Atlantic 'cold blob' is responsible for shifts in the Indian summer monsoon that threaten over 1 billion people

Young people play volleyball in a flooded field in India during the summer monsoon. The sky is full of dark clouds.

A giant blob of abnormally cold water in the North Atlantic Ocean is shifting the Indian summer monsoon, threatening the livelihoods of more than 1 billion people, new research suggests.

The link between these two systems highlights a previously unrecognized connection that could inform weather forecasts in South Asia and shed light on climatic events elsewhere, scientists say.