Indian Geography

Seasons of India

Winter

Monsoon Summer
Monsoon
• Unique weather
ITCZ
phenomenon
• “Mausam”=
Seasonal
reversal of winds
India Monsoon: unique features

Sudden Onset

Gradual Advance

Gradual retreat

Variation – regional and temporal

Indian Monsoon: mechanism
Tropical
Easterly Jet

2nd equatorial
Somali Jet
trough

El-Nino- IOD STWJ

 Tropical Easterly Jet (TEJ)
Tropical Tibet plt. • Northward movement
Easterly
Jet
LP
of the sun in summer
• Heating of Tibetan plt –
LP
• Rising of the air
Mascerene
High
• Create TEJ above Tibet
– move towards
Mascarene High
• Strengthen Mascarene
High pressure cell
Pressure system on earth
 Second equatorial trough
ITCZ
• Summer: northward
movement of sun,
northward movement of
ITCZ
• Sometimes, LP cells of
ITCZ do not merge with
LP cell LP cell ITCZ on movement of
ITCZ
 Second equatorial trough
ITCZ
• When 2nd equatorial
LP cell
trough (LP cell of ITCZ)
merges with main ITCZ
– strengthen the LP of
ITCZ
• Attract more monsoon
LP cell winds towards India
• If not, then weak LP
system over Tibet
Somali current and Somali Jet stream
• Somali jet stream – low
level, appear only in
summer
• Intensify Somali ocean
current
• Somali jet stream
pushes monsoon winds
towards India
• Stronger the Somali
current, better d
monsoon
Permanent Jet stream in the world
 Sub-Tropical Westerly Jet
STWJ • Winter – entirely south
HP
of Himalayas – over
north India
STWJ • STWJ maintain the
HP
High pressure over
ITCZ north India

ITCZ
 Sub-Tropical Westerly Jet
STWJ
• Early summer –
STWJ
HP northward movement –
bifurcation – southern
STWJ branch still over
northern India
• HP conditions
 Sub-Tropical Westerly Jet
LP cell • It resist monsoon winds
HP STWJ
towards India though
LP cell land is warm enough
• Even after development
of ITCZ over Tibet, and
merging of 2nd
equatorial trough,
monsoon winds can’t
attract toward India
Sub-Tropical Westerly Jet
LP cell
• Summer: STWJ entirely
STWJ northward
• Allow Onset of
monsoon (sudden
burst)
• If southern branch re-
establish- monsoon
break
 Indian Ocean Dipole
LP • Association of
Western Pacific
Pool with
LP Mascarene High
HP • Strong WPP- strong
Western pacific
Mascarene High Pool Mascarene High
 Indian Ocean Dipole
• El-Nino year:
• Weak WPP – weak
Mascarene High
HP
Mascarene
HP
Western LP • Low push to SW
High Pacific pool monsoon winds to
move towards India
Fluctuation in Monsoon
1) If ITCZ does not
ITCZ develop properly over
Tibet
 Fluctuation in Monsoon
ITCZ
LP cell
2) If 2nd equatorial
trough does not merge
with ITCZ

LP cell
 Fluctuation in Monsoon
STWJ 3) Southern branch
HP of STWJ re-
establish over north
STWJ India
Fluctuation in Monsoon
4) Inadequate heating of
Tibetan plateau
 Fluctuation in Monsoon
LP
5) Weak Mascarene
High pressure cell

HP
Mascarene High
 Fluctuation in Monsoon
6) Intensification
of Indian ocean
dipole/ El-Nino
HP HP
LP
event
- If IOD intense=
IOD negative –
weak monsoon
in India
 Monsoon
• Burst of monsoon first
on Malabar coast
• 2 branches:
1) Arabian branch
2) Bay of Bengal
Arabian
branch
branch Bay of
Bengal
branch
Monsoon: Arabian branch
• Western Ghats blocks
• Rainfall in windward
side
• South KN plateau,
Rayalseema of AP
remain dry
Monsoon : Arabian branch
• No effective barrier in
Gujarat or Rajasthan
• Aravalli parallel to the
winds
• Low rainfall in GJ-RJ
• Rainfall along
Kathiawar upland,
south Aravalli
Monsoon : Arabian branch
• Gaps between Western
Ghats, river valleys –
winds enter interior of
India
• Wind reach up to
Himachal Pradesh-
Punjab
Monsoon: Bay of Bengal branch
• Eastern Ghats – low,
discontinued –cannot
block
• Large gaps, large river
deltas – more winds
can enter inland
Monsoon: Bay of Bengal branch
• Rainfall along
chhotanagpur plateau,
Vindhyan and Satpura
Chhota nagpur plt range
Monsoon: Bay of Bengal branch
• Purvanchal –
Meghalaya plateau –
• Funneling effect
• high rainfall
• Rainfall decrease from
east to west
• Most of the rain from
eastern branch
 Rainfall pattern
• India –avg rainfall =
120-180 cm = wetter
• But rainfall variation is
100
cm

across regions and

seasons
 Rainfall pattern
60
cm • Highest rainfall:
60 100
60
cm
western Ghats, North-
20
cm
cm cm 200
cm east
200
• Then East India
cm
• Then GJ-RJ and J&K
100 • Then south KN-
cm
Rayalseema region
60
cm • Thar and Kutchh
200
cm
deserts
 Retreating Monsoon
Northern
Northern • Southward movement
Trade
Tradewinds
winds of ITCZ
• SW monsoon winds and
NE winds co-exist
• Gradual withdrawal of
SW monsoon winds –
Southern
Southern
Tradewinds
Trade winds
first eastern then
western branch
Retreating Monsoon: tropical cyclone
• Increase in SST of Bay
of Bengal and Arabian
ITCZ sea
• Possibility of Tropical
cyclone
• Retreating SW
monsoon branch drag
them towards Eastern
coast
 Winter
• NE winds – coming
NE winds
from land – dry winds
North East
Trade winds • But passing through
Bay of Bengal-
become moist
• Coastline of TN
• Rainfall in TN
 Winter
• STWJ from
STWJ
Mediterranean sea
• Brings disturbances
to north India
• Winter rainfall –
western
ITCZ disturbances
 Summer
• Northward apparent
HP
STWJ movement of Sun
• Temperature increases
• LP but resisted by STWJ
• Local heating
convectional rainfall
• Pre-monsoon thunder
storm
• Kalbaishakhi (WB),
ITCZ
Mango shower, Blossom
shower
Geological history of India

Physiography of India

Indian weather: seasons

Climatic regions of India

Soils of India
Physiography of India:
Plateaus and coastal plains of India
Indian rivers: Himalayan and
peninsular rivers
Indian seasons:
Monsoon
Winter
summer