NASA sees System 05B fizzle in Bay of Bengal

System 05B degenerated into a remnant low pressure area on Nov. 8 and lingered near the east-central coast of India for two days before dissipating on Nov. 10.

The tropical cyclone's western edge spread over land on Sunday, Nov. 9 while the center of the low-level circulation remained over open waters of the Bay of Bengal. On that day, 05B's remnants were centered near 14.0 north latitude and 83.8 east longitude, about 215 miles east-northeast of Chennai, India.

Infrared imagery from satellites on Nov. 9 indicated that the low-level circulation center of the storm was exposed to outside winds. There was some disorganized deep flaring convection (rising air that forms the thunderstorms that make up a tropical cyclone) and thunderstorm development over the western quadrant, but that didn't last the day. The storm's circulation center had also become elongated, which is an indication the storm was weakening. Tropical cyclones need to maintain a circular rotation in order to strengthen. When a storm elongates, its rotation can be likened to an automobile tire that is low on air, no longer circular and cannot spin as fast.

NASA's Aqua satellite passed over Tropical Cyclone 05B's remnants on Nov. 9. The Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer or MODIS instrument aboard captured a visible image that showed the center of circulation still over open waters of the Northern Indian Ocean/Bay of Bengal, with the western-most clouds north of Chennai.

On Nov. 9, the Joint Typhoon Warning Center noted that Tropical Cyclone 05B had a low chance for regenerating. By Monday, Nov. 10, the remnants of Tropical Cyclone 05B dissipated near 14.0 north longitude and 83.8 east latitude and there is no longer a chance for regeneration.