Seasonal evolution of temperature inversions in the north Indian Ocean

Abstract

Array for real-time geostrophic oceanography observations from November 2002 to July 2004 were analysed to acquire a wide picture of temperature inversions appearing in the north Indian Ocean. The inversions show remarkable variability in temporal and spatial scales both in magnitude and structure. Inversions in the Arabian Sea show maximum magnitude of about 1.31°C during January and in the Bay of Bengal, the inversions peak during February with magnitude 1.57°C. The equatorial Indian Ocean shows inversions of maximum magnitude up to 0.82°C (during May) and 1.23°C (during January). The inversions observed in the equatorial Indian Ocean propagate westward. The inversions formed in the head bay also propagate along the east coast of India. The basic mechanisms for the propagation of these inversions are the Rossby and coastal Kelvin waves.