Here's why India, Pakistan and Afghanistan facing extreme heatwave

India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan have been experiencing heatwave after heatwave. Researchers at the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay have been studying patterns and the climatic factors contributing to the phenomenon.

This study was conducted in collaboration with a team from Germany's Johannes Gutenberg-University Mainz, where they studied patterns and focused on the unusually hot episodes between March and April of 2022. The study was published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres.

"Our analysis shows that the March heatwave was primarily linked to a sudden increase in the amplitude of short-lived atmospheric Rossby waves, which are large-scale meanders in high-altitude winds resembling bends in a winding river," said Roshan Jha, doctoral student at the Centre for Climate Studies and lead author, IIT Bombay.

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"The waves grew stronger as high-altitude westerly winds near the poles (extratropical jet stream) transferred energy to westerly winds closer to the equator (subtropical jet stream) as they came closer during the heatwave," he added.

"Think of it like this – when the soil has moisture, under the clear sky conditions, some of the sun's energy goes into evaporating that moisture rather than heating the air. But when the soil is already dry, all that energy goes straight into making the air hotter," Prof. Arpita Mondal, Associate Professor at IIT Bombay, explained.

The researcher says that further understanding of the pattern and the connection will lead to precise analysis. This will also polish the ability to forecast the weather and climatic changes better and, in turn, be prepared and have measures in place to protect oneself. The increase in heatwaves is, of course, worrisome, but only better understanding will help navigate the situation in a manner that will ensure better prediction and mitigation.