India weather patterns shift as monsoon withdraws

Satellite imagery from ISRO’s INSAT-3DS has captured a significant shift in weather patterns across India, illustrating the seasonal transition from the southwest monsoon to post-monsoon conditions.

Images taken in late September show a dramatic contrast in cloud cover. Thick cloud masses extend from the Bay of Bengal across eastern, northeastern, and southern India, while western and northwestern regions appear relatively clear. This visual divide is linked to the withdrawal of the southwest monsoon and the arrival of a Western Disturbance—an eastward-moving weather system originating from the Mediterranean.

The Western Disturbance has interacted with a depression over central India, contributing to rainfall in regions such as Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and the Delhi-NCR area. As the monsoon withdrawal progresses through northwest India toward the central and eastern parts, rainfall activity is expected to diminish, marking a transition toward drier weather conditions.