South Asian Summer Monsoon under stratospheric aerosol intervention

Abstract

The South Asian summer monsoon (SAM) bears significant importance for agriculture, water resources, economy, and environmental aspects of the region for nearly 2 billion people. To minimize the adverse impacts of global warming, Stratospheric Aerosol Intervention (SAI) has been proposed to lower surface temperatures by reflecting a portion of solar radiation back into space. However, the effects of SAI on SAM are still very uncertain. Our study identifies the main drivers leading to a reduction in the mean and extreme summer monsoon precipitation under SAI. These include SAI-induced lower stratospheric warming and the associated weakening of the northern hemispheric subtropical jet, changes in the upper-tropospheric wave activities, geopotential height anomalies, a reduction in the strength of the Asian Summer Monsoon Anticyclone, and, to some degree, local dust changes. As the interest in SAI research grows, our results demonstrate the urgent need to further understand SAM variability under different SAI scenarios.