The Bay of Bengal is set to witness its first pre-monsoon cyclone of the season, named "Remal," according to the Indian Ocean region's cyclone naming system.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has reported that the system is expected to develop into a depression over the central Bay of Bengal by Friday morning. It will further intensify into a cyclonic storm by Saturday morning, and by Sunday evening, it is anticipated to reach Bangladesh and the adjacent coast of India's West Bengal as a severe cyclonic storm.

The IMD forecasts that the cyclone could achieve wind speeds of up to 102 kilometres per hour on Sunday.

Heavy rainfall is expected in India's coastal districts of West Bengal, north Odisha, Mizoram, Tripura, and south Manipur on May 26-27.

The increasing intensity and longevity of cyclonic storms are attributed to warmer sea surface temperatures, which result from oceans absorbing excess heat due to greenhouse gas emissions. Over the past 30 years, sea surface temperatures have reached their highest levels since records began in 1880.

IMD scientists highlight that warmer sea surface temperatures lead to more moisture in the atmosphere, creating favourable conditions for cyclones to intensify. With both the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea currently very warm, the formation of a tropical cyclone is highly likely.