Processes of India’s offshore summer intraseasonal sea surface temperature variability

Active and break phases of the Indian summer monsoon are associated with sea surface temperature (SST) fluctuations at 30–90 days timescale in the Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal. Mechanisms responsible for basin-scale intraseasonal SST variations have previously been discussed, but the maxima of SST variability are actually located in three specific offshore regions: the South-Eastern Arabian Sea (SEAS), the Southern Tip of India (STI) and the North-Western Bay of Bengal (NWBoB). In the present study, we use an eddy-permitting 0.25° regional ocean model to investigate mechanisms of this offshore intraseasonal SST variability. Modelled climatological mixed layer and upper thermocline depth are in very good agreement with estimates from three repeated expendable bathythermograph transects perpendicular to the Indian Coast. The model intraseasonal forcing and SST variability agree well with observed estimates, although modelled intraseasonal offshore SST amplitude is undere-stimated by 20–30 %. Our analysis reveals that surface heat flux variations drive a large part of the intraseasonal SST variations along the Indian coastline while oceanic processes have contrasted contributions depending of the region considered. In the SEAS, this contribution is very small because intraseasonal wind variations are essentially cross-shore, and thus not associated with significant upwelling intraseasonal fluctuations. In the STI, vertical advection associated with Ekman pumping contributes to ～30 % of the SST fluctuations. In the NWBoB, vertical mixing diminishes the SST variations driven by the atmospheric heat flux perturbations by 40 %. Simple slab ocean model integrations show that the amplitude of these intraseasonal SST signals is not very sensitive to the heat flux dataset used, but more sensitive to mixed layer depth.     

Intensity of tropical cyclones during pre- and post-monsoon seasons in relation to accumulated tropical cyclone heat potential over Bay of Bengal

The aim of the present study is to understand the impact of oceanic heat potential in relation to the intensity of tropical cyclones (TC) in the Bay of Bengal during the pre-monsoon (April–May) and post-monsoon (October–November) cyclones for the period 2006–2010. To accomplish this, the two-layer gravity model (TLGM) is employed to estimate daily tropical cyclone heat potential (TCHP) utilizing satellite altimeter data, satellite sea surface temperature (SST), and a high-resolution comprehensive ocean atlas developed for Indian Ocean, subsequently validated with in situ ARGO profiles. Accumulated TCHP (ATCHP) is estimated from genesis to the maximum intensity of cyclone in terms of minimum central pressure along their track of all the cyclones for the study period using TLGM generated TCHP and six-hourly National Centre for Environmental Prediction Climate Forecast System Reanalysis data. Similarly, accumulated sea surface heat content (ASSHC) is estimated using satellite SST. In this study, the relationship between ATCHP and ASSHC with the central pressure (CP) which is a function of TC intensity is developed. Results reveal a distinct relationship between ATCHP and CP during both the seasons. Interestingly, it is seen that requirement of higher ATCHP during pre-monsoon cyclones is required to attain higher intensity compared to post-monsoon cyclones. It is mainly attributed to the presence of thick barrier layer (BL) resulting in higher enthalpy fluxes during post-monsoon period, where as such BL is non-existent during pre-monsoon period.     

Thermodynamical Structure of Atmosphere during Pre-monsoon Thunderstorm Season over Kharagpur as Revealed by STORM Data

Variation of atmospheric thermodynamical structure parameters between days of thunderstorm occurrence and non-occurrence is presented based on data sets obtained during Severe Thunderstorm-Observations and Regional Modeling (STORM) experiments conducted over Kharagpur (22.3°N, 87.2°E) in pre-monsoon season of 2009 and 2010. Potential instability (stable to neutral) is noticed in the lower layers and enhanced (suppressed) convection in the middle troposphere during thunderstorm (non-thunderstorm) days. Low-level jets are observed during all days of the experimental period but with higher intensity on thunderstorm days. Convective available potential energy (CAPE) builds up until thunderstorm occurrence and becomes dissipated soon after, whereas convective inhibition (CIN) is greatly decreased prior to the event on thunderstorm days. In contrast, higher CAPE and CIN are noticed on non-thunderstorm days. Analysis of thermodynamic indices showed that indices including moisture [humidity index (HI) and dew point temperature at 850 hPa (DPT850)] are useful in differentiating thunderstorm from non-thunderstorm days. The present study reveals that significant moisture availability in the lower troposphere in the presence of convective instability conditions results in thunderstorm occurrence at Kharagpur.     

Intraseasonal variability of subsurface ocean temperature anomalies in the Indian Ocean during the summer monsoon season

Ocean Dynamics - The present study focuses on the variability of subsurface ocean temperature and associated planetary waves (oceanic Kelvin and Rossby waves) in the Indian Ocean during the boreal...     

Impact of South China Sea Cold Surges and Typhoon Peipah on Initiating Cyclone Sidr in the Bay of Bengal

In the present study, an attempt was made to understand the role of South China Sea (SCS) convection associated with northerly cold surges and Typhoon Peipah in initiating Cyclone Sidr in the Bay of Bengal (BoB). The variation of air sea fluxes during the entire history of Cyclone Sidr tracking before its landfall over Bangladesh was also studied. The presence of cold surges in the north SCS associated with heavy rainfall episodes has been noticed at the southern Gulf of Tonkin coast prior to the formation of Typhoon Peipah. Subsequently, these surges migrated south, which resulted in intensification of a deep convection on reaching the Vietnamese coast. During the same period in the western Pacific, Typhoon Peipah developed, propagating in the westward direction and entering the SCS. Analysis of geostationary water vapour images, mean sea level pressure, and surface wind maps clearly depicted the transport of convective cloud clusters, moisture, and westward momentum from Typhoon Peipah to the deep convection cells over the SCS. Consequently, the existing deep convection over the Vietnamese coast resulted in a westward direction and entered the Gulf of Thailand and Andaman Sea. The availability of higher latent heat fluxes, warmer sea surface temperatures, and suitable atmospheric conditions over this region favoured the formation of a tropical depression in the Andaman Sea. This depression further intensified in the southeast BoB, resulting in the formation of Cyclone Sidr. NCEP/NCAR wind fields and air-sea fluxes revealed left asymmetry surface winds and higher latent heat flux on the left side of the track during the intensification phase of Sidr.     

Response of upper ocean and impact of barrier layer on Sidr cyclone induced sea surface cooling

In the present study an attempt has been made to investigate the impact of salinity stratification on the SST during the tropical cyclone (TC) passage. In this context, a severe post monsoon cyclone, Sidr, (Category 4) that developed over the south-eastern Bay of Bengal (BoB) during 11–16 November, 2007 was chosen as a case study. Pre-existence of a thick barrier layer (BL), temperature inversions and a higher effective oceanic layer for cyclogenesis (EOLC) were noticed along the path of the Sidr cyclone. The analysis of available Argo floats along the Sidr cyclone track also revealed less cooling during as well as after its passage as was reported from satellite derived SST. The role of BL on Sidr induced sea surface cooling was investigated using a diagnostic mixed layer model. Model results also depict the reduced sea surface cooling during the passage of Sidr. This is attributed to the presence of BL which results in the inhibition of the entrainment of cool thermocline water into the shallow mixed layer. Climatological as well as in situ observations of tropical cyclone heat potential (TCHP) and EOLC shows that the Sidr cyclone propagated towards the regions of higher EOLC.     

Evaluating the impact of climate change in threshold values of thermodynamic indices during pre-monsoon thunderstorm season over Eastern India

Natural Hazards - The present study analyses thermodynamic indices variation over three sites of eastern Indian region: Bhubaneswar, Kolkata and Ranchi, associated with pre-monsoon thunderstorms...