raining more in Bangalore

If you thought freak weather
was a faraway occurrence, then digest this: Bangalore received 20 cm of rainfall in the first half of the
June monsoon. Unusual, because Bangalore has received such an amount of rainfall only thrice since 1961, and that too not in the first half but in the entire month.

The last time we received above-20-cm rainfall in June was in 1996. We still have 15 days for this month’s quota. Meteorological department predicts at least 3-4 cm more of rainfall. “We received 22 cm in 1983, 21 cm in 1991 and 23 cm in 1996. In June 1996, there was a major cyclonic storm over the Bay of Bengal, which came very close to Chennai and could have affected both cities. The average rainfall in June is 8 cm. Data shows a considerable increase in pre-monsoon and monsoon rain over Bangalore.”

In 1961, the average pre-monsoon rainfall over Bangalore was 5 cm and nearly doubled to 9 cm in 2008. Likewise, Bangalore’s average monsoon rainfall of 40 cm in 1961 has now climbed to 52 cm. “I don’t know if this rise can be attributed to global warming, the impact of which is seen over a vast area. It cannot be sea-surface temperature rise as well because that can affect the climate nearby, but not a particular location,” said Met director A Muthuchami.

Original from: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Its-raining-more-in-Bangalore/articleshow/4664716.cms