Getting a grip on Indian Ocean monsoons

Abstract

An improved understanding of the Indian Ocean monsoon season could help researchers to better forecast floods and the associated spread of cholera in low-lying Bangladesh. In a joint effort by the University of Colorado at Boulder, the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center, and the Bangladesh government, researchers are using a variety of monitoring and forecast modeling tools to better understand and characterize the monsoon season's active and calm periods. By studying Indian Ocean climatic conditions and probabilities that lead to regular flooding of the Bangladesh delta, researchers also can provide probabilities concerning outbreaks of cholera, an intestinal disease that infects large segments of that country's population.