Arctic sea ice loss causes extreme rainfalls in India, suggests research
Zee News
In a research led by the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research, scientists have found that the decline in the sea-ice extent or the loss of sea ice causes extreme rainfall events during August-September in India.
New Delhi: A study by the National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research under the ministry of earth sciences reveals that the frequency of extreme rainfall events (daily rainfall >150 mm) in the month of September in central India shows an ascending trend with a decrease in summer sea ice extent during the Early Twentieth Century Warming (ETCW, 1920–1940) period and recent warming since the 1980s. According to the paper published in the journal Nature on June 22, the satellite records in 1979 suggest that the Arctic Sea Ice Extent (SIE) has been declining at a rate of about 4.4% per decade in annual mean. According to researchers at NCPOR, very warm sea surface temperatures over the Arabian Sea and the changes in upper-level atmospheric circulation caused due to Arctic sea ice loss together contribute to an increase in extreme monsoon rain in central India, particularly in the month of September. While the final links have not been established between the rapid sea ice decline and the extreme weather events in the tropics, or the extreme rainfall events during monsoon in India, NCPOR scientists suggest that it may be causing a high-pressure area over Northwest Europe.More Related News