Dissertation thesis proposal in the 3rd Floor conference room "The Impact of Altered Sea Surface Temperature Gradients on Indian Ocean Atmospheric Circulation in Warmer Climates" Arising from a seasonal increase in solar insolation upon a unique geographic structure, the South Asian Summer Monsoon dominates the greater Indian Ocean region's time-averaged circulation and the lives of millions who rely on it's timeliness and consequent rainfall. A multitude of paleo-climatic studies, modern observations and future projections indicate that altered tropical Indo-Pacific sea surface temperature (SST) gradients can largely impact the magnitude and timing of the monsoon. Furthermore, permanent changes in the SST structure of these tropical ocean basins, resulting through climatic changes, can alter the background atmospheric circulation state upon which the monsoon is projected. Therefore, understanding the changes to Indian Ocean general atmospheric circulation under globally warmer conditions is of utmost societal importance while also being a wide-open frontier of climate research. I will propose my doctoral thesis project investigating how altered SST gradients in the tropical Pacific and Indian Oceans impact the latter's atmospheric circulation and the South Asian Summer Monsoon. I will test the hypothesis that warmer climatic conditions, accompanied by changed SST gradients, intensify the South Asian Summer Monsoon. I approach this work using SST gradients from a paleo-climatic interval and model-based future projections in various GISS climate model simulations. These simulations serve as sample "scenarios" for the Indian Ocean background state in a warmer climate. I will use these scenarios assess if and how the major balances of the monsoon circulation are altered with respect to the modern mean. I will show some examples of my analysis from previous simulations and provide a timeline of project completion. All thoughts and suggestions are welcome.