Seasonal variability of heat content and isothermal layer in the Bay of Bengal

Abstract

Heat content and isothermal layer variations in the Bay of Bengal have been investigated in this study using 52 years (1950 to 2001) global ocean monthly analysis datasets based on the simple ocean data assimilation (SODA) package. The annual cycle of heat content estimated from surface to fixed depths (67.5, 125 and 500 m) and isothermal layers (26, 20 and 10°C) show seasonal variations for the entire basin but good correlation are observed for regions except the northwestern region. The good correlation of sea surface height with heat contents and isothermal layers show the possibility of prediction of upper layer heat content, which is the primary source of energy for the intensification and movement of the tropical cyclone in this basin, from satellite derived sea surface height. Key words: Heat content (HC), isothermal layer, bay of Bengal (BOB), simple ocean data assimilation (SODA).