Asian monsoons and regional rainfall
GeographyRegions & CountriesAges 12–13
Use it with your class: students open it from a link or a QR code, with no account needed.
Next in Regions & Countries
A hand-drawn map of Asia shows the two pressure centers that drive the monsoons: in winter, the cold, dry Siberian High pushes air out to sea, while in summer the South Asian–Iranian Low draws air in from the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Drag the month slider or press Run to watch the wind arrows reverse with the seasons; click a region on the map (South Asia, Southeast Asia, East Asia, Central Asia) to compare its 12-month rainfall chart and see why South Asia and Southeast Asia get very heavy summer rain while Central Asia, deep inland, stays dry all year.
Lesson: Physical geography of Asia: monsoon climate and continental climate
What it shows
Monsoons are seasonal reversals of wind caused by land and sea heating and cooling at different rates. In winter the cold Eurasian landmass builds the Siberian High, and dry northeast winds blow from the continent out to sea. In summer the heated land forms the South Asian–Iranian Low, which draws moist southwest and southeast winds in from the Indian and Pacific Oceans. Rainfall charts for Mumbai, Bangkok, Beijing and Tashkent show the result: a sharp wet season where the summer monsoon reaches, while Central Asia, far inland and behind mountain barriers, stays dry all year.
How to use
Turn off Pressure centers and ask students to predict the wind direction for January and July, then turn them back on to check. Drag Month shown or press Run months to watch the arrows reverse with the seasons. Change the Region for rainfall chart, or click a region on the map, and match the wettest months on each chart to the monsoon season shown on the map.
Parameters you can change
- Month shown 1–12 month
- Region for rainfall chart South Asia (Mumbai, India), Southeast Asia (Bangkok, Thailand), East Asia (Beijing, China), Central Asia (Tashkent, Uzbekistan)
- Show pressure centers
- Month playback speed 0.5–6 months/second
Questions to explore
- Why are the winter monsoon winds over East Asia cold and dry?
- In which months does Mumbai receive most of its rain, and which wind brings it?
- Why does Tashkent get so little rain even though it is on the same continent as the monsoon regions?
