Intraannual variability of sea level around Tosa Bay

Through analysis of monthly in situ hydrographic, tide gauge, altimetry and Kuroshio axis data for the years 1993–2001, the intraannual variability of sea level around Tosa Bay, Japan, with periods of 2–12 months is examined together with the intraannual variability of the Kuroshio south of the bay. It is shown that the intraannual variation of steric height on the slope in Tosa Bay can account for that of sea level at the coast around the bay as well as on this slope. It is found that the steric height (or sea level) variation on the slope in this bay is mainly controlled by the subsurface thermal variation correlated with the Kuroshio variation off Cape Ashizuri, the western edge of Tosa Bay. That is, when the nearshore Kuroshio velocity south of the cape is intensified [weakened] concurrently with the northward [southward] displacement of the current axis, temperature in an entire water column decreases [increases] simultaneously, mainly due to the upward [downward] displacement of isotherms, coincident with that of the main thermocline. It follows that the steric height (or sea level) decreases [increases].     

Influence of the seasonal thermocline on the intrusion of Kuroshio across the continental shelf northeast of Taiwan

The hydrographic surveys in an area immediately northeast of Taiwan showed that the Kuroshio surface water intruded onto the shelf in the spring and there was a thick mixed layer and weak vertical stratification in the Kuroshio at the time. During the summer season, a strong thermocline was developed in the Kuroshio and the flow shifted offshore from Taiwan in front of the continental shelf break of the East China Sea. A numerical model is used to examine the effect of this seasonal thermocline on the flow pattern of the survey area. We find that the surface strength of the disturbance above the Su-Ao ridge is closely related to the occurrence of the on-shelf intrusion of Kuroshio. The presence of a seasonal thermocline in the Kuroshio can greatly diminish this disturbance in the surface level.     

Characteristics of the Kuroshio in the vicinity of the Izu Ridge

Characteristics of the Kuroshio in the vicinity of the Izu Islands are analyzed by using hydrographic observations collected from 1938 to 1980 mostly by the Hydrographic Department, Maritime Safety Agency, Japan and by the Japan Meteorological Agency.It is shown that flow characteristics change as the Kuroshio approaches the Izu Ridge. 1) The position of the 10°C isotherm at the 500 m level, which is, an index of the position of the temperature front or of the current axis of the Kuroshio, is highly variable near the ridge. 2) The horizontal temperature gradient across the Kuroshio estimated from the positions of the 8 and 12°C isotherms across the Kuroshio decreases considerably near the Izu Ridge. 3) The horizontal distance between the 15°C isotherm at the 200 m level and 10°C isotherm at the 500 m level becomes larger over the ridge. The 15°C isotherm at the 200 m level is an index of the current axis at the sea surface. This implies that the inclination of the Kuroshio axis becomes larger over the ridge.     

Mean circulation induced over bottom topography by mesoscale variabilities in the Kuroshio Extension

Circulation could be generated over bottom topography by vertical shrinking or stretching of a water parcel, in which potential vorticity is conserved. The water parcel moves up or down over the bottom topography yielding shrinking or stretching. In addition to a prevailing current which advects the water parcel in one direction, an oscillatory motion can also induce shrinking and stretching, and circulation is consequently generated over the bottom topography, once it is averaged in time. A two-layer quasi-geostrophic model has been used to reproduce mesoscale variabilities both in and under the Kuroshio Extension around the Shatsky Rise. A combination of TOPEX and ERS altimeters provided information on an eddy field near the sea surface, while a data assimilation method was used to reconstruct the flow field below the main thermocline. Among various mesoscale processes associated with the Kuroshio, it is remarkable that topographic Rossby waves trapped over the Shatsky Rise are generated by the upper-layer mesoscale variability. A persistent anticyclonic circulation is produced on the Shatsky Rise through a water parcel moving up and down over the bottom slope, and is consistent with the observed density anomaly in the WOA94.     

春季东海不同水域的表层叶绿素含量

利用１９９４年春季在东海及台湾海峡首次获得的表层水中绿素含量大面走航连续观测资料，结合温盐分布及以往的有关东海及台湾海峡的海流和上升流的结论，分析了春季东海表层叶绿素含量在不同水域的分布特征。结果表明，叶绿素含量分布与水文结构关系密切。叶绿素含量值随不同海流流域而变，但在各海流流域内基本不变，黑潮表层水的叶绿素含量最低，其次是台湾暖流表层水，长江冲淡水与江浙沿岸流域的叶绿素含量较高；黑潮西侧弱流剧     

The calculation of Kuroshio current structure in the East China Sea—early summer 1986

On the basis of hydrographic data and moored current meter records obtained during an early summer cruise (May 20–June 23) of 1986, a three dimensional diagnostic calculation of the circulation is performed in the survey area, which covers the East China Sea continental shelf, Okinawa Trough and an area east of the Ryukyu Island. The Kuroshio Current condition and structure in the East China Sea, its branches and their interrelationship as well as the eddies around the Kuroshio, are discussed. When the Kuroshio entered the area northeast of Taiwan, there were two branches. The main branch flowed northeastward along the continental slope and the other branch was at the eastern part of the Okinawa Trough. The main axis of the Kuroshio followed the continental slope above the 300 m level, but moved gradually eastward to the Okinawa Trough below the 300 m level.     

黑潮近岸分支流在2017年9月与2019年9月差异的研究

通过对比2017年9月和2019年9月的温盐大面观测数据,发现东海陆架上黑潮近岸分支流的路径在两次观测中存在显著差异。2019年9月黑潮近岸分支流中上游的路径相较2017年9月明显的东向偏移,造成黑潮次表层水入侵东海近岸海域的强度较弱。为了探究黑潮近岸分支流的上述显著年际差异的原因,利用卫星高度计数据和再分析风场数据,通过分析大面观测同期的绝对海表动力高度、地转流场以及海表风场的差异,阐述了黑潮近岸分支流路径产生显著年际差异的动力机制。2019年8—9月东海海表较2017年8—9月盛行更强的西南向沿岸季风,强的西南向沿岸风通过埃克曼输运促使水体向岸堆积并在近岸区域沿岸西南向堆积。因此, 2019年8—9月东海近岸海域的跨岸方向压力梯度与2017年8—9月相比较小而沿岸压力梯度则较大。2019年8—9月,受压力梯度分布的影响,东海近岸海域产生西南向的沿岸地转流和离岸地转流。其中西南向的沿岸地转流会在底部生成离岸的底埃克曼流,离岸底埃克曼流和离岸地转流共同抑制了黑潮近岸分支流的向岸入侵。这导致2019年9月黑潮近岸分支流的路径向东偏移,黑潮次表层水入侵浙江近海及长江口区域的强度随之减弱。通过分析研究实际观测案例,阐述了风影响黑潮近岸分支流入侵东海近岸海域的动力机制,同时明确指出海表风场会从黑潮近岸分支流的中上游区域改变其路径,进而对黑潮入侵东海近岸海域产生重要影响。     

Characteristics of thermal finestructure in the southern Yellow Sea and the East China Sea from airborne expendable bathythermograph measurements

Four surveys of airborne expendable bathythermograph with horizontal spacing of about 35 km and vertical spacing of 1 m extending from the surface down to 400 m deep are used to analyze thermal finestructures and their seasonality in frontal zones of the southern Yellow Sea and the East China Sea. Finestructure characteristics are different not only among fronts but also along the same front, implying different mixing mechanisms. Summer thermocline intrusions with thickness from few to 40 meters, generated by the vertically-sheared advection, are identified along the southern tongue of the Cheju-Yangtze Front (especially south of Cheju Island). The finestructures south of the Yangtze Bank (i.e. the western tip of the southern tongue) produced by strong along-frontal currents are not as rich as elsewhere in the southern tongue. The Cheju-Tsushima Front presents mixed finestructures due to confluent currents from various origins. The irregular-staircase finestructures in the Kuroshio region (below the seasonal thermocline), driven by double-diffusive mixing, show seasonal invariance and vertical/horizontal coherence. The strength of mixing related to finestructure is weaker in the Kuroshio region than in the Cheju-Tsushima Front or south of Cheju Island. The profiles in the Tsushima Warm Current branching area show large (∼50 m thick), irregular-staircase structures at the upper 230 m depth, which coincides roughly with the lower boundary of the maximum salinity layer. The finestructure at depths deeper 230 m is similar to that in the Kuroshio region. The possible mechanisms for generating the finestructures are also discussed.     

Sea level variations around the Nansei Islands and the large meander in the Kuroshio south of central Japan

The sea level difference between Naze and Nishinoomote and sea level anomalies (the residuals after removal of seasonal variations) around the Nansei Islands were examined in relation to the large meander in the Kuroshio south of central Japan. They are indices of surface velocity and geostrophic transport of the Kuroshio in the Tokara Strait and in the East China Sea, respectively. All of them were large during the meandering period, and each of them reached a maximum before or after the generation of the large meander in 1975. Thus the surface velocity and the geostrophic transport of the Kuroshio in the Tokara Strait and the East China Sea were large during the meandering period. The sea level difference between Naze and Nishinoomote (or Makurazaki) shows that the surface velocity and geostrophic transport in the Tokara Strait were significantly larger during the extinction stage in 1963 and during the generation stage in 1975 and were correlated with the position of the Kuroshio east of Kyûshû in 1974 and 1975 before the generation of the large meander.The surface velocity of the Kuroshio southeast of Yakushima (E-line) based on dynamic calculation referred to 1,000 db was weak during the meandering period, and was out of phase with the variation of surface velocity in the Tokara Strait monitored by tide gauge data. The analysis of GEK and hydrographic data shows that southwestward flow existed below 600 m in the slope region on the E-line and weakened during the meandering period. Thus, the out-of-phase variation in surface velocity mentioned above seems to be partly explained by the variation in velocity on the reference level at the E-line.     

A high-resolution numerical modeling study of the subtidal circulation in the northern South China Sea

A high-resolution, regional, numerical-model-based, real-time ocean prediction system for the northern South China Sea, called the Northern South China Sea Nowcast/Forecast System (NSCSNFS), has been used to investigate subtidal mesoscale flows during the time period of the Asian Seas International Acoustic Experiment (ASIAEX) field programs. The dynamics are dominated by three influences; 1) surface wind stress, 2) intrusions of the Kuroshio through Luzon Strait, and 3) the large-scale cyclonic gyre that occupies much of the northern South China Sea. Each component primarily drives currents in the upper ocean, so deep currents are rather weak. Wind stress is especially effective at forcing currents over the shallow China shelf. The Kuroshio intrusion tends to flow westward until it meets the northern edge of the large-scale cyclonic gyre. Together, these currents produce an intense, narrow jet directed northwest toward the continental slope, often in the region of the ASIAEX field programs. Upon reaching the slope, the current splits with part flowing northeastward along the slope and part flowing southwestward, producing large horizontal and vertical shears and making this region dynamically very complicated and difficult to simulate. The Kuroshio intrusion tends to be stronger (weaker) when the northeasterly winds are strong (weak) and the large-scale gyre is farther south (north), consistent with conclusions from previous model studies. At the northern boundary, the model produces a persistent northward flow through Taiwan Strait into the East China Sea. Data assimilation in the NSCSNFS model is shown to dampen the system, extracting energy and causing the entire system to spin down.     

Vertical structure, turbulent mixing and fluxes during Lagrangian observations of an upwelling filament system off Northwest Iberia

In August 1998, a recurrent filament located near 42°N off Galicia was sampled as part of the OMEX-II project. Lagrangian and other observations were made on the shelf where the filament arose and offshore in the filament itself under upwelling favourable but fluctuating winds. The shelf drift experiment monitored a change from southward to weak northward net flow as the winds decreased to zero. Shipborne ADCP measurements showed that the shelf was supplying decreasing volumes of water to the filament as the wind speeds decreased. At the shelf edge the internal tide was larger than can be explained by local forcing and there were many unusually large high frequency internal waves with a quasi-sinusoidal form. Turbulence observations revealed enhanced dissipation rates and vertical eddy diffusion coefficients within the shelf thermocline (of order 1 cm² s⁻¹), which appeared to be caused by the breaking of internal wave. A second Lagrangian experiment was executed in the filament some 120 km offshore, which again coincided with a period of wind relaxation. Cross-sections revealed a double cold core and that the offshore flow was limited to a thin surface layer. Substantial onshore flow occurred below 50 m in the centre of the filament, while the strongest and deepest offshore flow coincided with its northern boundary. Turbulent kinetic energy dissipation rate measurements showed very weak mixing below 15 m in the filament core, but enhanced mixing at its boundaries. Four mixed layer drifters released in the filament initially indicated convergence at its southern boundary, marked by strong temperature and salinity contrasts. After the wind became more favourable for upwelling, the drifters accelerated. One drifter traced the full extent of the filament, while the other three escaped from it and began to circulate cyclonically over 28 days in a 100 km diameter loop back towards their release point. Although strong mesoscale activity linked the shelf and ocean regimes, offshore transport in the filament was weak at the time of the experiment and vertical and horizontal re-circulations on a variety of time scales were important. There was sufficient vertical mixing in the thermocline to cause it to thicken and draw some heat into the lower layers during the summer months on the shelf. The amount of heat involved was too little to have a significant impact on the development of a filament over a typical lifetime of a week.     

关于黑潮延伸体海域水体的三维热结构时-空变化特征研究

基于西北太平洋Argo数据资料,利用参数化方法,从Argo温盐剖面数据中提取出一系列特征动力参数,定量分析黑潮延伸体海域水体的三维热结构的时-空变化特征、季节变化特征及其与地形和环流的关系。结果表明:黑潮延伸体海域水体的海表面温度存在着明显的冬春弱,夏秋强的季节变化特征,冬季平均海表面温度为15℃,夏季则达到了27℃;混合层深度在春季和夏季都较深,在180 m左右,秋冬较浅,在17 m左右,在水平方向上混合层深度有较强的梯度;温跃层春、夏、秋、冬4季的平均温度表现出明显的南北差异,夏季南部海域平均温度为14℃左右,北部海域较低为5℃左右;季节性温跃层深度大约在100 m左右;黑潮延伸体海域水体的温跃层底部最大深度在800 m左右;黑潮延伸体主体海域中心位置冬天在36°N左右,夏天大约移到34°N。     

Observations of the countercurrent on the inshore side of the Kuroshio northeast of Taiwan

Intensive current measurements in the area northeast of Taiwan indicate subsurface, southwestward flow existed between the inshore edge of the Kuroshio and the East China Sea continental slope. At 70 km away from Taiwan, this countercurrent has a mean speed about 30 cm s^–1 at mid-depth. Closer to Taiwan, the flow turns along with the topography, and subjects to sidewall and bottom friction. Both the magnitude and the vertical shear of this countercurrent are comparable with that inferred from hydrographic survey. The wind field features short-period (a few days) fluctuations associated with the cold front passages, however, this is not reflected on the current records. It appears that the countercurrent is fairly steady. Together with similar reversing flow found at places much further to the north, the overall pattern seems to be a general quasi-steady feature along most part of the shelf edge of the East China Sea.     

Observations of thermal microstructure in the Kuroshio off of Southern Honshu and Shikoku

Direct observations of thermal microstructure within the main stream of the Kuroshio show that within the region of the most steeply sloping isotherms, from about 180 to 360 m depth near the current axis, considerable microstructure is present, and the laminae tend to be approximately aligned along the sloping isothermal surfaces rather than horizontally. Away from the axis, the slopes of the isotherms are considerably less so that the tendency for alignment along isotherms, if present, is not noticeable. Laminae rarely if ever extend for as much as 6 miles in the cross-current direction. Lateral temperature variations within individual laminae are small; to the extent that they do occur there is no apparent tendency for density to be conserved.Some of the temperature features seem to correspond to small local maxima in the vertical salinity profile. More experimental evidence and better understanding of STD spiking (from causes other than the time-constant mismatch, which is clearly not the cause here) is required before it can be concluded that these local maxima are real. If real, they would provide evidence that local vertical mixing alone cannot produce the thermal microstructure in this region. The main conclusion, however, is that STD salinity measurements are not very reliable at the present time.     

Hydrographic profiling across the East China sea shelf edge by an underwater sliding vehicle with CTD sensors

Temperature, salinity and density structures were observed on Sept. 23 and 24, 1986 at one vertical section across the East China Sea shelf edge by an advanced type of towed vehicle with CTD sensors which was developed by the Japan Marine Science and Technology Center. The vehicle was towed at a speed of 2.5 m s⁻¹ down to 150 m depth and at intervals of 170–500 m width. The observed profile was 50 km long on Sept. 23 and 70 km long on Sept. 24 along the cross-shelf section. An on-ship acoustic Doppler current profiler was simultaneously used to measure current velocities at depths of 20, 50 and 100 m.Interesting features were noticed. Firstly, there was a vertical displacement of pycnoclines at the lower edge of the surface mixed layer accompanied by vertical inversion of the salinity and temperature in the vicinity of the shelf edge. Pycnoclines were displaced upward by 12 m toward the outer edge on Sept. 23 and by 20 m on Sept. 24. On Sept. 23, the salinity inversion took place in a layer 20 m thick and 8 km wide, whereas the temperature inversion took place in a layer 8 m thick and 1.5 km wide. These vertical inversions were probably generated by vertical shear of tidal currents which was observed by the Doppler current profiler. These results throw light on understanding the vertical mixing process of stratified water on the continental shelf edge. Secondly, an intrusion of the shelf water into the Kuroshio water was observed along pycnoclines below the surface mixed layer 60 to 70 m deep in the Kuroshio region outer break. The measurement was successful in showing a horizontal mixing process of the shelf water and the Kuroshio water which could not be found out by standard CTD observations.     

The effect of internal tides on the vertical structure of tidal current in the North Huanghai Sea

The tidal current is generally predominant in China's offshore areas. The vertical structure of the observedtidal current is quite complicated with the presence of seasonal thermocline. The observed tidal current may be divided into two parts, an averaged barotropic tide current and a variation tide current. A method for studying the vertical structure of tidal current is developed from the constitution and distribution of energy, and the vertical structure of the observed tide current in the North Huanghai Sea is studied on the basis of the method. The result shows that the reason why the energy of the tidal current is concentrated on the neighbourhood of the thermocline mainly lies in the internal tides i under certain conditions, the fact that the direction of the internal tide current above the thermocline is opposite to the one below the thermocline will be able to cause the rotary directions of the observed tidal current above and below the thermocline to be in opposite. The interaction between th     

Surface circulation and vertical structure of current off the Keum River estuary,Korea in later spring 2008

To examine the surface circulation and vertical structure of currents in the region of the Keum River (KR) plume, we analyzed the subinertial surface currents obtained by high frequency radar and the vertical profiles of currents measured at a station (M1) located 10 km distance from the estuary mouth for one month in late spring 2008. Monthly-mean surface circulation is composed of the westward flow from the estuary mouth and the northward flow in the offshore. These surface mean currents are a gradient (geostrophic) current around the monthly-mean plume bulge. Dominant variabilities of the surface currents, winds, and KR-outflow are decomposed by the Empirical Orthogonal Functions (EOF). The first current EOF mode, explaining 39% of total variation, is primarily related to the first wind EOF mode varying along the coast and the second current mode, explaining 33% of total variation, is mainly related to the first KR-outflow EOF mode varying along the mean KR-outflow direction. Meanwhile, vertical profile of the monthly-mean current at M1 shows a two-layer structure of the current flowing offshore (onshore) in the upper (lower) layer because the water column is divided by a pycnocline at 7-9 m depths below the plume water. This two layer structure is a background persisting current structure, at least in spring, maintained by the geostrophic balance induced by the sea level slope and density gradient along the line normal to the westward mean surface current direction due to monthly-mean plume bulge off the KR estuary. EOF analysis of vertical current profiles reveals that the first mode, explaining 43% of total variation, represents the two-layer structure of the current variability. The upper-layer current varies along a line normal to the mainland coastline and the low-layer one varies approximately along a line parallel to the coastline, with direction difference of about 115° between the upper-and low-layer. From the correlation analysis it is found that 60% of the first mode variation is influenced by the first mode of KR-outflow and 36% by the first mode of wind. Any forcing modes of KR-outflow and wind influencing the other current vertical modes could not be found in the present study.     

High Frequency Current Fluctuations and Cross-shelf Flows around the Pycnocline near the Shelf Break in the East China Sea

Relation between internal waves with short time scale and density distribution near the shelf break in the East China Sea is studied utilizing moored current meters, thermometers and conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) casts. A well developed pycnocline was frequently observed around 150–200 m depth near the shelf break accompanied with the development of internal waves with short time scale. During the cruise in May 1998, the intensified internal wave motion with short time scale and the distinct offshore flow were observed just below the lower pycnocline, which shoaled and extended above the shelf area. It is suggested that vertical mixing generated by amplified internal waves would produce cross-shelf ageostophic density current around the pycnocline. During the cruise in May 1999, on the other hand, the lower pycnocline was located offshore below the shelf break, and the internal wave motion was amplified just above the lower pycnocline. In this case, the offshore flow should be generated above the lower pycnocline, but vertical profiles of current velocity were not obtained because acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) data were not available around the lower pycnocline.     

Shelfbreak circulation and thermohaline structure in the northern south China Sea-contrasting spring conditions in 2000 and 2001

Two intensive, high-resolution hydrographic surveys during April 2000 and May 2001 are used to characterize the thermohaline and current structure at the shelfbreak in the South China Sea. In 2000, a strong anticyclonic circulation was present in the northern portion of the South China Sea with strong onshore currents east of Dongsha Island. The flow became polarized along isobaths as it encountered shallow water, with northeastward flows of over 0.9 m/s along steep topography. The flow was driven by strong density contrasts between waters of the outer shelf and upper slope. Shelf water was both cooler and more fresh than the water offshore, which had salinities close to that of Kuroshio water. In contrast, the mean flow in the northern South China Sea was predominantly cyclonic in 2001. Flow over the slope was to the southwest at up to 0.2 m/s. The water mass properties of the outer shelf and upper slope were similar, so that there were not the strong cross-shelf density gradients present as in 2000. A potential difference between the water mass structure of the two years was the difference in cooling during the preceding winters. In December, 1999, unusually strong cooling may have resulted in cooler shelf waters relative to the following year. The ASIAEX study area may be a particularly sensitive region to both seasonal and interannual variability, as it is near a bifurcation point associated with the Kuroshio Intrusion into the South China Sea.     

Structure and Transport of the Agulhas Current and Its Temporal Variability

Using a year-long moored array of current meters and well-sampled synoptic sections, we define the variability and mean structure and transport of the Agulhas current. Nineteen current meter records indicate that time scales for the temporal variability in the alongshore and offshore velocities are 10.2 and 5.4 days, respectively. Good vertical correlation exists between the alongshore or onshore velocity fluctuations, excluding the Agulhas Undercurrent. The lateral scale for the thermocline Agulhas current is about 60 km and the onshore velocity correlations are positive throughout the Agulhas Current system. Mean velocities from the array determine that the offshore edge of the Agulhas Current lies at 203 km and the penetration depth is 2200 m offshore of the Undercurrent. Hence, daily averaged velocity sections, determined by interpolation and extrapolation of current meter locations, for a 267-day period, from the surface to 2400 m depth and from the coast out to 203 km offshore encompass the main features of the Agulhas Current system. The Agulhas current is generally found close to the continental slope, within 31 km of the coast for 211 of 267 days. There are only five days when the core of the current is found offshore at 150 km. Total transport is always poleward, varying from −121 to −9 Sv, with maximum transport occurring when the core is 62 km from the coast. Average total transport for the 267 day period is −69.7 Sv; the standard deviation in daily transport values is 21.5 Sv; and the mean transport has an estimated standard error of 4.3 Sv. The Agulhas Undercurrent, which hugs the continental slope below the zero velocity isotach, has an average equatorward transport of 4.2 Sv, standard deviation of 2.9 Sv and an estimated standard error of 0.4 Sv. Transports from the moored array are in reasonable agreement with transport results from synoptic sections. Based on time series measurements at about 30° latitude in each ocean basin, the Agulhas Current is the largest western boundary current in the world ocean.