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Pioneering monsoon scientist Sulochana Gadgil passes away at 81
Professor Sulochana Gadgil played a key role in establishing the IISc’s Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences after her doctoral work at Harvard and post-doctorate at MIT
Former Indian Institute of Science (IISc) professor Sulochana Gadgil, whose five-decade research on variability and the physics of monsoon enhanced its understanding and inspired generations of climate scientists, has passed away. She was 81.
Gadgil made a name for herself through her pioneering work as a scientist, when it was considered difficult for women to lead in such fields. In 1973, she played a key role in establishing the IISc’s Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences (Bengaluru) after her doctoral work at Harvard and post-doctorate at Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Born and brought up in Pune, Gadgil credited her parents for encouraging their four daughters to study. She called her husband, ecologist Madhav Gadgil, an important inspiration behind her research and career. “Madhav, the fellow student whom I eventually married, claims that I caught his attention when jumping out of a high French window of a lecture hall to escape from a boring class!” she wrote in her essay titled “My tryst with the Monsoon”.
Sulochana Gadgil enjoyed mathematics from a young age, did her master’s degree in applied mathematics at Pune University, and fell in love with the monsoon dynamics. She studied the how and why of monsoon variability. Sulochana Gadgil analysed conventional and satellite data, and models of varying levels of complexity to understand the mechanisms responsible for important phenomena.
She worked on the formulation of the methodology for the application of the knowledge and prediction of rainfall variability for farming strategies and modelling ecological and evolutionary phenomena.
Tributes poured in as the news of Sulochana Gadgil’s death late on Thursday broke. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh called her one of India’s finest climate scientists. “Her research over almost five decades greatly enhanced our understanding of the Indian monsoon,” Ramesh wrote on X.
Ramesh said that Sulochana Gadgil’s life was devoted to advancing academic scholarship. He called her a field scientist who investigated the practical relevance of her work, especially on farming in rain-fed areas. “Her ability to communicate scientific research to the larger public was remarkable. She was an outstanding personality in her own right.” Ramesh called Sulochana and Madhav Gadgil a formidable duo who individually and jointly mentored, guided, and inspired many.
India Meteorological Department scientist DS Pai referred to Sulochana Gadgil’s research on physics, predictability, and variability of monsoon, and said she was an expert on every aspect. “She conducted field experiments related to agriculture. Young or old, whoever discussed the monsoon with her, she would explain things very enthusiastically.”
Former earth sciences ministry secretary M Rajeevan called Sulochana Gadgil a true inspiration to generations of young scientists. “Her unwavering commitment to research ethics, justice, and equality set her apart as both a scholar and a human being.” He said she was not only his teacher and mentor, but also a close and cherished friend. “We had the privilege of working together on several seminal research papers on monsoon variability and prediction—collaborations that remain deeply meaningful to me.”
