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23 - A numerical model of the monsoon trough

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 November 2011

P. K. Das
Affiliation:
India Meteorological Department
H. S. Bedi
Affiliation:
India Meteorological Department
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Summary

A regional primitive equation model is used to simulate the monsoon trough. The model has three layers and a boundary layer adjacent to the Earth's surface. It has smooth profiles for the Himalayas, Western Ghats, and the Burma mountains and includes radiative heating at the surface, but no precipitation.

The model has been integrated up to 8 days starting with an idealised wind and temperature field with meridional and vertical shear. It was observed that the monsoon trough could not be generated by topographic features alone, but the inclusion of radiative heating at the surface led to patterns resembling the monsoon trough. On decreasing the surface albedo near northwest India the monsoon trough was intensified. A Bowen ratio was used to estimate the flux of latent heat due to evaporation of soil moisture. Results suggest that a high rate of evaporation over northeast India leads to a southward extension of the monsoon trough.

Introduction

An elongated trough, running parallel to the southern periphery of the Himalayas, is an important feature of the monsoon. It is known as the monsoon trough, and its normal position in June is shown in Fig. 23.1. The line of symmetry, shown by a dashed line on the figure, is the axis of the trough. The trough is most marked at sea level, and rarely extends above 700 mb.

Short-period variations in monsoon rain are closely associated with the position of the trough.

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Monsoon Dynamics , pp. 351 - 364
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 1981

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