When Can Indonesia Expect 2024 Dry Season? BMKG Explains

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) forecasted that the 2024 dry season in Indonesia will come later than that in previous years and will not begin simultaneously in all regions.

Through a press release on its official website, the agency said several areas will experience the dry season starting April, May, and June, with the peak predicted in July and August.

Compared to the climatological average for the period 1991-2020, 40 percent of Indonesia's 282 seasonal zones (ZOM) are expected to experience a delayed start to this year's dry season.

“[The dry season] will arrive as usual in 175 ZOMs (25 percent) and earlier in 105 ZOMs (15 percent),” the agency’s head Dwikorita Karnawati said in an official statement on Friday, March 15.

The dry season will arrive starting in April in the northern coastal areas of Banten, Jakarta, and West Java, parts of Bali, NTB, NTT, and parts of the coast of East Java.

Jakarta, a small part of West Java, Central Java, Yogyakarta, most of East Java, a small part of Maluku, and parts of Papua and South Papua, will only not enter the dry season until May.

A month later, the dry season spreads to most of Sumatra Island, Banten, most of West Java, parts of West Kalimantan, a small part of East Kalimantan, parts of South Sulawesi, parts of Southeast Sulawesi, Maluku, part of the Aru Islands, and Tanimbar.

The peak is estimated to occur in July in most of the islands of Sumatra, Banten, Jakarta, West Java, Central Java, Yogyakarta, West Kalimantan, and parts of North Kalimantan. 

Meanwhile, parts of South Sumatra, East Java, most of Kalimantan Island, Bali, NTB, NTT, most of Sulawesi Island, Maluku, and most of Papua Island will only enter the peak of the dry season in August.

“However, several areas, 217 ZOM (31.22 percent), will experience the peak of the dry season in July 2024 and 68 ZOM (9.78 percent) in September 2024,” Dwikorita added.

In general, she outlined that the 2024 dry season is predicted to be normal at 359 ZOM (51.36 percent) and above normal or wetter than normal at 279 ZOM (39.91 percent). There will also be a drier dry season at 61 ZOM (8.73 percent).

Dwikorita further appealed to the government and society to prepare for the dry season and anticipate its possible impacts, especially in areas experiencing a below-normal dry season, such as drought, forest and land fires, and a shortage of water sources in the region which is higher than in other areas.

ANDIKA DWI | RADEN PUTRI

Editor’s Choice: BMKG Says 2024 Dry Season 'Delayed, Wetter Than Average' in Some Parts of Indonesia

Click here to get the latest news updates from Tempo on Google News