The Impact of the Tropical Indian Ocean on South Asian High in Boreal Summer

The tropical Indian Ocean (TIO) is warmer than normal during the summer when or after the El Ni\~no decays. The present study investigates the impact of TIO SST on the South Asian High (SAH) in summer. When the TIO is warmer, the SAH strengthens and its center shifts southward. It is found that the variations in the SAH cannot be accounted for by the precipitation anomaly. A possible mechanism is proposed to explain the connection between the TIO and SAH: warmer SST in the TIO changes the equivalent potential temperature (EPT) in the atmospheric boundary layer (ABL), alters the temperature profile of the moist atmosphere, warms the troposphere, which produces significant positive height anomaly over South Asia and modifies the SAH. An atmospheric general circulation model, ECHAM5, which has a reasonable prediction skill in the TIO and South Asia, was selected to test the effects of TIO SST on the SAH. The experiment with idealized heating over the TIO reproduced the response of the SAH to TIO warming. The results suggest that the TIO-induced EPT change in the ABL can account for the variations in the SAH.