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Science Meetings

Indian Monsoon in the Oceanic and Terrestrial Water Balances
Liu, W.T. and Xie, X. (18-Nov-15)

Soil moisture and surface salinity from Aquarius are used to characterize the vagary of monsoon, from the pre-monsoon drought to the oceanic causes of monsoon onset. The river discharges, derived from altimeter and land surface models are compared and their effects on salinity distribution and on continental mass balance are examined. The semi-annual salinity advections between the Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea are found to be out of phase with monsoon winds. The transport from the equatorial ocean that changes regional temperature and salinity is explored through the residue of mass balance in the northern Indian Ocean.