Page 169 - Super Earth Encyclopedia

DELUGE

SOUTH ASIAN MONSOON

Every summer the Indian subcontinent experiences
months of heavy rain. At the end of summer the heavy
rain stops, and there may be months of drought before
rain falls again. The reason for this is a seasonal wind
shift called the monsoon. In winter, cold dry air sinks
over central Asia and pushes south across India. But as
Asia warms up in summer, the warm ground heats the
air above so that it rises and draws in warm, moist air
from the tropical Indian Ocean. Huge black clouds
build up and cause torrential rain across India and
nearby countries. The rain is especially heavy because
the Sun is directly overhead in summer, and this causes
intense evaporation of water from the warm ocean.

FLOODING

Monsoon rain is vital for Asian
farmers, and its arrival is often a
cause for celebration. But the heavy
rain swells rivers and makes them
overflow, especially the rivers that
flow off the high mountains to the
north. This can cause catastrophic
flooding in low-lying regions
such as Bangladesh.

STATS AND FACTS

WORST HIT INDIAN MONSOON
The heavy rain
and floods of In 1997, 10 million The summer
monsoon accounts
people were left
the South Asian homeless due to for 80 percent
monsoon affect a monsoon flood of the rainfall
many Asian in Bangladesh. in India.
countries, from
Pakistan, India, RAINS Monsoon rains advance EXTREME WEATHER
and Bangladesh across Asia at a rate of about
62 miles (100 km) per day.
to Thailand and
Vietnam. km 50 100 150
miles 31 62 93

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