latitude in respective hemispheres. Thus, the distance between them is increasing, which at present is about 1000 km.
In wake of this, both the tropical storms have picked up pace, intensity as well as speed wise. In fact, going further, both the systems would now get more powerful. Thus, we are expecting Fani to be initially become a severe cyclone in next 24 hours and further into a very severe cyclone in subsequent 24 hours.
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