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Physical Process

Monsoon Circulation

Also Known As Monsoon
Atmospheric and Climatic Processes

A monsoon is a seasonal reversal of wind and rainfall driven by the unequal way land and ocean heat and cool through the year and by the annual swing of the Intertropical Convergence Zone that follows. Heated land draws in moist ocean air that rises and falls as rain; the pattern reverses with the seasons. The South Asian, East Asian, West African and Australian monsoons are the world's principal systems, and in India alone the summer monsoon supplies close to eighty percent of annual rainfall for an agricultural sector employing most of the population. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Process Type
Atmospheric Circulation 1
Timescale
An annual cycle, reversing between wet and dry seasons roughly twice a year. 1
First Proposed Year
1686 2
Connections

Associated With

Source Madden-Julian Oscillation (Wikipedia)

Demonstrated By

East Asia, Regions
Source East Asian Monsoon (Wikipedia)
South Asia, Regions

The South Asian summer monsoon supplies close to eighty percent of India's annual rainfall.

Source Monsoon (Wikipedia)
Sources
1. Monsoon (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia Foundation
  • Definition section
    A monsoon is a seasonal reversing wind accompanied by corresponding changes in precipitation.
  • Part Of: Atmospheric Circulation, Overview section, planetary-scale characterization
    The monsoon is now considered a planetary-scale phenomenon involving the annual migration of the Intertropical Convergence Zone between its northern and southern limits.
View the Source
2. Edmond Halley (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationScientific work section
Quote, Scientific work section
In this article he identified solar heating as the cause of atmospheric motions.
View the Source
East Asian Monsoon (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationDemonstrated By: East Asia, Lead section
Quote, Demonstrated By: East Asia, Lead section
The East Asian monsoon is a monsoonal flow that carries moist air from the Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean to East Asia.
View the Source
Madden-Julian Oscillation (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationAssociated With: Madden-Julian OscillationView the Source
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