The effect of the mountain on the monsoons

The mountains affect the monsoon winds to a considerable degree. They act as a barrier and direct the monsoon winds in a specific direction to the extent that the monsoon track is set in a particular direction.

Perhaps the best example of this effect is the Indian monsoon. When the moisture-laden monsoon winds hit the Western Ghats with all their fury, the Western Ghats mountain range splits it in two. One branch moves up from Kerala towards Mumbai and continues its journey to Surat before losing its strength.

The second branch meets the Bay of Bengal branch in West Bengal and since there are mountains to the north and east of this area, the monsoon wind is forced to move northwest from Calcutta towards Amritsar; before entering Pakistan at Lahore. Entering Pakistan, it exerts its full force in the outer Himalayas near Murree and since it cannot advance any further, the foothill area like Islamabad receives heavy rain due to its proximity to the hills.

Similarly, Muzaffarabad in the Kashmir area, backed by high mountains, takes advantage of the mountain effect and copious rainfall occurs here as well. Rawalakot has a similar effect, but the best example in the world is an area of ​​India that we will describe shortly.

Cherrapunji, a station located at about 4500 feet. High up in the Khasi Hills, it is so well situated that both the Indian Ocean Branch and the Bay of Bengal Monsoon Branch meet in full force at this location. Secondly, due to the particular position of the surrounding hills, this enhanced monsoonal wind cannot escape and brings exceptionally heavy rains in this season. Sometimes up to 40 inches can fall at Cherrapunji in a single day.

The second most dramatic effect can be seen at Mahabaleshwar, a station located at about the same height above sea level as Cherrapunji and overlooking the Mumbai coastline. Here too the high foothills of the Western Ghats behind this station force the monsoon winds to rise, cool and the resulting condensation produces thick clouds with exceptionally heavy rain.

India aside, the same mountain effect can also be found in Myanmar and in Bangladesh, where Chittagong, backed by the tall Arakanese Range, receives more rain than anywhere else in Bangladesh.

In summary, the mountains in South Asia greatly increase the activity of monsoon rains and the places near the high hills receive exceptionally heavy rains.