With reference to ‘Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD)’ sometimes mentioned in the news while forecasting Indian monsoon, which of the following statements is/are correct? 1. IOD phenomenon is characterized by a difference in sea surface temperature between tropical Western Indian Ocean and tropical Eastern Pacific Ocean. 2. An IOD phenomenon can influence El Nino’s impact on the monsoon. Select the correct answer using the code given below:

QUESTION

Hard

Indian Geography

Prelims 2017

With reference to ‘Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD)’ sometimes mentioned in the news while forecasting Indian monsoon, which of the following statements is/are correct?

IOD phenomenon is characterized by a difference in sea surface temperature between tropical Western Indian Ocean and tropical Eastern Pacific Ocean.
An IOD phenomenon can influence El Nino’s impact on the monsoon.

Select the correct answer using the code given below:

Select an option to attempt

Explanation

Statement 1 is Incorrect: The IOD phenomenon is characterised by a difference in sea surface temperature between the tropical Western Indian Ocean and the tropical Eastern Indian Ocean, not the Eastern Pacific Ocean. During a positive IOD, the western Indian Ocean is warmer than the eastern Indian Ocean, and vice versa for a negative IOD.

Indian Ocean Dipole

Statement 2 is Correct: The IOD phenomenon can indeed influence El Nio's impact on the Indian monsoon. El Nio itself is a climate pattern in the Pacific Ocean, but it can interact with the IOD. Depending on the phases of both phenomena (positive/negative IOD and El Nino/La Nina), the overall impact on the Indian monsoon rainfall can be amplified or weakened.

Hence, option B is the correct answer.

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