How is the relationship between rainfall and water vapor in the Indian monsoon influenced by changes in lapse rate during global warming?

Abstract

Most climate models have shown that the Indian Summer Monsoon Rainfall (ISMR) will increase on account of global warming. The primary reason is the increase in column water vapor (CWV). The rainfall increase is not, however, proportional to the increase in column water vapor; for a given amount of CWV, rainfall will be lower in the future, according to model simulations. This suggests that other there are factors are at play. We have used a diagnostic model based on moist static energy (MSE) and moisture conservation to examine the impact of changes in the vertical lapse rate of temperature. Our results indicate that on decadal time scales, changes in ISMR are mediated by changes in CWV and temperature lapse rates. This is consistent with previous studies that showed the impact of column-mean temperature on the rainfall-CWV relationship. Findings are significant for climate model projections of ISMR, as correct estimation of lapse rate changes in models is necessary to predict ISMR changes accurately.

Keywords

• tropical precipitation
• monsoons
• lapse rate
• troposphere
• global warming