South Asian Summer Monsoon and the Eastern Mediterranean Climate: The Monsoon-Desert Mechanism in CMIP5 Simulations

Dry summers over the eastern Mediterranean are characterized by strong descent anchored by long Rossby waves, which are forced by diabatic heating associated with summer monsoon rainfall over South Asia. The large-scale teleconnection between rising and subsiding air masses is referred to as the "monsoon-desert mechanism.'' This study evaluates the ability of the phase 5 of the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project (CMIP5) models in representing the physical processes involved in this mechanism.