Development of monsoonal Asia climate risk analysis maprooms

The Asian monsoon plays a major role in the variability of seasonal temperature and
precipitation and the sub-seasonal statistics of these and other climate variables. Due to its
considerable impact on the quality and quantity of agricultural output, there is an essential
need for greater understanding of the historical risk associated with the Asian monsoon, with
the ultimate goal being better climate risk analysis to support agricultural decision-making in
South and South East Asia. In response to partner demand expressed by the CCAFS South
Asia Regional Program, CCAFS worked with the International Research Institute for Climate
and Society (IRI) to develop a suite of online “Maproom” tools for analyzing agriculturally
important aspects of climate variability, based on gridded historical daily precipitation and
temperature data. This report documents the rationale, development of, and use of the
Monsoon Asia Historical Precipitation and Temperature Monitoring Maprooms. These tools
aim to provide enough flexibility to support a demanding range of analysis and decision
support needs. The weather factors that impact agriculture, and the analyses that are needed
to support agricultural decision-making, vary considerably by location, production system and
time of year. These Maprooms serve as the precursors to the later developed of the Daily
Climate Analysis Maprooms.