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The word "monsoon" appears to have originated from the Arabic word "موسم" (mausim), which means season. It is most often applied to the seasonal reversals of the wind direction along the shores of the Indian Ocean, especially in the Arabian Sea, that blow from the southwest during one half of the year and from the northeast during the other.
The Greek sailor Hippalus is traditionally held to have been the first to use the monsoon to speed across the Indian Ocean as the ancient name for the monsoon wind in this region is also called Hippalus. However, it is more likely that he was simply the first Greek to master the monsoon, as Yemeni sailors were trading with India long before his time.
Monsoons are caused by the fact that land heats up and cools down quicker than water. Thus, in summer, land reaches a higher temperature than the ocean. Air thus rises over the land. This causes an area of low pressure. Since wind blows from areas of high pressure to areas of low pressure, an extremely constant wind blows from the ocean. The rainfall is caused by the moist air rising up mountains and cooling.
In winter, since the land cooled down quickly, the ocean is thus warmer. Air then rises, causing a low over the ocean. The wind then blows back out over the ocean. Since the temperature difference between the ocean and land is less than in summer, this wind is not as constant.
Monsoons are therefore similar to sea breezes, but they are much larger in scale, stronger, affect a wider area, and are more constant.
As monsoons have come to be better understood, the definition has been broadened to include almost all of the phenomena associated with the annual weather cycle within the tropical and subtropicalSubtropical (or semitropical areas are those adjacent to the tropics, usually roughly defined as the ranges 23. 5-40° N and 23. 5-40° S latitude. These areas typically have hot tropical summers, but non-tropical winters. In certain areas of the world the continents of Asia, AustraliaAustralia is the sixth-largest country in the world (geographically), the only one to occupy an entire continent, and the largest in the region of Australasia. Australia includes the island of Tasmania, which is an Australian State. Its neighbouring count, and AfricaAfrica is the world's second-largest continent in both area and population, after Asia. 30,244,050 km2 (11,677,240 mi2) including the islands, it covers 20. 3% of the total land area on Earth, and with over 800 million human inhabitants it accounts for ar and the adjacent seas and oceans. It is within these regions that the most vigorous and dramatic cycles of weather events on EarthEarth also known as the Earth or Terra is the planet on which we live, the third planet outward from the Sun. It is the largest of the solar system's terrestrial planets, and the only planetary body that modern science confirms as harbouring life. The pla takes place.