Bay of Bengal salinity stratification and Indian summer monsoon intraseasonal oscillation: 1. Intraseasonal variability and causes

Abstract

The huge freshwater flux of the Indian summer monsoon (ISM; May–October) gives rise to strong salinity stratification in the Bay of Bengal (BoB), causing a shallow mixed layer and a thick barrier layer, which potentially affects intraseasonal oscillations of the monsoon (MISOs). In this study, intraseasonal variability of the mixed-layer depth (MLD) and barrier layer thickness (BLT) is investigated using in situ observations from Argo floats and moored buoys and an ocean general circulation model (OGCM). The average MLD in the BoB is typically 20–30 m during the ISM, while the BLT increases from ∼10 m in May–June to 20–40 m in September–October. MISOs induce in-phase variations in MLD and isothermal layer depth (ILD), both of which are deepened by 8–15 m during MISO active phase, while the change of BLT is small and within the error range of Argo data sampling. In the northern (southern) bay, BLT increases by ∼5 m (2 m) during MISOs owing to a larger deepening of ILD than MLD. OGCM experiments are performed to understand the underlying mechanism. In the BoB intraseasonal variations of MLD, ILD and BLT arise largely from ocean internal instability, whereas those induced by MISOs are weaker. The in-phase variations of MLD and ILD during MISOs are induced by different processes. The MLD deepening is primarily caused by wind stress forcing, while the ILD deepening is driven by surface heat fluxes via surface cooling. The limited variability of BLT is due to the offsetting of different forcing processes.