The spring transition "begins atout the middle of February and 

 lasts through the month of April. By the middle of May the 

 current patterns of the southwest monsoon are established. The 

 winds continue to increase gradually until June when there is a 

 "burst" or sudden strengthening of the southwest winds. During 

 July and August the winds continue at their greatest strength un- 

 til September when the force decreases in preparation for the fall 

 transition which lasts through October and November. The annual 

 cycle of the monsoon begins anew in December when the northeast 

 circulation pattern is again in force. 



'During the northeast monsoon period the currents in the 

 Arabian Sea and the northern Indian Ocean set roughly in a westerly 

 arid counterclockwise direction and during the southwest period the 

 currents are set easterly and in a clockwise rotation. The easterly 

 and westerly directions are direct monsoon currents and the clock- 

 vise and counterclockwise rotations are set up during the periods 

 of transition when the winds are variable. In addition two very 

 important streams feed into the currents of the Arabian Sea: the 

 north-flowing Ehst African Current during the southwest monsoon^ 

 and the westerly setting stream which passes around Ceylon during 

 the northeast monsoon. Because these streams develop ahead of the 

 general east and west drifts in the Arabian Sea and exert pressure 

 on the waters of the sea, they help to explain the peculiar 

 currents observed during the transition periods. The coastal 

 currents follow the coastal contours, flowing northerly along the 

 Arabian coast and southerly along the Indian coast during the 

 easterly drift and reverse themselves during the westerly drift. 



8 



