Climate and oceanography Clause Samples

Climate and oceanography. The atmospheric processes that influence climatic conditions in the region of the proposed TBCA are driven by processes that originate across the Indian Ocean (both north and south of the equator) as well as by processes that originate in the Pacific Ocean and that are transmitted into the Indian Ocean through so-called teleconnections (e.g. the Indonesian Through-flow (ITF) and El Niño/La Niña (▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ and Samoilys, 2015). The main features of the climate in the area of interest are the Monsoons. During the austral winter (~May-October) the south-easterly Trade Winds (SE Monsoon) are dominant as a result of the (boreal summer) heating of the large landmasses of the Indian Subcontinent and Asia. During the austral summer (~November-April) however, the SE Trades are weaker and the monsoon reverses due to significant (boreal winter) cooling of the Indian Subcontinent and Asia, leading to the dominance of north-easterly Trade Winds (NE Monsoon) (▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇ and ▇▇▇▇▇▇▇▇, 2015). The rainfall in the region is seasonal. Rainfall is lowest during the SE Monsoon months of May/June through September/October. The major rains fall during the NE Monsoon, with the so-called ‘short rains’ over the months of October through November, and the main wet season (long rains) being from February/March to May, as the NE Monsoon subsides (Figure 3). Mean annual rainfall ranges between 1000mm and 1 600mm.