Victoria Mode and changing climate zones in northwest India
Quick dive
- An IMD-IITM study found northwest India’s hot semi-arid steppe zone grew from 25.7% in 1951–80 to 33.1% in 1991–2020.
- The study links reduced moisture flow to the negative phase of the Pacific Victoria Mode, a North Pacific sea-surface temperature pattern distinct from the PDO.
- In northeast India, tropical savannah declined from 18.4% to 11.8%, while temperate climate rose from 74.8% to 82.5%.
- India’s monsoon rainfall in 2026 was reported 12% below normal, while the study used IMD gridded data on roughly 25-km squares across 30-year windows.
- exam_relevance: tests a precise teleconnection-climate classification pair and its quantified trend, echoing UPSC’s recurring ENSO–monsoon and climate-mapping questions; the Victoria Mode/PDO distinction is the article-specific trap.
Full explanation
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