Articles | Volume 22, issue 1
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-22-443-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/os-22-443-2026
© Author(s) 2026. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Monsoons, plumes, and blooms: intraseasonal variability of subsurface primary productivity in the Bay of Bengal
Tamara L. Schlosser
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
Andrew J. Lucas
Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA
Melissa Omand
Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island, Narragansett, RI 02882, USA
J. Thomas Farrar
Department of Physical Oceanography, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, Woods Hole, MA 02543, USA
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Short summary
Seasonal monsoon storms over South Asia and the northern Indian Ocean bring heavy rains and thick clouds, decreasing how much sunlight reaches the ocean. We used new autonomous instruments to show that cloudy periods reduce subsurface ocean productivity by more than half, with ripple effects through the food web. These short-term shifts are as large as seasonal changes in productivity and influence how the ocean stores carbon.
Seasonal monsoon storms over South Asia and the northern Indian Ocean bring heavy rains and...