The scorching wind phenomenon reported from parts of the coastal belt in the State over the past few days remains baffling for scientists who are yet to come up with a convincing explanation.
The Kerala State Council for Science, Technology, and Environment has come round to the inference that the hot winds and wilting of vegetation were caused by a heat burst, a rare atmospheric phenomenon characterised by a downdraft of hot, dry air which causes gusty winds, a sudden spike in temperature, and drop in humidity, mostly at night.
Executive Vice President, KSCSTE, Suresh Das said a heat burst was the most likely cause, going by the circumstantial evidence. A team of scientists from the Kerala Forest Research Institute had collected soil and vegetation samples from the affected areas and gathered inputs from the local population.
No previous instance
However, a section of scientists point out that there has been no documented record of a heat burst anywhere in Kerala or even in India. Besides, they observe, it would require a sequence of heat bursts to explain the scorching wind reported from the five districts on different days.
“A heat burst is a rare event, but it can happen anywhere if the atmospheric conditions are conducive,” says Dr. Das.
But others are not convinced. “For one, the phenomenon was not isolated, it happened across the coastal belt spanning five districts. It also coincided with a high sea surge warning. The wilting of vegetation was not uniform across plants, and humans and pets did not experience skin burns. The signs point to an exothermic reaction, a chemical reaction that releases heat,” says a scientist at a national institute.
A team from the Centre for Water Resources Development and Management which visited the affected areas is awaiting more meteorological inputs to analyse wind conditions and changes in sea surface temperature. “We found a trail of wilted vegetation about 200 m wide up to a distance of 2 km from the coast, indicating a hot wind from the sea in the north east direction. Even the leaves on trees as high as 25 m were seared,” says P.S. Harikumar, Head, Water Quality division, CWRDM. The team is also looking at the role of salt water spray from high sea surge for the wilted vegetation along the coast.
Meanwhile, an expert team constituted by the State Disaster Management Authority is scheduled to visit the affected areas shortly. SDMA member Sekhar Kuriakose said the possibility of sea water spray would be looked at in detail. “We are trying to document the phenomenon so that it could be a reference for scientists, especially those studying climate change phenomena.”
‘Signs point to an exothermic chemical reaction’
Role of salt water spray from high sea surge is being probed
