Chapter 10
Impact of Climate Extremes of El Nina
and La Nina in Patterns of Seasonal Rainfall
over Coastal Karnataka, India
A. Stanley Raj and B. Chendhoor
Abstract This research investigates the influence of the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on the rainfall characteristics of coastal Karnataka. An attempt has been
made to study the behavior of rainfall in every season during an ENSO along the
coast of Karnataka. Rainfall data from 1901 to 2017 have been used for studying the
patterns. Rainfall variations occur with El Nino and La Nina events, which are based
on sea surface temperature (SST), taking place in the Pacific Ocean along the
Equator. The Southern Oscillation is like a pendulum, in which El Nino takes
place in one side (west) and La Nina takes place along the other side (east), and
vice versa. Its major cause is the trade winds that move from east to west, especially
in Ecuador, Peru, and South America. By correlating the rainfall data and El Nino,
the effects along the coast of Karnataka can be identified. As El Nino and La Nina
have major impacts on agriculture, food supply, and the economy of the country, it is
necessary to study the patterns and influence of rainfall. This study shows that La
Nina has a major impact on coastal Karnataka, bringing more rainfall than El Nino.
Keywords El NiNo · La NiNa · Karnataka · Rainfall · Seasonal variations
Introduction
Karnataka, a district that lies along the southwestern part of the Indian Peninsula, is
classified into Northern Karnataka, Central Karnataka, Southern Karnataka, and
Coastal Karnataka based on geographical location. Coastal Karnataka, which is the
primary site of this research, comprises three districts, Dakshina Kannada (12.87
N
A. Stanley Raj (*)
Department of Physics, Loyola College, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
e-mail: stanleyraj@loyolacollege.edu
B. Chendhoor
Centre for Geo Technology, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu,
India
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
M. N. Islam, A. van Amstel (eds.), India: Climate Change Impacts, Mitigation
and Adaptation in Developing Countries, Springer Climate,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-67865-4_10
227
Impact of Climate Extremes of El Nina
and La Nina in Patterns of Seasonal Rainfall
over Coastal Karnataka, India
A. Stanley Raj and B. Chendhoor
Abstract This research investigates the influence of the El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) on the rainfall characteristics of coastal Karnataka. An attempt has been
made to study the behavior of rainfall in every season during an ENSO along the
coast of Karnataka. Rainfall data from 1901 to 2017 have been used for studying the
patterns. Rainfall variations occur with El Nino and La Nina events, which are based
on sea surface temperature (SST), taking place in the Pacific Ocean along the
Equator. The Southern Oscillation is like a pendulum, in which El Nino takes
place in one side (west) and La Nina takes place along the other side (east), and
vice versa. Its major cause is the trade winds that move from east to west, especially
in Ecuador, Peru, and South America. By correlating the rainfall data and El Nino,
the effects along the coast of Karnataka can be identified. As El Nino and La Nina
have major impacts on agriculture, food supply, and the economy of the country, it is
necessary to study the patterns and influence of rainfall. This study shows that La
Nina has a major impact on coastal Karnataka, bringing more rainfall than El Nino.
Keywords El NiNo · La NiNa · Karnataka · Rainfall · Seasonal variations
Introduction
Karnataka, a district that lies along the southwestern part of the Indian Peninsula, is
classified into Northern Karnataka, Central Karnataka, Southern Karnataka, and
Coastal Karnataka based on geographical location. Coastal Karnataka, which is the
primary site of this research, comprises three districts, Dakshina Kannada (12.87
N
A. Stanley Raj (*)
Department of Physics, Loyola College, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
e-mail: stanleyraj@loyolacollege.edu
B. Chendhoor
Centre for Geo Technology, Manonmaniam Sundaranar University, Tirunelveli, Tamil Nadu,
India
© The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021
M. N. Islam, A. van Amstel (eds.), India: Climate Change Impacts, Mitigation
and Adaptation in Developing Countries, Springer Climate,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-67865-4_10
227