MonsoonsThough the word "monsoon" is often used in everyday language to mean heavy rain, monsoons are actually winds. In short, the way the monsoon winds work is they blow in one direction during winter and blow in the opposite direction during the summer. Depending on which way they blow, they either produce rainfall or drought.
The winter monsoons blow from land to sea and hence the winter season is the "dry" season. In summer, the winds blow from sea to land and bring in wet weather and rain, in many cases tremendous amount of rain. Summers are the "wet" season. Winds always blow from high pressure to low pressure. In the winter, the land is colder than the ocean. The cold air is associated with high pressure. The oceans and seas are relatively warmer and are associated with weather system highs. That is why the winds move from land to sea during the winter. In the summer the land heats up much more quickly than does the water. The hot land is associated with low pressure. The cooler air on the ocean creates a high pressure system and winds blow from sea to land. When the cooler air moist air reaches the land where the warm air is rising, it creates rainfall on the land. |
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