Research

Earth, Atmosphere & Environment Sciences

Title :

Anomalous Moisture Transport for Hydrological Extremes in a Changing Climate (AMOTHEC)

Area of research :

Earth, Atmosphere & Environment Sciences

Focus area :

Hydrology, Climate Science

Principal Investigator :

Prof. Ankit Agarwal, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee, Uttarakhand (247667)

Contact info :

Details

Executive Summary :

India and Iberia have experienced heavy precipitation events (HPEs) in recent years, causing extensive damage to life and property. The Iberian subcontinent has seen an increasing number of HPEs, with studies showing a three-fold rise in high precipitation events across central India from 1950-2015. Most of India's GDP is spent on flood mitigation and disaster management. Understanding atmospheric patterns and regional meteorological factors causing these high precipitation events is crucial to reducing flood damage. Anomalyst moisture transport is a key component of the water cycle, with three major meteorological structures: Atmospheric Rivers (ARs), low-level jets, and monsoons. Monsoons and ARs are two major mechanisms of anomalous moisture transport in India and the Iberian Peninsula. ARs are recognized for their crucial role in the global water cycle and are expected to increase precipitation due to global warming and short-term climate change. Understanding future circulation patterns under changing climate scenarios is vital to study the role of anomalous moisture transport on HPEs and their possible socioeconomic impacts. This proposal aims to understand the anomalous moisture transport in explaining HPEs for two different climate regions, Monsoon vs Mediterranean, both plagued with impacting extreme hydrological events.

Co-PI:

Prof. Rathinasamy Maheswaran, Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad, Telangana (502285)

Total Budget (INR):

45,10,760

Organizations involved