Oscillations of Bay of Bengal sea surface temperature during the 1998 Summer Monsoon

New measurements from moored buoys in the Bay of Bengal, along with satellite cloud data, reveal strong monsoon intraseasonal oscillations (ISO) during the summer of 1998. The active phase of the monsoon is marked by high surface wind and deep atmospheric convection. The buoy data show that sea surface temperature (SST) in the Bay of Bengal warm pool rises and falls with periods of weeks. These intraseasonal oscillations of SST are not adequately captured in a satellite derived weekly SST analysis. They are a direct response to ISO of net surface heat flux into the ocean, which is negative in the active phase of the monsoon and positive in the quiescent phase. Fresh water from rivers and rain appears to control northern Bay of Bengal SST in late summer by allowing sunlight to escape below a shallow mixed layer.