Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Sub-synoptic circulation variability in the Himalayan extreme precipitation event during June 2013

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Meteorology and Atmospheric Physics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This study investigates the sub-synoptic scale circulation aspects associated with the extreme rainfall event occurred over the North Indian state of Uttarakhand located in the western Himalayas (WH) during the 15–18 June 2013 period. A diagnosis based on hourly ERA5 reanalyzed circulation products archived on finer grids reveals that sustenance of heavy rains during the event period is supported by a propensity of cyclonic vorticity sources channeled toward the WH region through a narrow quasi-steady conduit in the lower troposphere from the ISM circulation. The equatorward segregating mesoscale potential vorticity (PV) structures from the quasi-stationary upper level PV anomaly (trough) during the event administered two pathways for vorticity sources. The first pathway is from the base of the trough culminating into longer horizontal conduit path from the western Arabian Sea, lending perpetual cyclonic vorticity support to the ISM environment. The second pathway is from the right flank of the trough, which promotes sustained environment of deeper mesoscale convergence zone, potentially unstable atmosphere and strong ascent over the Uttarakhand region. The convergence zone is potentially viewed as a region for strong monsoon and extratropical circulation interactions to occur on finer horizontal scales of motion, where significant vertical synchronization of positive PV advection is realized during the 16–17 June 2013 period. In addition to orographic precipitation enhancements, deeper advective synchronization noticed at sub-synoptic time periods is accredited to the nearly doubling 24-h rainfall amounts in the foothill region of Uttarakhand during the event period. The ERA5 diagnosed diabatic heating additionally indicates that precipitating systems at higher (foothill) elevations contribute to upper (lower) tropospheric heat sources.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

(Source: U.S. Geological Survey)

Fig. 2
Fig. 3

(Source: ERA5 reanalysis)

Fig. 4
Fig. 5

(Source: ERA5 reanalysis)

Fig. 6

(Source: ERA5 reanalysis)

Fig. 7

(Source: ERA5 reanalysis)

Fig. 8

(Source: ERA5 reanalysis)

Fig. 9

(Source: ERA5 reanalysis)

Fig. 10

(Source: ERA5 reanalysis)

Fig. 11

(Source: ERA5 reanalysis)

Fig. 12
Fig. 13

(Source: ERA5 reanalysis)

Fig. 14

(Source: ERA5 reanalysis)

Fig. 15
Fig. 16

(Source: ERA5 reanalysis)

Fig. 17

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Anthes RA, Hoke JE (1975) The effect of horizontal divergence and the latitudinal variation of the Coriolis parameter on the drift of a model hurricane. Mon Weather Rev 103:757–763

    Google Scholar 

  • Appenzeller C, Davies HC (1992) Structure of stratospheric intrusions into the troposphere. Nature 358:570–572

    Google Scholar 

  • Bedka KM, Brunner JC et al (2010) Objective satellite-based overshooting top detection using infrared window channel brightness temperature gradients. J Appl Met Clim 49:181–202. https://doi.org/10.1175/2009JAMC2286.1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bharti V, Singh C, Ettema J, Turkington TR (2016) Spatio-temporal characteristics of extreme rainfall events over the Northwest Himalaya using satellite data. Int J Climatol 36:3949–3962. https://doi.org/10.1002/joc.4605

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bluestein H (1992) Synoptic-dynamic meteorology in midlatitudes. Oxford Univ Press, Oxford, p 431

    Google Scholar 

  • Boers N, Goswami A et al (2019) Complex networks reveal global pattern of extreme-rainfall teleconnections. Nature. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41586-018-0872-x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chaudhuri C, Tripathi S, Srivastava R, Misra A (2015) Observation-and numerical analysis-based dynamics of the Uttarkashi cloudburst. Ann Geophys 33:671–686. https://doi.org/10.5194/angeo-33-671-2015

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chen P (1995) Isentropic cross-tropopause mass exchange in the extratropics. J Geophy Res 100:16661–16673

    Google Scholar 

  • Chevuturi A, Dimri AP (2016) Investigation of Uttarakhand (India) disaster-2013 using weather research and forecasting model. Nat Hazards 82:1703–1726

    Google Scholar 

  • Coumou D, Petoukhov V et al (2014) Quasi-resonant circulation regimes and hemispheric synchronization of extreme weather in boreal summer. Proc Natl Acad Sci 111:12331–12336

    Google Scholar 

  • Danielsen EF (1968) Stratospheric-tropospheric exchange based on radioactivity, ozone and potential vorticity. J Atmos Sci 25:502–518

    Google Scholar 

  • Dobhal DP, Gupta AK, Mehta M, Khandelwal DD (2013) Kedarnath disaster: facts and plausible causes. Curr Sci 105:171–174

    Google Scholar 

  • Doswell CA (1987) The distinction between large-scale and mesoscale contribution to severe convection: a case study example. Weather Forecast 2:3–16

    Google Scholar 

  • Dube A, Ashrit R et al (2014) Forecasting the heavy rainfall during Himalayan flooding—June 2013. Weather Clim Extremes 4:22–34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wace.2014.03.004

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dubey CS, Shukla DS et al (2013) Orographic control of the Kedarnath disaster. Curr Sci 105:1474–1476

    Google Scholar 

  • Foresti L, Pozdnoukhov A (2012) Exploration of Alpine orographic precipitation patterns with radar image processing and clustering techniquies. Met Appl 19:407–419

    Google Scholar 

  • Fujita TT (1958) Structure and movement of a dry front. Bull Am Meteorol Soc 39:574–582

    Google Scholar 

  • Guhathakurta P, Sreejith OP, Menon PA (2011) Impact of climate change on extreme rainfall events and flood risk in India. J Earth Sys Sci 120:359–373

    Google Scholar 

  • Hazra A, Chaudhari HS et al (2017) Role of interactions between cloud microphysics, dynamics and aerosol in the heavy rainfall event of June 2013 over Uttarakhand, India. Q J R Met Soc 143:986–998

    Google Scholar 

  • Hersbach H, Dee D (2016) ERA5 reanalysis is in production, ECMWF Newsletter 147. ECMWF, Reading

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoch J, Markowski P (2005) A climatology of springtime dryline position in the U.S., Great Plains region. J Clim 18:2132–2137

    Google Scholar 

  • Holton J, Hakim GJ (2013) An introduction to dynamic meteorology. Academic Press, New York, p 552

    Google Scholar 

  • Holton JR, Haynes PH et al (1995) Stratosphere-troposphere exchange. Rev Geophys 33:403–440

    Google Scholar 

  • Homeyer CR, Bowman KP (2013) Rossby wave breaking and transport between tropics and extratropics above the subtropical jet. J Atmos Sci 70:607–626

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoskins BJ, McIntyre ME, Robertson AW (1985) On the use and significance of isentropic potential vorticity maps. Q J R Met Soc 111:877–946

    Google Scholar 

  • Houze RA, McMurdie LA et al (2017) Multiscale aspects of the storm producing the June 2013 flooding in Uttarakhand, India. Mon Weather Rev 145:4447–4466. https://doi.org/10.1175/MWR-D-17-0004.1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hsu CJ, Plumb RA (2000) Nonaxisymmetric thermally driven circulations and upper tropospheric monsoon dynamics. J Atmos Sci 57:1255–1276

    Google Scholar 

  • Huffman GJ, Adler RF et al (2007) The TRMM multisatellite precipitation analysis: quasi-global, multi-year, combined-sensor precipitation estimates at fine scale. J Hydrometeorol 8:38–55. https://doi.org/10.1175/JHM560.1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Joseph S, Sahai AK et al (2015) North Indian heavy rainfall event during June 2013: diagnostics and extended range prediction. Clim Dyn 44:2049–2065. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-014-2291.5

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Joshi V, Kumar K (2006) Extreme rainfall events and associated natural hazards in Alaknanda Valley, Indian Himalayan Region. J Mt Sci 3:228–236

    Google Scholar 

  • Kaur S, Purohit MK (2014) Rainfall statistics of India—2013. India Meteorological Department, Report No. ESSO/IMD/HS/R.F.REPORT/02(2014)/18, p 99

  • Knippertz P, Martin JE (2007) The role of dynamic and diabatic processes in the generation of cut-off lows over Northwest Africa. Meteorol Atmos Phys 96:3–19

    Google Scholar 

  • Kotal SD, Roy SS, Roy Bhowmik SK (2014) Catastrophic heavy rainfall episode over Uttarakhand during 16–18 June 2013—observational aspects. Curr Sci 107:234–245

    Google Scholar 

  • Krishbaum DJ, Adler B et al (2018) Moist orographic convection: physical mechanisms and links to surface-exchange processes. Atmosphere. https://doi.org/10.3390/atmos9030080

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krishnamurti TN, Kumar V et al (2017) March of buoyancy elements during extreme rainfall over India. Clim Dyn 48:1931–1951. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-016-3183-7

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krishnan R, Zhang C, Sugi M (2000) Dynamics of breaks in the Indian summer monsoon. J Atmos Sci 57:1354–1372

    Google Scholar 

  • Kumar P, Shukla BP, Sharma S, Kisthawal CM, Pal PK (2016) A high-resolution simulation of catastrophic rainfall over Uttarakhand, India. Nat Hazards 80:1119–1134. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-015-2013-2

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kunz A, Konopka P et al (2011) Dynamical tropopause based on isentropic potential vorticity gradients. J Geophys Res 116:D01110. https://doi.org/10.1029/2010JD014343

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maddox RA, Chappel CF, Hoxit LR (1979) Synoptic and meso-α scale aspects of flash flood events. Bull Am Meteorol Soc 60:115–123

    Google Scholar 

  • Manish S, Mishra SK, Shuchi T (2013) The impact of torrential rainfall in Kedarnath, Uttarakhand, India during June, 2013. Int Res J Environ Sci 2:34–37

    Google Scholar 

  • Martius O, Schwierz C, Sprenger M (2008) Dynamical tropopause variability and potential vorticity streamers in the northern hemisphere—a climatological analysis. Adv Atmos Sci 25:367–380

    Google Scholar 

  • Morgenstern O, Davies HC (1999) Disruption of an upper level PV streamer by orography and cloud-diabatic effects. Contrib Atmos Phys 72:173–186

    Google Scholar 

  • Mujumdar M, Preethi B et al (2012) The Asian summer monsoon response to the La Nina event of 2010. Meteorol Appl 19:216–225. https://doi.org/10.1002/met.1301

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nandargi S, Gaur A (2013) Extreme rainfall events over the Uttarakhand State (1901–2013). Int J Sci Res. https://ww.ijsr.net/archive/v4i4/SUB152991.pdf

  • Nandargi S, Gaur A, Mulye SS (2016) Hydrological analysis of extreme rainfall events and severe rainstorms over Uttarakhand, India. Hydrol Sci J 61:2145–2163. https://doi.org/10.1080/02626667.2015.1085990

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • North GR, Erukhimova TL (2009) Atmospheric thermodynamics. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, p 267

    Google Scholar 

  • Orlanksi I (1975) A rational subdivision of scales for atmospheric processes. Bull Am Meteorol Soc 56:527–530

    Google Scholar 

  • Pant GB, Kumar PP, Revadekar JV, Singh N (2018) Climate change in the Himalayas. Springer, Berlin, p 172

    Google Scholar 

  • Parida BR, Behera SN et al (2017) Evaluation of satellite-derived rainfall estimates for an extreme rainfall event over Uttarakhand, Western Himalayas. Hydrology. https://doi.org/10.3390/hydrology4020022

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Petrukhov V, Rahmstorf S, Petri S, Schellnhuber HJ (2013) Quasi-resonant amplification of planetary waves and recent Northern Hemisphere weather extremes. Proc Natl Acad Sci 110:5336–5341

    Google Scholar 

  • Popovic JM, Plumb RA (2001) Eddy shedding from the upper-tropospheric Asian monsoon anticyclone. J Atmos Sci 58:93–104

    Google Scholar 

  • Priya P, Krishnan R, Mujumdar M, Houze RA (2017) Changing monsoon and mid-latitude circulation interactions over the western Himalayas and possible links to occurrences of extreme precipitation. Clim Dyn 49:2351–2364. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-016-3458-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rajeevan M, Gadgil S, Bhate J (2010) Active and break spells of the Indian summer monsoon. J Earth Syst Sci 119:229–248

    Google Scholar 

  • Rajesh PV, Pattanaik S et al (2016) Role of land state in a high-resolution mesoscale model for simulating the Uttarakhand heavy rainfall event over India. J Earth Sys Sci 125:475–498

    Google Scholar 

  • Ranalkar MR, Chaudhari HS et al (2016) Incessant rainfall event of June 2013 in Uttarakhand, India: Observational perspectives. In: Ray K, et al. (eds) High-impact weather events over the SAARC region. Springer, Berlin, pp 303–312

    Google Scholar 

  • Ranalkar MR, Chaudlhari H et al (2016) Dynamical features of incessant heavy rainfall event of June 2013 over Uttarakhand, India. Nat Hazards 80:1579–1601. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-015-2040-z

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rasmussen KL, Houze RA (2012) A flash flooding storm at the steep edge of high terrain: disaster in the Himalayas. Bull Am Meteorol Soc 93:1713–1724. https://doi.org/10.1175/BAMS-D-11-00236.1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ray K, Bhan SC, Devi SS (2014) A meteorological analysis of very heavy rainfall event over Uttarakhand during 14–17 June 2013. Monsoon Report 2013, India Meteorological Department, Meteorological Monograph ESSO/IMD/SYNOPTIC MET/01-2014/15:37-54

  • Romero R, Doswell CA, Ramis C (2000) Mesoscale numerical study of two cases of long-lived quasi-stationary convective systems over Eastern Spain. Mon Weather Rev 128:3731–3751

    Google Scholar 

  • Sawyer JS (1947) The structure of the intertropical front over northwest India during the southwest monsoon. Q J R Meteorol Soc 73:346–369. https://doi.org/10.1002/qj.49797331709

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schmetz J, Tjemkes SA et al (1997) Monitoring deep convection and convective overshooting with METEOSAT. Adv Sp Res 19:433–441

    Google Scholar 

  • Shekhar MS, Pattanayak S et al (2015) A study of heavy rainfall event around Kedarnath area (Uttarakhand) on 16 June 2013. J Earth Syst Sci 124:1531–1544

    Google Scholar 

  • Sikka DR, Ray K, Chakravarthy K, Bhan SC, Tyagi A (2015) Heavy rainfall in Kedarnath Valley during advancing monsoon phase in June 2013. Curr Sci 109:353–361

    Google Scholar 

  • Soderholm B, Ronalds B, Kirshbaum J (2014) The evolution of convective storms initiated by an isolated mountain ridge. Mon Weather Rev 142:1430–1451

    Google Scholar 

  • Srivastava AK, Guhathakurta P (2013) Climate diagnostics bulletin of India June 2013, near real-time analysis, issue 208, India Meteorological Department, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Earth System Science Organisation, Government of India, p 23

  • Vellore RK, Krishnan R et al (2014) On the anomalous precipitation enhancement over the Himalayan foothills during monsoon breaks. Clim Dyn 43:2009–2031. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-013-2024-1

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vellore RK, Kaplan ML et al (2016) Monsoon-extratropical circulation interactions in Himalayan extreme rainfall. Clim Dyn 46:3517–3546. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-015-2784-x

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wernli H, Sprenger M (2007) Identification of ERA-15 climatology of potential vorticity streamers and cutoffs near extratropical tropopause. J Atmos Sci 64:1569–1586

    Google Scholar 

  • Xavier A, Manoj MG, Mohankumar K (2018) On the dynamics of an extreme rainfall event in northern India in 2013. J Earth Syst Sci. https://doi.org/10.1007/12040-018-0931-6

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yanai M, Esbensen S et al (1973) Determination of bulk properties of tropical cloud clusters from large-scale heat and moisture budgets. J Atmos Sci 30:611–627

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge The Director, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, India, for the encouragement and support for this work. We thank the anonymous reviewers for providing valuable comments. This work is carried out under the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES), Government of India—Belmont Project Globally Observed Teleconnections and their role and representation in Hierarchies of Atmospheric Models (GOTHAM). The authors also acknowledge TRMM dataset archived and distributed by the Goddard Distributed Active Archive Center (https://pmm.nasa.gov), EUMETSAT for the METEOSAT-7 imagery datasets (https://eoportal.eumetsat.int) and the fifth-generation of ECMWF atmospheric reanalyzes (ERA5) products obtained from the Copernicus Climate Change Service Climate Data Store (CDS; https://cds.climate.copernicus.eu). Utilization of high performance computing facility at IITM for processing the datasets is acknowledged.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Climate Change Research (CCCR), Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM), Pune, 411 008, India

    Ramesh K. Vellore, Jagat S. Bisht, Raghavan Krishnan & Umakanth Uppara

  2. Research and Development Centre for Global Change, Japan Agency for Marine Earth Science Technology, Yokohama, Japan

    Jagat S. Bisht

  3. Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research, Potsdam, Germany

    Giorgia Di Capua & Dim Coumou

  4. Institute for Environmental Studies, Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands

    Giorgia Di Capua & Dim Coumou

Authors
  1. Ramesh K. Vellore
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jagat S. Bisht
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Raghavan Krishnan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Umakanth Uppara
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Giorgia Di Capua
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Dim Coumou
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ramesh K. Vellore.

Additional information

Responsible Editor: A.-P. Dimri.

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Vellore, R.K., Bisht, J.S., Krishnan, R. et al. Sub-synoptic circulation variability in the Himalayan extreme precipitation event during June 2013. Meteorol Atmos Phys 132, 631–665 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00703-019-00713-5

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00703-019-00713-5

Search

Navigation