Spatial variability of aridity oyer northern India

Spatial variability of aridity over northern India (north of 20°N) is studied by examining variations in the arid area. Area with an objectively determined summer monsoon rainfall (June to September total) of less than 500 mm is identified as arid area. The summer monsoon rainfall of 212 rain-gauges from 212 districts of the region for the period 1871-1984 are used in the analysis. An interesting feature of the arid area series is that it shows decreasing trend from beginning of the present century. The summer monsoon rainfall fluctuations over five subjectively divided zones over northern India are examined to understand the association between rainfall and the arid area variations. The rainfall series for northwest India shows a significant increasing trend and that for northeast India a significant decreasing trend from the beginning of this century. Rainfall fluctuations over the remaining zones can be considered intermediate stages of a systematic spatial change in the rainfall pattern. This suggested that the recent decreasing trend in the arid area is due to a westward shift in the monsoon rainfall activities. From correlation analyses it is inferred that perhaps the recent decreasing trend in the arid area and increasing trend in the monsoon rainfall over northwest India are associated with a warming trend of the northern hemisphere

On the relations of the rainfall variability and distribution with the mean rainfall over India

Along with averages, rainfall variability and distribution are important climatological information. In this study, using 114 years (1871-1984) data of 306 stations, it is demonstrated that the variability and spatial distribution of annual, summer monsoon and monthly rainfall are highly dependent upon the respective period mean rainfall variation over India. The magnitude of three selected absolute measures of variability, e.g. standard deviation, absolute mean deviation and mean absolute interannual variability is found to increase linearly with mean rainfall. In order to describe the relation between the rainfall frequency distribution and the mean rainfall, a linear regression between the rainfall amount expected with a specified exceedance/non-exceedance probability and the mean rainfall amount is presented. Highly significant linear curves for a large number of probabilities specified in an average probability diagram clearly demonstrate the dependence of the rainfall frequency distribution on mean rainfall over India

Some features of the arid area variations over India: 1871-1984

Spatial variability of the annual rainfall over drier regions of India is studied by examining the variations in the arid areas. A long period (1871-1984) arid area series has been prepared for the entire country, including the two broad subregions of North India and Peninsular India, using annual rainfall data from 306 well distributed stations. Following an objectively determined criterion based on rainfall amount alone, the yearly area under arid conditions is obtained by totalling areas which received annual rainfall totals less than 560 mm. The interannual variability of the arid area series is large and its distribution is highly right-skewed, demonstrating large spatial variations in the annual rainfall over India. Statistical tests do not suggest any significant long-term trend in the arid area series, but persistently low values of the arid area after 1941 are noteworthy. Implications for the study of risk analysis and assessment of drought and desertification processes are discussed

Who is the attached endorser? An examination of the attachment-endorsement spectrum

While brand endorsement research has focused on endorsement effectiveness based on match-up and endorser's appeal, there is limited understanding of how the type of endorser and type of endorsement interact to create perceptions of attachment of the celebrity to the product. We also examine the effect of this interaction on the three elements of source credibility - Attractiveness, Trustworthiness and Expertise. Consistent with attachment and source credibility theory, we find significant main effects of message type on attachment, source credibility components and purchase intention

Distribution and long-term features of the spatial variations of the moisture regions over India

The spatial variations of these regions are studied using annual rainfall data of 306 well-distributed stations for the 114-year period from 1871 to 1984. The distribution characteristics are studied by determining positions of different moisture regions for sufficiently large probabilities using an average probability diagram (APD), which presents variation of the annual rainfall expected with specified exceedance/non-exceedance probabilities with the variation of the mean annual rainfall over India. It is noticed that boundaries of different moisture regions fluctuate in space along with the annual rainfall over India. During all-India below-normal rainfall years dry regions spread into wet regions, whereas the reverse is the case during above-normal rainfall years