METEOROLOGIST JEFF HABY
This term of monsoon can be heard time to time to refer to a very heavy rain, such as in “wow, it is a monsoon out there!” The meteorological
meaning of this term refers to the change in the climatic pressure pattern that alternates between a wet phase and a dry phase. Typically a
monsoon is not an event that lasts for a day but rather lasts in the time frame of weeks to months. Two main ingredients of a monsoon are
hot land and a supply of moisture. The hot land results from high sun angles in the summer. Since hot air is more inclined to rise, a
portion of a continent with hot land will help promote a lowering of pressure. When this lowering of pressure can help draw in moisture
from a moisture source such as a tropical ocean, then the chances for precipitation increase dramatically. Often a monsoon will be in
reference to the rainier weather but technically the entire switching of the wet phase to the dry phase and back again is the monsoon. The
monsoon rains are often heaviest in the afternoon when daytime heating is occurring. The rains are often thunderstorm type
rains with heavy rain. Thus, the common association with any heavy rain storm being referred to as a monsoon even when it is
technically not a monsoon and not associated with a monsoon pattern.
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