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Observational evidence on the coastal upwelling along the northwest coast of India during summer monsoon

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Abstract

The lesser known coastal upwelling in the North Eastern Arabian Sea (NEAS) during summer monsoon, its associated dynamics and forcing mechanisms is elucidated for the first time using basin scale monthly time-series in-situ and satellite data. The presence of cool upwelled waters along northwest coast of India from July to early October with an associated increase in productivity was evident in both data. The low level Findlater jet blows towards west coast of India with high wind magnitude (10–12 m/s) during summer monsoon generates strong Ekman transport (1416 kg/m/s) at offshore and Ekman pumping velocity (1.349 m/s) at coastal region initiates upwelling. It was identified that the currents and remote forcing also regulate upwelling along the region. Although upwelling seems to exist along the northwest coast, it was weaker (25.5 °C) compared to the southwest coast where the SST dropped to 24 °C. The upwelling was observed in the south during June as a surface process, while it was observed along the northwest coast of India by the end of August. Even though the onset of upwelling in the NEAS and South Eastern Arabian Sea (SEAS) had a lag of two months, the recession of upwelling happened during late and early September respectively. The cause for the lag in the onset and cessation of upwelling between SEAS and NEAS is attributed to the propagation of Kelvin waves and southwest monsoon winds. The study also reveals that temperature and chlorophyll profiles show bi-modal peaks of high and low associated with winter cooling (winter) and upwelling (summer).

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Data availability

The datasets generated are deposited in the repository of CMLRE and can be made available upon reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

Authors are thankful to the Secretary, Ministry of Earth Sciences, India, and the Director, CMLRE, for their interest and support. The authors acknowledge Vessel Management Cell and all participants of FORV Sagar Sampada and ORV Sagar Kanya for their support and help rendered during sampling on board. This is the CMLRE contribution No.146

Funding

This study was carried out as a part of the project, Marine Ecosystem Dynamics of the Eastern Arabian Sea (MEDAS), funded by the Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, New Delhi, and implemented by the Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology (CMLRE), Kochi.

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  1. Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Kochi, 682508, India

    Vishnu Narayanan Nampoothiri S, Ch. Venkata Ramu, K. Rasheed, Y. V. B. Sarma & G. V. M. Gupta

  2. School of Marine Sciences, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kochi, 682016, India

    Vishnu Narayanan Nampoothiri S

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  1. Vishnu Narayanan Nampoothiri S
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  2. Ch. Venkata Ramu
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Highlights

• The lesser known coastal upwelling along the NEAS was elucidated for the first time.

• Presence of cooler waters during SM was due to upwelling with an increase in productivity.

• Strong winds (10–12 m/s) generate Ekman transport (1416 kg/m/s) and pumping velocity (1.349 m/s) triggering the upwelling.

• Temperature and chlorophyll profiles shows bi-modal peaks associated with winter cooling and upwelling.

• Change in wind and surface currents and remote forcing are the major forcings.

• Onset of upwelling in the NEAS and SEAS had a lag of two months; the cessation of upwelling occurred simultaneously.

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Narayanan Nampoothiri S, V., Ramu, C.V., Rasheed, K. et al. Observational evidence on the coastal upwelling along the northwest coast of India during summer monsoon. Environ Monit Assess 194, 5 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-021-09659-x

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