Numerical simulation and dynamic study of the wintertime circulation of the Bohai Sea

This numerical study of the Bohai Sea wintertime circulation by means of a two dimensional barotropic model with resolution of 1/24° in longitude and latitude showed that the Bohai Sea wintertime circulation is dominated by local monsoon winds. The major current components include the Bohai Warm Current, the North Shandong Coastal Current, and the Liaodong Gyre. The Bohai Warm Current originates from the Yellow Sea Warm Current at the northern part of Bohai Strait, meanders westwards and finally enters the northern part of Bohai Bay. The North Shandong Coastal Current flows along the southwest shore of Bohai Bay and Laizhou Bay and exits from the Bohai Sea through the south Bohai Strait. The anticyclonic Liaodong Gyre is located in the north of Liaodong Bay. A pair of eddies and the small scale Jinzhou Gyre are found between the Bohai Warm Current and the Liaodong Gyre. The computed volume transport for both the Bohai Warm Current and North Shandong Coastal Current is about 0.03 Sv (1 Sv=1×10⁶ m³/s). The numerical experiments showed that the combined effect of local monsoon winds and bottom topography dominate the formation of the circulation pattern. The Coriolis force and the wind stress curl are of certain importance. The beta effect, the momentum advection and the open boundary condition have little influence on the circulation pattern. Contribution No. 3467 from the Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Work supported by the Chinese Academy of Sciences (grant No. KZ952-J1-405) and the Key Laboratory of Marine Science and Numerical Modelling, State Oceanic Administration.