Indian summer monsoon rainfall variability in global coupled ocean-atmospheric models

Performance of seven fully coupled models in simulating Indian summer monsoon climatology as well as the inter-annual variability was assessed using multi member 1 month lead hindcasts made by several European climate groups as part of the program called Development of a European multi-model ensemble system for seasonal-to-inter-annual prediction (DEMETER). Dependency of the model simulated Indian summer monsoon rainfall and global sea surface temperatures on model formulation and initial conditions have been studied in detail using the nine ensemble member simulations of the seven different coupled ocean–atmosphere models participated in the DEMETER program. It was found that the skills of the monsoon predictions in these hindcasts are generally positive though they are very modest. Model simulations of India summer monsoon rainfall for the earlier period (1959–1979) are closer to the ‘perfect model’ (attainable) score but, large differences are observed between ‘actual’ skill and ‘perfect model’ skill in the recent period (1980–2001). Spread among the ensemble members are found to be large in simulations of India summer monsoon rainfall (ISMR) and Indian ocean dipole mode (IODM), indicating strong dependency of model simulated Indian summer monsoon on initial conditions. Multi-model ensemble performs better than the individual models in simulating ENSO indices, but does not perform better than the individual models in simulating ISMR and IODM. Decreased skill of multi-model ensemble over the region indicates amplification of errors due to existence of similar errors in the individual models. It appears that large biases in predicted SSTs over Indian Ocean region and the not so perfect ENSO-monsoon (IODM-monsoon) tele-connections are some of the possible reasons for such lower than expected skills in the recent period. The low skill of multi-model ensemble, large spread among the ensemble members of individual models and the not so perfect monsoon tele-connection with global SSTs points towards the importance of improving individual models for better simulation of the Indian monsoon.     

Pacific decadal oscillation and variability of the Indian summer monsoon rainfall

Recent studies have furnished evidence for interdecadal variability in the tropical Pacific Ocean. The importance of this phenomenon in causing persistent anomalies over different regions of the globe has drawn considerable attention in view of its relevance in climate assessment. Here, we examine multi-source climate records in order to identify possible signatures of this longer time scale variability on the Indian summer monsoon. The findings indicate a coherent inverse relationship between the inter-decadal fluctuations of Pacific Ocean sea surface temperature (SST) and the Indian monsoon rainfall during the last century. A warm (cold) phase of the Pacific interdecadal variability is characterized by a decrease (increase) in the monsoon rainfall and a corresponding increase (decrease) in the surface air temperature over the Indian subcontinent. This interdecadal relationship can also be confirmed from the teleconnection patterns evident from long-period sea level pressure (SLP) dataset. The SLP anomalies over South and Southeast Asia and the equatorial west Pacific are dynamically consistent in showing an out-of-phase pattern with the SLP anomalies over the tropical central-eastern Pacific. The remote influence of the Pacific interdecadal variability on the monsoon is shown to be associated with prominent signals in the tropical and southern Indian Ocean indicative of coherent inter-basin variability on decadal time scales. If indeed, the atmosphere–ocean coupling associated with the Pacific interdecadal variability is independent from that of the interannual El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO), then the climate response should depend on the evolutionary characteristics of both the time scales. It is seen from our analysis that the Indian monsoon is more vulnerable to drought situations, when El Niño events occur during warm phases of the Pacific interdecadal variability. Conversely, wet monsoons are more likely to prevail, when La Niña events coincide during cold phases of the Pacific interdecadal variability.     

Temperature variability over the Indian Ocean and its relationship with Indian summer monsoon rainfall

Summary The present study examines the long term trend in sea surface temperatures (SSTs) of the Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and Equatorial South India Ocean in the context of global warming for the period 1901–2002 and for a subset period 1971–2002. An attempt has also been made to identify the relationship between SST variations over three different ocean areas, and All-India and homogeneous region summer monsoon rainfall variability, including the role of El-Ni?o/Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Annual sea surface temperatures of the Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and Equatorial South India Ocean show a significant warming trend of 0.7 °C, 0.6 °C and 0.5 °C per hundred years, respectively, and a relatively accelerated warming of 0.16 °C, 0.14 °C and 0.14 °C per decade during the 1971–2002 period. There is a positive and statistically significant relationship between SSTs over the Arabian Sea from the preceding November to the current February, and Indian monsoon rainfall during the period 1901–2002. The correlation coefficient increases from October and peaks in December, decreasing from February to September. This significant relationship is also found in the recent period 1971–2002, whereas, during 1901–70, the relationship is not significant. On the seasonal scale, Arabian Sea winter SSTs are positively and significantly correlated with Indian monsoon rainfall, while spring SSTs have no significant positive relationship. Nino3 spring SSTs have a negative significant relationship with Indian monsoon rainfall and it is postulated that there is a combined effect of Nino3 and Arabian Sea SSTs on Indian monsoon. If the Nino3 SST effect is removed, the spring SSTs over the Arabian Sea also have a significant relationship with monsoon rainfall. Similarly, the Bay of Bengal and Equatorial South Indian Ocean spring SSTs are significantly and positively correlated with Indian monsoon rainfall after removing the Nino3 effect, and correlation values are more pronounced than for the Arabian Sea. Authors’ address: Dr. D. R. Kothawale, A. A. Munot, H. P. Borgaonkar, Climatology and Hydrometeorology divisions, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune 411008, India.     

The Interannual variability of rainfall over homogeneous regions of Indian summer monsoon

Theoretical and Applied Climatology - The Indian subcontinent, due to its enormous variety of geographical features, is associated with inhomogeneity. Hence, in the present study, we have...     

Relationships between interannual variability in the Arabian Sea and Indian summer monsoon rainfall

Summary The interannual variability of the monthly mean upper layer thickness for the central Arabian Sea (5°N-15° N and 60° E-70° E) from a numerical model of the Indian Ocean during the period 1954–1976 is investigated in relation to Indian monsoon rainfall variability. The variability in the surface structure of the Somali Current in the western Arabian Sea is also briefly discussed. It is found that these fields show a great deal of interannual variability that is correlated with variability in Indian monsoon rainfall. Model upper layer thickness (H) is taken as a surrogate variable for thermocline depth, which is assumed to be correlated with sea surface temperature. In general, during the period 1967 to 1974, which is a period of lower than normal monsoon rainfall, the upper ocean warm water sphere is thicker (deeper thermocline which implies warmer surface water); in contrast, during the period 1954–1966, which is a period of higher than normal monsoon rainfall, the upper warm water sphere is thinner (shallower thermocline which implies cooler surface water). The filtered time series of uppper layer thickness indieates the presence of a quasi-biennial oscillation (QBO) during the wet monsoon period, but this QBO signal is conspicuously absent during the dry monsoon period.Since model H primarily responds to wind stress curl, the interannual variability of the stress curl is investigated by means of an empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis. The first three EOF modes represent more than 72% of the curl variance. The spatial patterns for these modes exhibit many elements of central Arabian Sea climatology. Features observed include the annual variation in the intensity of the summer monsoon ridge in the Arabian Sea and the annual zonal oscillation of the ridge during pre- and post-monsoon seasons. The time coefficients for the first EOF amplitude indicate the presence of a QBO during the wet monsoon period only, as seen in the ocean upper layer thickness.The variability in the model upper layer thickness is a passive response to variability in the wind field, or more specifically to variability in the Findlater Jet. When the winds are stronger, they drive stronger currents in the ocean and have stronger curl fields associated with them, driving stronger Ekman pumping. They transport more moisture from the southern hemisphere toward the Indian subcontinent, and they also drive a greater evaporative heat flux beneath the Findlater Jet in the Arabian Sea. It has been suggested that variability in the heat content of the Arabian Sea drives variability in Indian monsoon rainfall. The results of this study suggest that the opposite is true, that the northern Arabian Sea responds passively to variability in the monsoon system.With 10 Figures     

New regression model for Indian summer monsoon rainfall

Summary Based on the study of 45 years (1948–1992) data, the average lowest MSL pressure of heat low over central Pakistan and adjoining northwest India of the month of May is found to have potential as a parameter for predicting all India Summer monsoon seasonal rainfall. This new parameter is seen to have stable and significant correlation with monsoon rainfall. Its correlation coefficients for different periods are found significant at 0.1% to 1% level of significance. The stability of the correlation coefficients was tested using 10, 20 and 30 year sliding windows. This test revealed that it is the most dependable parameter in comparison with 7 of the well known parameters analysed in this study. Regression models have been developed considering this new parameter along with other circulation parameters. The regression models developed are seen to perform very well for the independent data. The Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) values of some of these models, for independent data, are smaller than those of similar regression models reported in literature.With 8 Figures     

Indian summer monsoon rainfall predictability and variability associated with Northwest Pacific circulation in a suit of coupled model hindcasts

The Northwest Pacific (NWP) circulation (subtropical high) is an important component of the East Asian summer monsoon system. During summer (June–August), anomalous lower tropospheric anticyclonic (cyclonic) circulation appears over NWP in some years, which is an indicative of stronger (weaker) than normal subtropical high. The anomalous NWP cyclonic (anticyclonic) circulation years are associated with negative (positive) precipitation anomalies over most of Indian summer monsoon rainfall (ISMR) region. This indicates concurrent relationship between NWP circulation and convection over the ISMR region. Dry wind advection from subtropical land regions and moisture divergence over the southern peninsular India during the NWP cyclonic circulation years are mainly responsible for the negative rainfall anomalies over the ISMR region. In contrast, during anticyclonic years, warm north Indian Ocean and moisture divergence over the head Bay of Bengal-Gangetic Plain region support moisture instability and convergence in the southern flank of ridge region, which favors positive rainfall over most of the ISMR region. The interaction between NWP circulation (anticyclonic or cyclonic) and ISMR and their predictability during these anomalous years are examined in the present study. Seven coupled ocean–atmosphere general circulation models from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Climate Center and their multimodel ensemble mean skills in predicting the seasonal rainfall and circulation anomalies over the ISMR region and NWP for the period 1982–2004 are assessed. Analysis reveals that three (two) out of seven models are unable to predict negative (positive) precipitation anomalies over the Indian subcontinent during the NWP cyclonic (anticyclonic) circulation years at 1-month lead (model is initialized on 1 May). The limited westward extension of the NWP circulation and misrepresentation of SST anomalies over the north Indian Ocean are found to be the main reasons for the poor skill (of some models) in rainfall prediction over the Indian subcontinent. This study demonstrates the importance of the NWP circulation variability in predicting summer monsoon precipitation over South Asia. Considering the predictability of the NWP circulation, the current study provides an insight into the predictability of ISMR. Long lead prediction of the ISMR associated with anomalous NWP circulation is also discussed.     

Weakening of Indian summer monsoon rainfall in warming environment

Though over a century long period (1871–2010) the Indian summer monsoon rainfall (ISMR) series is stable, it does depict the decreasing tendency during the last three decades of the 20th century. Around mid-1970s, there was a major climate shift over the globe. The average all-India surface air temperature also shows consistent rise after 1975. This unequivocal warming may have some impact on the weakening of ISMR. The reduction in seasonal rainfall is mainly contributed by the deficit rainfall over core monsoon zone which happens to be the major contributor to seasonal rainfall amount. During the period 1976–2004, the deficit (excess) monsoons have become more (less) frequent. The monsoon circulation is observed to be weakened. The mid-tropospheric gradient responsible for the maintenance of monsoon circulation has been observed to be weakened significantly as compared to 1901–1975. The warming over western equatorial Indian Ocean as well as equatorial Pacific is more pronounced after mid-70s and the co-occurrence of positive Indian Ocean Dipole Mode events and El Nino events might have reinforced the large deficit anomalies of Indian summer monsoon rainfall during 1976–2004. All these factors may contribute to the weakening of ISMR.     

Pacific Ocean sea-surface temperature variability and predictability of rainfall in the early and late parts of the Indian summer monsoon season

For central India and its west coast, rainfall in the early (15 May–20 June) and late (15 September–20 October) monsoon season correlates with Pacific Ocean sea-surface temperature (SST) anomalies in the preceding month (April and August, respectively) sufficiently well, that those SST anomalies can be used to predict such rainfall. The patterns of SST anomalies that correlate best include the equatorial region near the dateline, and for the early monsoon season (especially since ~1980), a band of opposite correlation stretching from near the equator at 120°E to ~25°N at the dateline. Such correlations for both early and late monsoon rainfall and for both regions approach, if not exceed, 0.5. Although correlations between All India Summer Monsoon Rainfall and typical indices for the El Ni?o-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) commonly are stronger for the period before than since 1980, these correlations with early and late monsoon seasons suggest that ENSO continues to affect the monsoon in these seasons. We exploit these patterns to assess predictability, and we find that SSTs averages in specified regions of the Pacific Ocean in April (August) offer predictors that can forecast rainfall amounts in the early (late) monsoon season period with a ~25% improvement in skill relative to climatology. The same predictors offer somewhat less skill (~20% better than climatology) for predicting the number of days in these periods with rainfall greater than 2.5?mm. These results demonstrate that although the correlation of ENSO indices with All India Rainfall has decreased during the past few decades, the connections with ENSO in the early and late parts have not declined; that for the early monsoon season, in fact, has grown stronger in recent decades.     

Some characteristics of the PBL over the ocean during the Indian summer monsoon

Data collected during the Indo-Soviet Monsoon-77 expedition are used to determine quadratic expressions for the universal constants A and B, as functions of the stability parameter, . A quadratic expression has also been obtained for u _*, in terms of the surface wind u _s. It is shown, from the mean values of q and _E , that the entire area covered by the expedition could be divided into four regions around the point 13° N, 78° E. The mean thermal characteristic of each region differs. It is shown that the northeastern quadrant is most favourable for the sustenance of a tropical storm once it has formed.     

Robustness of SST teleconnections and precursory patterns associated with the Indian summer monsoon

This work attempts to reconcile in a common and comprehensive framework the various conflicting results found in the literature regarding Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) rainfall-Sea Surface Temperature (SST) relationships, especially the links with El-Ni?o Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and the Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD). To do so, we first examine the linear relationships between ISM rainfall and global SST anomalies during 1950–1976 and 1979–2006 periods. Our results highlight the existence of significant modulations in SST teleconnections and precursory patterns between the first (June–July, JJ) and second part (August–September, AS) of the monsoon. This JJ–AS rainfall dichotomy is more pronounced after the 1976–1977 climate regime shift and tends to blur the global ISM-ENSO signal during the recent period, leading to an apparent weakening of this relationship at the seasonal time scale. Although ISM rainfall in JJ and AS is still strongly linked to ENSO over both periods, the lead-lag relationships between ENSO and AS Indian rainfall have changed during recent decades. Indeed, ENSO variability in the preceding boreal winter has now a significant impact on rainfall variability during the second half of ISM. To evaluate in more details the impact of this JJ-AS dichotomy on the ISM-ENSO-IOD relationships, ISM correlations are also examined separately during El Ni?o and La Ni?a years. Results indicate that the early onset of El Ni?o during boreal spring causes deficient monsoon rainfall in JJ. In response to weaker monsoon winds, warm SST anomalies appear in the west equatorial IO, generating favorable conditions for the development of a positive IOD in AS. Local air-sea processes triggered by the SST anomalies in the eastern node of IOD seem, in turn, to have a more active role on AS rainfall variability, as they may counteract the negative effect of El Ni?o on ISM rainfall via a modulation of the local Hadley circulation in the eastern IO. The JJ–AS rainfall dichotomy and its recent amplification may then result from an enhancement of these IO feedbacks during recent El Ni?o years. This explains why, although El Ni?o events are stronger, a weakening of the ISM-ENSO relationship is observed at the seasonal scale after 1979. Results during La Ni?a years are consistent with this hypothesis although local processes in the southeast IO now play a more prominent role and act to further modulate ISM rainfall in AS. Finally, our results highlight the existence of a biennal rhythm of the IOD-ENSO-ISM system during the recent period, according to which co-occurring El Ni?o and positive IOD events tend to be followed by a warming of the IO, a wet ISM during summer and, finally, a La Ni?a event during the following boreal winter.     

Role of intra-seasonal oscillations in modulating Indian summer monsoon rainfall

The day-to-day behavior of Indian summer monsoon rainfall (IMR) is associated with a hierarchy of quasi-periods, namely 3?C7, 10?C20 and the 30?C60?days. These two periods, the 10?C20?days and the 30?C60?days have been related with the active and break cycles of the monsoon rainfall over the Indian sub-continent. The seasonal strength of Indian summer monsoon rainfall may depend on the frequency and duration of spells of break and active periods associated with the fluctuations of the above intra-seasonal oscillations (ISOs). Thus the predictability of the seasonal (June through September) mean Indian monsoon depends on the extent to which the intra-seasonal oscillations could be predicted. The primary objective of this study is to bring out the dynamic circulation features during the pre-monsoon/monsoon season associated with the extreme phases of these oscillations The intense (weak) phase of the 10?C20 (30?C60) days oscillation is associated with anti-cyclonic circulation over the Indian Ocean, easterly flow over the equatorial Pacific Ocean resembling the normal or cold phase (La Nina) of El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) phenomenon, and weakening of the north Pacific Sub-tropical High. On the other hand the weak phase of 10?C20?days mode and the intense phase of 30?C60?days mode shows remarkable opposite flow patterns. The circulation features during pre-monsoon months show that there is a tendency for the flow patterns observed in pre-monsoon months to persist during the monsoon months. Hence some indications of the behavior of these modes during the monsoon season could be foreshadowed from the spring season patterns. The relationship between the intensity of these modes and some of the long-range forecasting parameters used operationally by the India Meteorological Department has also been examined.     

Spatial and temporal relationships between global land surface air temperature anomalies and Indian summer monsoon rainfall

Summary Using the 60 year period (1931–1990) gridded land surface air temperature anomalies data, the spatial and temporal relationships between Indian summer monsoon rainfall and temperature anomalies were examined. Composite temperature anomalies were prepared in respect of 11 deficient monsoon years and 9 excess monsoon years. Statistical tests were carried out to examine the significance of the composites. In addition, correlation coefficients between the temperature anomalies and Indian summer monsoon rainfall were also calculated to examine the teleconnection patterns.There were statistically significant differences in the composite of temperature anomaly patterns between excess and deficient monsoon years over north Europe, central Asia and north America during January and May, over NW India during May, over central parts of Africa during May and July and over Indian sub-continent and eastern parts of Asia during July. It has been also found that temperature anomalies over NW Europe, central parts of Africa and NW India during January and May were positively correlated with Indian summer monsoon rainfall. Similarly temperature anomalies over central Asia during January and temperature anomalies over central Africa and Indian region during July were negatively correlated. There were secular variations in the strength of relationships between temperature anomalies and Indian summer monsoon rainfall. In general, temperature anomalies over NW Europe and NW India showed stronger correlations during the recent years. It has been also found that during excess (deficient) monsoon years temperature gradient over Eurasian land mass from sub-tropics to higher latitudes was directed equatowards (polewards) indicating strong (weak) zonal flow. This temperature anomaly gradient index was found to be a useful predictor for long range forecasting of Indian summer monsoon rainfall.With 12 Figures     

Teleconnections in recent time and prediction of Indian summer monsoon rainfall

Summary The prediction of Indian Summer Monsoon Rainfall (ISMR) is vital for Indian economic policy and a challenge for meteorologists. It needs various predictors among which El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is the most important. It has been established by various researchers that ENSO and ISMR relationship is weakening in recent years. It has been also argued that changes in ENSO-ISMR relationship may be due to decadal fluctuations, or it may be the indicative of longer-term trends related to anthropogenic-induced climate changes.In the present communication, an attempt is made to discuss the variability and predictability of ISMR in recent years. It is found that three different indices associated with different regions in the tropics and extra-tropics at different levels of the atmosphere-Asian land mass index represented by geopotential height at upper troposphere (A1), Caribbean-North Atlantic index represented by geopotential height at middle troposphere (A2) and tropical Pacific index at surface level (A3) – have different mechanisms to interact mutually and separately with ISMR in different periods. In recent years ISMR shows weak association with A1 and A3 while strong association with A2. Thus, if these three indices could be combined objectively, they can give rise to the predictability of ISMR. This objective combination is achieved here using Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and a model is developed to predict ISMR. This model has predicted reasonably well during the whole period of consideration (1958–2000) with a correlation coefficient of 0.92 in last 11 years (1990–2000) whereas most of the models fail to predict the variability in recent time.Current affiliation: Department of Physics, Federal University of Parana, Curitiba, Brazil.Received June 2002; revised October 1, 2002; accepted November 12, 2002 Published online: April 10, 2003     

Simulation of Indian summer monsoon circulation and rainfall using RegCM3

Summary The Regional Climate Model RegCM3 has been used to examine its suitability in simulating the Indian summer monsoon circulation features and associated rainfall. The model is integrated at 55 km horizontal resolution over a South Asia domain for the period April–September of the years 1993 to 1996. The characteristics of wind at 850 hPa and 200 hPa, temperature at 500 hPa, surface pressure and rainfall simulated by the model over the Indian region are examined for two convective schemes (a Kuo-type and a mass flux scheme). The monsoon circulation features simulated by RegCM3 are compared with those of the NCEP/NCAR reanalysis and the simulated rainfall is validated against observations from the Global Precipitation Climatology Centre (GPCC) and the India Meteorological Department (IMD). Validation of the wind and temperature fields shows that the use of the Grell convection scheme yields results close to the NCEP/NCAR reanalysis. Similarly, the Indian Summer Monsoon Rainfall (ISMR) simulated by the model with the Grell convection scheme is close to the corresponding observed values. In order to test the model response to land surface changes such as the Tibetan snow depth, a sensitivity study has also been conducted. For such sensitivity experiment, NIMBUS-7 SMMR snow depth data in spring are used as initial conditions in the RegCM3. Preliminary results indicate that RegCM3 is very much sensitive to Tibetan snow. The model simulated Indian summer monsoon circulation becomes weaker and the associated rainfall is reduced by about 30% with the introduction of 10 cm of snow over the Tibetan region in the month of April.