Yemen suffered through another cyclone this week. The island of Socotra was hit directly on November 8, 2015 and Cyclone Megh reached Yemen mainland shores on the 10th. This is now back to back cyclonic activity in this area of the Arabian Sea. Megh was a strong Category 2 or Category 3 storm. Cyclone Chapala pass over Yemen just a week ago. This tweet from @StuOstro compares the two storms.

#Chapala #Megh pic.twitter.com/UCtpGa7Mjd

— Stu Ostro (@StuOstro) November 7, 2015

Follow the storm’s path over Socotra.
https://youtu.be/PajIyo4hBaY

Tropical cyclone Chapala is on track to hit Yemen within ~24 hours. The eye of the storm passed over the island of Socotra which was brutalized by the winds and rain. Flooding is imminent in the Yemeni city of Al Mukalla, which butts up against rising terrain. The storm rose to a Category 4 system on Friday making in the strongest storm to hit the southern Arabian Sea. By Monday, it had slowed to a Category 3.

pic.twitter.com/7d0DB4y5oI

Mukalla has a population of about 300,000 people. Both the Yemeni and Omani governments have issued warning to evacuate low-lying areas. Keep in mind that Yemen is currently a war zone with over 1 million people displaced.

Astronaut Scott Kelly took this picture of the storm.

#TropicalStorm #Ashobaa churns off the coast of #Oman. Stay safe down there. #YearInSpace pic.twitter.com/7047MGIymT

— Scott Kelly (@StationCDRKelly) October 31, 2015