Upper ocean response of the South China Sea to Typhoon Krovanh (2003)

To quantitatively investigate the dynamic and thermal responses of the South China Sea (SCS) during and subsequent to the passage of a real typhoon, a three-dimensional, regional coupled air–sea model is developed to study the upper ocean response of the SCS to Typhoon Krovanh (2003). Owing to the scarcity of ocean observations, the three-dimensional numerical modeling with high resolution, as a powerful tool, offers a valuable opportunity to investigate how the air–sea process proceeds under such extreme conditions. The amplitude and distribution of the cold path produced by the coupled model compare reasonably well with the TRMM/TMI-derived data. The maximum SST cooling is 5.3 °C, about 80 km to the right of the typhoon track, which is consistent with the well-documented rightward bias in the SST response to typhoons. In correspondence to the SST cooling, the mixed layer depth exhibits an increase; the increases in the mixed layer depth on the right of typhoon track are significantly higher than those on the left, with maxima of 58 m. This correspondence indicates that the SST cooling is caused mainly by entrainment. Under the influence of typhoon, a cyclonic, near-surface current field is generated in the upper ocean layer, which moves with the typhoon. The typhoon-induced horizontal currents in the wake of the storm have strong near-inertial oscillation, which gradually propagates downward. The unique features of the SCS response to Typhoon Krovanh are also discussed, such as Kuroshio intrusion and coastal subsurface jets.