|
Maldives Climate
The temperature of Maldives ranges between 24°C and
33°C
throughout the year. Although the humidity is relatively
high,
the constant sea breezes help to keep the air moving. Two
seasons
dominate Maldives' weather: the dry season associated with
the
winter northeast monsoon and the rainy season brought by
the
summer southwest monsoon. The annual rainfall averages
2,540
millimeters in the north and 3,810 millimeters in the
south.
The weather in Maldives is affected by the large
landmass of
the Indian subcontinent to the north. The presence of this
landmass causes differential heating of land and water.
Scientists also cite other factors in the formation of
monsoons,
including the barrier of the Himalayas on the northern
fringe of
the Indian subcontinent and the sun's northward tilt,
which
shifts the jet stream north. These factors set off a rush
of
moisture-rich air from the Indian Ocean over the
subcontinent,
resulting in the southwest monsoon. The hot air that rises
over
the subcontinent during April and May creates low-pressure
areas
into which the cooler, moisture-bearing winds from the
Indian
Ocean flow. In Maldives, the wet southwest monsoon lasts
from the
end of April to the end of October and brings the worst
weather
with strong winds and storms. In May 1991 violent monsoon
winds
created tidal waves that damaged thousands of houses and
piers,
flooded arable land with seawater, and uprooted thousands
of
fruit trees. The damage caused was estimated at US$30
million.
The shift from the moist southwest monsoon to the dry
northeast monsoon over the Indian subcontinent occurs
during
October and November. During this period, the northeast
winds
contribute to the formation of the northeast monsoon,
which
reaches Maldives in the beginning of December and lasts
until the
end of March. However, the weather patterns of Maldives do
not
always conform to the monsoon patterns of the Indian
subcontinent. Rain showers over the whole country have
been known
to persist for up to one week during the midst of the dry
season.
Data as of August 1994
|
