Table of Contents
Indian Ocean Dipole
- IOD is the difference in the sea surface temperature between two areas or poles.
- In IOD western Indian Ocean becomes alternatively warmer and colder than the eastern part of the Indian Ocean.
- Two types of dipoles are seen over the Indian Ocean.
- Positive Indian Ocean Dipole
- Negative Indian Ocean Dipole
Positive IOD
- With positive IOD, the eastern Indian Ocean (Bay of Bengal and oceans parts off Sumatra in Indonesia) becomes colder than normal while the western tropical part of the Indian Ocean (Arabian Sea)
- Such an event strengthens the southwest monsoon.
Negative IOD
- With negative IOD, the eastern Indian Ocean becomes abnormally warm and the western tropical part of the Indian Ocean near the African coast becomes relatively colder.
- The Indian monsoon is the interplay of ENSO, IOD, circumpolar whirl, and jet stream.
Impact of Monsoon on the life of India
- Around 64% of India’s population depend on agriculture for their livelihood.
- The monsoon helps in recharging irrigational channels, reservoirs, and dams.
- They help in the generation of hydroelectric power by recharging the dams.
- India is a monsoon-dependent country, where the maximum agricultural output is dependent on the monsoon rainfall resulting in drought and floods with the variability of rainfall.
- The pulsating nature of sudden monsoon outbursts creates the problem of soil erosion over large parts of India.
- In hilly areas, the sudden outburst of rainfall results in landslides, disrupts human life, damages infrastructure, etc.
Indian Geography (Fundamental) | Free PDF
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