The role of tropical volcanic eruptions in exacerbating Indian droughts
Abstract The Indian summer monsoon rainfall (ISMR) is vital for the livelihood of millions of people in the Indian region; droughts caused by monsoon failures often resulted in famines. Large volcanic eruptions have been linked with reductions in ISMR, but the responsible mechanisms remain unclear....
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Nature Portfolio
2021-02-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-81566-0 |
| _version_ | 1818427521881866240 |
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| author | Suvarna Fadnavis Rolf Müller Tanusri Chakraborty T. P. Sabin Anton Laakso Alexandru Rap Sabine Griessbach Jean-Paul Vernier Simone Tilmes |
| author_facet | Suvarna Fadnavis Rolf Müller Tanusri Chakraborty T. P. Sabin Anton Laakso Alexandru Rap Sabine Griessbach Jean-Paul Vernier Simone Tilmes |
| author_sort | Suvarna Fadnavis |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract The Indian summer monsoon rainfall (ISMR) is vital for the livelihood of millions of people in the Indian region; droughts caused by monsoon failures often resulted in famines. Large volcanic eruptions have been linked with reductions in ISMR, but the responsible mechanisms remain unclear. Here, using 145-year (1871–2016) records of volcanic eruptions and ISMR, we show that ISMR deficits prevail for two years after moderate and large (VEI > 3) tropical volcanic eruptions; this is not the case for extra-tropical eruptions. Moreover, tropical volcanic eruptions strengthen El Niño and weaken La Niña conditions, further enhancing Indian droughts. Using climate-model simulations of the 2011 Nabro volcanic eruption, we show that eruption induced an El Niño like warming in the central Pacific for two consecutive years due to Kelvin wave dissipation triggered by the eruption. This El Niño like warming in the central Pacific led to a precipitation reduction in the Indian region. In addition, solar dimming caused by the volcanic plume in 2011 reduced Indian rainfall. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-14T14:47:03Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-625317a51cb94377a7a589aa7c21f9c4 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-14T14:47:03Z |
| publishDate | 2021-02-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj.art-625317a51cb94377a7a589aa7c21f9c42022-12-21T22:57:15ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222021-02-0111111310.1038/s41598-021-81566-0The role of tropical volcanic eruptions in exacerbating Indian droughtsSuvarna Fadnavis0Rolf Müller1Tanusri Chakraborty2T. P. Sabin3Anton Laakso4Alexandru Rap5Sabine Griessbach6Jean-Paul Vernier7Simone Tilmes8Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, MoESForschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, IEK7Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, MoESIndian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, MoESFinnish Meteorological InstituteSchool of Earth and Environment, University of LeedsForschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich Supercomputing CenterNational Institute of AerospaceNational Center for Atmospheric ResearchAbstract The Indian summer monsoon rainfall (ISMR) is vital for the livelihood of millions of people in the Indian region; droughts caused by monsoon failures often resulted in famines. Large volcanic eruptions have been linked with reductions in ISMR, but the responsible mechanisms remain unclear. Here, using 145-year (1871–2016) records of volcanic eruptions and ISMR, we show that ISMR deficits prevail for two years after moderate and large (VEI > 3) tropical volcanic eruptions; this is not the case for extra-tropical eruptions. Moreover, tropical volcanic eruptions strengthen El Niño and weaken La Niña conditions, further enhancing Indian droughts. Using climate-model simulations of the 2011 Nabro volcanic eruption, we show that eruption induced an El Niño like warming in the central Pacific for two consecutive years due to Kelvin wave dissipation triggered by the eruption. This El Niño like warming in the central Pacific led to a precipitation reduction in the Indian region. In addition, solar dimming caused by the volcanic plume in 2011 reduced Indian rainfall.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-81566-0 |
| spellingShingle | Suvarna Fadnavis Rolf Müller Tanusri Chakraborty T. P. Sabin Anton Laakso Alexandru Rap Sabine Griessbach Jean-Paul Vernier Simone Tilmes The role of tropical volcanic eruptions in exacerbating Indian droughts Scientific Reports |
| title | The role of tropical volcanic eruptions in exacerbating Indian droughts |
| title_full | The role of tropical volcanic eruptions in exacerbating Indian droughts |
| title_fullStr | The role of tropical volcanic eruptions in exacerbating Indian droughts |
| title_full_unstemmed | The role of tropical volcanic eruptions in exacerbating Indian droughts |
| title_short | The role of tropical volcanic eruptions in exacerbating Indian droughts |
| title_sort | role of tropical volcanic eruptions in exacerbating indian droughts |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-021-81566-0 |
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