Marine boundary layer characteristics during a cyclonic storm over the Bay of Bengal

During the period 12–16 June 1996 a tropical cyclonic storm formed over the southwest Bay of Bengal and moved in a north-northeasterly direction. The thermodynamic characteristics of this system are investigated by utilizing the surface and upper air observations collected onboardORV Sagar Kanya over the Bay of Bengal region. The response of the cyclonic storm is clearly evident from the ship observations when the ship was within the distance of 600–800 km from the cyclonic storm. This study explores why (i) the whole atmosphere from surface to 500 hPa had become warm and moist during the cyclonic storm period as compared to before and after the formation of this system and (ii) the lower layer of the atmosphere had become stable during the formative stage of the cyclonic storm.     

Coccolithophores from the central Arabian Sea: Sediment trap results

Sediment trap samples collected from a depth of 1018 m in the Central Arabian Sea Trap (CAST) at 14°28.2′N, 64°35.8′E were analyzed for temporal variation of coccolithophore fluxes from October 1993 to August 1994. Out of the twenty species of coccolithophores encountered,Gephyrocapsa oceanica, Emiliania huxleyi, Umbilicosphaera sibogae andUmbellosphaera irregularis were the most abundant. The total coccolithophore fluxes ranged from 28.5 × 10⁶m^-2d^-1 to 50.3 × 10⁶m^-2d^-1 showing seasonality with higher fluxes during the northeast (NE) monsoon and lower fluxes during the spring intermonsoon. The higher fluxes were attributed to the enhancement of primary production in the central Arabian Sea due to southward extent of nutrients from the northeast Arabian Sea by the prevailing surface currents. Similarly, the occurrences of relatively lower coccolithophore fluxes during the spring intermonsoon and southwest (SW) monsoon were attributed to the low nutrients in the warm, shallow surface mixed layer and downwelling to the south of Findlater Jet respectively in the central Arabian Sea. Some of the coccolithophore species such asE. huxleyi, G. oceanica, Calcidiscus leptoporus andUmbellosphaera tenuis showed signs of dissolution.     

Thermohaline structure and circulation in the upper layers of the southern Bay of Bengal during BOBMEX-Pilot (October–November 1998)

Hydrographic data collected on board ORV Sagar Kanya in the southern Bay of Bengal during the BOBMEX-Pilot programme (October–November 1998) have been used to describe the thermohaline structure and circulation in the upper 200 m water column of the study region. The presence of seasonal Inter-Tropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) over the study area, typically characterized with enhanced cloudiness and flanked by the respective east/northeast winds on its northern part and west/southwest winds on its southern part, has led to net surface heat loss of about 55 W/m². The sea surface dynamic topography relative to 500 db shows that the upper layer circulation is characterised by a cyclonic gyre encompassing the study area. The eastward flowing Indian Monsoon Current (IMC) between 5‡N and 7‡N in the south and its northward branching along 87‡E up to 13‡N appear to feed the cyclonic gyre. The Vessel-Mounted Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler (VM-ADCP) measured currents confirm the presence of the cyclonic gyre in the southern Bay of Bengal during the withdrawing phase of the southwest monsoon from the northern/central parts of the Bay of Bengal.     

Numerical Simulation of Extreme Sea Levels Using Location Specific High Resolution Model for Gujarat Coast of India

Although the frequency of tropical cyclones is less in the Arabian sea compared to that of the Bay of Bengal, there are several severe tropical cyclones which caused extensive damage along the Gujarat coast. In view of the high tidal range in the funnel-shaped gulfs of the Khambhat and the Kachch, it is very useful to study the surge response in these regions. There is always a possibility of abnormal rise of sea level when the occurrence of surge coincides with high tide, which may eventually cause inundation of vast stretches of shallow coastal areas. In view of this, a location specific fine resolution model is developed for the Gujarat coast. The east-west and north-south grid distances for the model are 5.1 km and 5.2 km, respectively. Several numerical experiments are carried out to compute the extreme sea levels using the wind stress forcings representative of 1982, 1996, and 1998 cyclones, which crossed this region. The model-computed extreme sea levels are in good agreement with the available observations.     

A Tidal Flow Model for the Gulf of Kachchh, India

A vertically integrated model has been used to study the tidal circulation and currents in the Gulf of Kachchh along the west coast of India. The model is fully nonlinear and uses a semiexplicit finite difference scheme to solve the basic hydrodynamic equations on a staggered grid. The model is forced by prescribing the tides along the open boundary of the model domain. The flow is simulated both with and without the presence of the proposed tidal barrage across the Hansthal Creek in the Gulf of Kachchh. The results show a considerable change in the behavior of the tidal flow in the presence of the barrage.     

Ozone Profile Retrieval from Satellite Observation Using High Spectral Resolution Infrared Sounding Instrument

I. IntroductionOzone p1ays a very 1mportant ro1e in globa1 climate change. This is particularly true inthe stratosphere, where ultra--v1olet solar radiation is strongly absorbed by ozone, leading tosubstantlal change in the earths atmospheric thermal, physical and chemical structure. Al-though the troposphere contains only about l0% of the total atmospheric ozone, the varia-tlon of tropospheric ozone may have more significant cllmatic effect than stratospheric ozoneon the earth's surface temP…     

A Tidal Flow Model for the Gulf of Kachchh,India

A vertically integrated model has been used to study the tidal circulation and currents in the Gulf of Kachchh along the west coast of India. The model is fully nonlinear and uses a semiexplicit finite difference scheme to solve the basic hydrodynamic equations on a staggered grid. The model is forced by prescribing the tides along the open boundary of the model domain. The flow is simulated both with and without the presence of the proposed tidal barrage across the Hansthal Creek in the Gulf of Kachchh. The results show a considerable change in the behavior of the tidal flow in the presence of the barrage.     

Numerical Simulation of Extreme Sea Levels Using Location Specific High Resolution Model for Gujarat Coast of India

Although the frequency of tropical cyclones is less in the Arabian sea compared to that of the Bay of Bengal, there are several severe tropical cyclones which caused extensive damage along the Gujarat coast. In view of the high tidal range in the funnel-shaped gulfs of the Khambhat and the Kachch, it is very useful to study the surge response in these regions. There is always a possibility of abnormal rise of sea level when the occurrence of surge coincides with high tide, which may eventually cause inundation of vast stretches of shallow coastal areas. In view of this, a location specific fine resolution model is developed for the Gujarat coast. The east-west and north-south grid distances for the model are 5.1 km and 5.2 km, respectively. Several numerical experiments are carried out to compute the extreme sea levels using the wind stress forcings representative of 1982, 1996, and 1998 cyclones, which crossed this region. The model-computed extreme sea levels are in good agreement with the available observations.     

Statistical Simulation of Boxing Day Tsunami of The Indian Ocean and a Predictive Equation for Beach Run up Heights Based on Work-Energy Theorem

The tsunami similar to the one that has occurred in December 26, 2004 (Boxing Day Tsunami) in the Indian Ocean is simulated using the expression derived from Modified Weibull Distribution (for maximum wave height simulation) for extreme wave height predictions. The tuning coefficient plays a significant role in estimating the tsunami heights at various stages. It follows well defined mathematical laws at different stages. It is time dependent in the first three stages and depth dependent in the last two stages. The beach run-up heights estimated by the expression derived from the work-energy relation are comparable with observed values with reasonable accuracy.