BMKG Predicts Southern Indonesia Will Enter the Peak of Drought
Source: Tempo.co
Date: 31 July 2020
The Meteorology, Climatology and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) estimates that southern Indonesia will soon enter the peak dry season.
Through a written statement received in Jakarta, Friday, July 31, 2020, BMKG said the potential of the peak of the drought in southern Indonesia was influenced by the strength of the Australian Monsoon winds.
The wind drains a mass of cold and dry air from the Australian continent to Asia through the Indonesian Ocean and the Indonesian maritime continent.
The dry season now occurs in 69 percent of the 342 Season Zone (ZOM) areas in Indonesia. The strength of the Australian Monsoon wind flow is usually related to the development of high atmospheric pressure systems over the Australian Continent that encourages the air period to have a stronger flow than usual.
The dry season has resulted in a potential meteorological drought at 31 percent of the ZOM based on the indicator of No Rainy Day (HTH) in a row. Dry day series varies in a matter of days to months.
BMKG predicts August as the peak of the dry season for most regions that have experienced drought. As many as 65 percent of ZOM will experience the peak of the dry season, namely most of NTT, NTB, Bali, most of Java, Lampung, South Sumatra, parts of southern Kalimantan, South Sulawesi and southern Papua.
While 19 percent of ZOM is predicted to experience the peak of the dry season in September, which covers most of central Sumatra, southern, central and eastern Kalimantan, western Sulawesi and Maluku.
The peak dry season is defined as the month or the driest period with rainfall falling in areas that are experiencing drought at the lowest/minimum level.
BMKG calls on local governments, decision-makers and the wider community to be better prepared and anticipative of the possible impacts of the peak of the dry season, especially in areas that are vulnerable to meteorological drought, forest and land fires and the availability of clean water.
At present wind speeds, especially in the southern parts of Java and Bali, are reported to show stronger wind speeds of 10-20 knots. The value of 1 knot is more or less equivalent to the speed of 0.5 meters per second or 1.85 kilometers per hour.
BMKG said cities in the southern part of Java and Bali also showed slightly cooler temperatures than the northern part, for example during the daytime Lombok.
As an illustration when the daytime in Denpasar is in the temperature of 26-28 degrees Celsius then at the same time in Semarang, Jakarta, Surabaya it is 30-31 degrees Celsius. Whereas in the evening until morning, the minimum temperature recorded on July 29 was as low as 10.4 degrees Celsius in Ruteng (NTT), Malang and Bandung at 17 degrees Celsius and Padang Panjang at 18 degrees Celsius.