Interannual variability of transport and bifurcation of the North Equatorial Current in the tropical North Pacific Ocean

The relationship of the interannual variability of the transport and bifurcation latitude of the North Equatorial Current (NEC) to the El Ni o-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is investigated. This is done through composite analysis of sea surface height (SSH) observed by satellite altimeter during October 1992-July 2009, and correspondingly derived sea surface geostrophic currents. During El Nio/La Ni a years, the SSH in the tropical North Pacific Ocean falls/rises, with maximum changes in the region 0-15°N, 130°E-160°E. The decrease/increase in SSH induces a cyclonic/anticyclonic anomaly in the western tropical gyre. The cyclonic/anticyclonic anomaly in the gyre results in an increase/decrease of NEC transport, and a northward/southward shift of the NEC bifurcation latitude near the Philippine coast. The variations are mainly in response to anomalous wind forcing in the west-central tropical North Pacific Ocean, related to ENSO events.     

Interannual variations of North Equatorial Current transport in the Pacific Ocean during two types of El Niño

Interannual variations of Pacific North Equatorial Current (NEC) transport during eastern-Pacific El Niños (EP-El Niños) and central-Pacific El Niños (CP-El Niños) are investigated by composite analysis with European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecast Ocean Analysis/Reanalysis System 3. During EP-El Niño, NEC transport shows significant positive anomalies from the developing to decay phases, with the largest anomalies around the mature phase. During CP-El Niño, however, the NEC transport only shows positive anomalies before the mature phase, with much weaker anomalies than those during EP-El Niño. The NEC transport variations are strongly associated with variations of the tropical gyre and wind forcing in the tropical North Pacific. During EP-El Niño, strong westerly wind anomalies and positive wind stress curl anomalies in the tropical North Pacific induce local upward Ekman pumping and westward-propagating upwelling Rossby waves in the ocean, lowering the sea surface height and generating a cyclonic gyre anomaly in the western tropical Pacific. During CP-El Niño, however, strength of the wind and associated Ekman pumping velocity are very weak. Negative sea surface height and cyclonic flow anomalies are slightly north of those during EP El Niño.     

Geostrophic meridional transport in tropical Northwest Pacific based on Argo profiles

Absolute geostrophic currents in the North Pacific Ocean were calculated using P-vector method from newly gridded Argo profiling float data collected during 2004–2009. The meridional volume transport of geostrophic currents differed significantly from the classical Sverdrup balance, with differences of 10×10⁶–20×10⁶m³/s in the interior tropical Northwest Pacific Ocean. Analyses showed that errors of wind stress estimation could not explain all of the differences. The largest differences were found in the areas immediately north and south of the bifurcation latitude of the North Equatorial Current west of the dateline, and in the recirculation area of the Kuroshio and its extension, where nonlinear eddy activities were robust. Comparison of the geostrophic meridional transport and the wind-driven Sverdrup meridional transport in a high-resolution OFES simulation showed that nonlinear effects of the ocean circulation were the most likely reason for the differences. It is therefore suggested that the linear, steady wind-driven dynamics of the Sverdrup theory cannot completely explain the meridional transport of the interior circulation of the tropical Northwest Pacific Ocean.     

A HOMOGENEOUS MODEL OF UPPER LAYER CIRCULATION IN INDO-PACIFIC REGION

ImODUcrIONTheIndo-PadricregionbeweenMindanao,NewGuinea,andtheIndonesianArchipelagoistheonlydeeppassagefromthePadricOceantotheIndiandrincyig.l),Fig.lMapoftheIndoThdficopon(Internalframeisthemodeldomain)andobendupper1aperimtSthereinsmrandhasareivedconsiderableattentionhauseofitSlocationbetweretheIn.TheIndonesianThappearstobepotentiallyboortantintheevoluhonsofthewesternboundaryatandthewarmpoolinthewesternPadric,andplaysacrudelroleinthehcatandsaltbalanceoftheworkl'soasnoprdon,l986).Nume…     

Circulation and Heat Flux along the Western Boundary of the North Pacific

On the basis of the conductivity temperature depth(CTD)observation data off the coast of the Philippines(7.5°–18°N,130°E–the east coast of the Philippines)in the fall of 2005,the water mass distribution,geostrophic flow field,and heat budget are examined.Four water masses are present:the North Pacific Tropical Surface Water,the North Pacific Sub-surface Water,the North Pacific Intermediate Water,and the Antarctic Intermediate Water(AAIW).The previous three corresponded with the North Equatorial Current(NEC),the Kuroshio Current(KC),and the Mindanao Current(MC),respectively.AAIW is the source of the Mindanao Undercurrent.The mass transport of NEC,KC,and MC is 58.7,15,and 27.95Sv,respectively(relative to 1500db).NEC can be balanced by the transport across the whole transect 18°N(31.81 Sv)and 7.5°N(26.11 Sv)but not simply by KC and MC.Direct calculation is used to study the heat flux.In sum,1.45PW heat is transported outwards the observed region,which is much more than that released from the ocean to the air at the surface(0.05PW).The net heat lost decreased the water temperature by 0.75℃each month on average,and the trend agreed well with the SST change.Vertically,the heat transported by the currents is mainly completed in the upper 500 m.     

Variabilities of surface current in the tropical Pacific Ocean

The Simple Ocean Data Assimilation (SODA) package is used to better understand the variabilities of surface current transport in the Tropical Pacific Ocean from 1950 to 1999. Seasonal variation, internnual and decadal variability analyses are conducted on the three major surface currents of the Tropical Pacific Ocean: the North Equatorial Current (NEC), the North Equatorial Countecurrent (NECC), and the South Equatorial Current (SEC). The transport of SEC is quite larger than those of NEC and NECC. The SEC has two maximums in February and August. The NEC has a small annual variation. The NECC has a maximum in October and is very weak in March and April. All currents have remarkable interannual and decadal variabilities. The variabilities of the NEC and the SEC related to the winds over them well, but the relationship between the NECC and the wind over it is not close. Analysis related to El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) suggests that before El Niño (La Niña) the SEC is weaker (stronger) and the NECC is stronger (weaker), after El Niño (La Niña) the SEC is stronger (weaker) and the SEC is weaker (stronger). There is no notable relationship between the NEC and ENSO.     

Numerical study on the bifurcation of the North Equatorial Current

A 1.5-layer reduced-gravity model forced by wind stress is used to study the bifurcations of the North Equatorial Current(NEC).The authors found that after removing the Ekman drift,the modelled circulations can serve well as a proxy of the SODA circulations on the σθ=25.0 kg m～-3 potential density surface based on available long-term reanalysis wind stress data.The modelled results show that the location of the western boundary bifurcation of the NEC depends on both zonal averaged and local zero wind stress curl latitude.The effects of the anomalous wind stress curl added in different areas are also investigated and it is found that they can change the strength of the Mindanao Eddy(ME),and then influence the interior pathway.     

NUMERICAL SIMULATION OF THE MINDANAO EDDY AND TROPICAL CURRENTS OF PACIFIC OCEAN

Results of numerical simulation of currents in the western North Tropical Pacific Ocean by using a barotropic primitive equation model with fine horizontal resolution agreed well with observations and showed that the Mindanao Cyclonic Eddy located north of the equator and east of Mindanao Island exists during most of the year with monthly (and large seasonal) variations in scope . strength and central location . In June , an anticyclonic eddy occurs northeast of Halmahera Island, strengthens to maximum in August , exists until October and then disappears . The observed large-scale circulation systems such as the North Equatorial Current . the Mindanao Current and the North Equatorial Countercurrent are all very well reproduced in the simulations.     

A THREE-LAYER OCEAN CIRCULATION MODEL APPLICATION TO NUMERICAL STUDIES ON THE NORTH PACIFIC OCEAN CIRCULATION

The formulation and justification of a three-layer baroclinic ocean model developed to simulate thegeneral circulation of the ocean are described in this paper.Test of the model in simulating the annualmean circulation patterns in the North Pacific under the prescribed atmospheric forcing,which consists ofthe climatological surface wind stress and sea surface heat flux,and comparison of the results withobservations showed that the model basically simulated the large scale features of the annual meancirculation patterns in the North Pacific Ocean such as those of the intensified western boundary currentsand the North Equatorial Currents and Undercurrents.But due to the coarse resolution of the model,some details of these currents were poorly reproduced.The seasonal variations of the North Pacific Oceancirculation driven by the seasonal mean sea surface wind stress was calculated,the different aspects of theseresults were analyzed and the main current(the intensified western boundary currents)transports we     

Seasonal variability of the North Equatorial Current transport in the western Pacific Ocean

Seasonal variability of the North Equatorial Current （NEC） transport in the western Pacific Ocean is investigated with ECMWF Ocean Analysis/Reanalysis System 3 （eRA-S3）. The result shows that NEC transport （NT） across different longitudes in the research area shows a similar double-peak structure, with two maxima （in summer and winter）, and two minima （in spring and autumn）. This kind of structure can also be found in NEC geostrophic transport （NGT）, but in a different magnitude and phase. These differences are attributable to Ekman transport induced by the local meridional wind and transport caused by nonzero velocity at the reference level, which is assumed to be zero in the NGT calculation. In the present work, a linear vorticity equation governing a 1.5-layer reduced gravity model is adopted to examine the dynamics of the seasonal variability of NGT. It is found that the annual cycle of NGT is mainly controlled by Ekman pumping induced by local wind, and westward-propagating Rossby waves induced by remote wind. Further research demonstrates that the maximum in winter and minimum in spring are mostly attributed to wind east of the dateline, whilst the maximum in summer and minimum in autumn are largely attributed to that west of the dateline.     

A time-dependent baroclinic model on NEC bifurcation

As it is well-known, the North Equatorial Current (NEC) bifurcates into the Kuroshio flowing northward and the equatorward Mindanao Current, which is well depicted by Munk’s theory in 1950 in terms of its climatology. However, Munk’s theory is unable to tell the NEC bifurcation variability with time. In the present paper, a time-dependent baroclinic model forced by wind, in which temporal and baroclinic terms are added to Munk’s equation, is proposed to examine the seasonal variability of the NEC bifurcation latitude. An analytical solution is obtained, with which the seasonal variability can be well described: NEC bifurcation reaches its northernmost position in December and its southernmost position in June with a range of about 1° in latitude, consistent with previous results with observations. The present solution will degenerate to Munk’s one in the case of steady and barotropic state.     

The Western Boundary Current of the pacific and its role in the climate

On the basis of the CTD data gathered by the R/VScience I in each Oct. of 1986–1988 and the winter averaged temperature anomaly in southeast China, the interannual variability of the Western Boundary Current (WBC) is examined in terms of volume transport by inverse calculation and its role in the climate is studied by statistical method. The estimated transport is 50, 20, and 33×10⁶ m³/s for the Kuroshio and 24, 34, and 36×10⁶ m³/s for the Mindanao Current (MC) in October of 1986, 1987, and 1988, respectively. The WBC is the biggest channel in the ocean for transporting heat poleward and plays an extremely important role in establishing and maintaining the global heat balance. Results showed that meridional heat transport by the Kuroshio northeast of Luzon apparently dominates coldness or warmness in winter in southeast China. Two phenomena observed in the western Pacific but not in the western Atlantic are the warm pool and the equatorward flowing MC which, together with the North Equatorial Counter-current (NECC) may play an important role in preventing the warm water from extending to the north. So in order to understand the dynamics of the warm pool formation and evolution, the MC and NECC must be studied as well as the Equatorial Current. Contribution No. 1791 from the Institute of Oceanology, Academia Sinica.     

Major features and variability of the Kuroshio in the East China Sea

This is a brief introduction of the Kuroshio in the East China Sea (ECS). The main results of the study for this part of the Kuroshio system in recent years are reviewed and presented with emphases placed on the major features of the current structure, annual and inter-annual variations of the velocity and volume transport of the Kuroshio in ECS, and the relation between the variation of the Kuroshio in ECS and that of the Kuroshio south of Japan. And finally, an indirect relation between the variation of the Kuroshio in ECS and that of the North Equatorial Current system is suggested. It is shown that the fluctuation of the Kuroshio in ECS is also correlated with that of the North Equatorial Current and North Equatorial Counter-current. Ties of the above relation are the wind stress curl field over the tropical and subtropical belts.     

Seasonal variation of the surface North Equatorial Countercurrent (NECC) in the western Pacific Ocean

The North Equatorial Countercurrent(NECC) is an important zonal fl ow in the upper circulation of the tropical Pacifi c Ocean, which plays a vital role in the heat budget of the western Pacifi c warm pool. Using satellite-derived data of ocean surface currents and sea surface heights(SSHs) from 1992 to 2011, the seasonal variation of the surface NECC in the western tropical Pacifi c Ocean was investigated. It was found that the intensity(INT) and axis position(Y_(CM)) of the surface NECC exhibit strikingly different seasonal fl uctuations in the upstream(128°–136°E) and downstream(145°–160°E) regions. Of the two regions, the seasonal cycle of the upstream NECC shows the greater interannual variability. Its INT and Y CM are greatly infl uenced by variations of the Mindanao Eddy, Mindanao Dome(MD), and equatorial Rossby waves to its south. Both INT and YC M also show semiannual signals induced by the combined effects of equatorial Rossby waves from the Central Pacifi c and local wind forcing in the western Pacifi c Ocean. In the downstream region, the variability of the NECC is affected by SSH anomalies in the MD and the central equatorial Pacifi c Ocean. Those in the MD region are especially important in modulating the Y CM of the downstream NECC. In addition to the SSH-related geostrophic fl ow, zonal Ekman fl ow driven by meridional wind stress also plays a role, having considerable impact on INT variability of the surface NECC. The contrasting features of the variability of the NECC in the upstream and downstream regions refl ect the high complexity of regional ocean dynamics.     

The North Equatorial Current/Undercurrent volume transport and its 40-day variability from a mooring array along 130°E

Journal of Oceanology and Limnology - Traditionally, the estimated volume transport of the North Equatorial Current/Undercurrent (NEC/NEUC) is based on geostrophic equations and/or model results;...     

ENSO cycle and climate anomaly in China

The inter-annual variability of the tropical Pacific Subsurface Ocean Temperature Anomaly (SOTA) and the associated anomalous atmospheric circulation over the Asian North Pacific during the El Ni o-Southern Oscillation (ENSO) were investigated using National Centers for Environmental Prediction/ National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCEP/NCAR) atmospheric reanalysis data and simple ocean data simulation (SODA). The relationship between the ENSO and the climate of China was revealed. The main results indicated the following: 1) there are two ENSO modes acting on the subsurface tropical Pacific. The first mode is related to the mature phase of ENSO, which mainly appears during winter. The second mode is associated with a transition stage of the ENSO developing or decaying, which mainly occurs during summer; 2) during the mature phase of El Ni o, the meridionality of the atmosphere in the mid-high latitude increases, the Aleutian low and high pressure ridge over Lake Baikal strengthens, northerly winds prevail in northern China, and precipitation in northern China decreases significantly. The ridge of the Ural High strengthens during the decaying phase of El Ni o, as atmospheric circulation is sustained during winter, and the northerly wind anomaly appears in northern China during summer. Due to the ascending branch of the Walker circulation over the western Pacific, the western Pacific Subtropical High becomes weaker, and south-southeasterly winds prevail over southern China. As a result, less rainfall occurs over northern China and more rainfall over the Changjiang River basin and the southwestern and eastern region of Inner Mongolia. The flood disaster that occurred south of Changjiang River can be attributed to this. The La Ni a event causes an opposite, but weaker effect; 3) the ENSO cycle can influence climate anomalies within China via zonal and meridional heat transport. This is known as the "atmospheric-bridge", where the energy anomaly within the tropical Pacific transfers to the mid-high latitude in the northern Pacific through Hadley cells and Rossby waves, and to the western Pacific-eastern Indian Ocean through Walker circulation. This research also discusses the special air-sea boundary processes during the ENSO events in the tropical Pacific, and indicates that the influence of the subsurface water of the tropical Pacific on the atmospheric circulation may be realized through the sea surface temperature anomalies of the mixed water, which contact the atmosphere and transfer the anomalous heat and moisture to the atmosphere directly. Moreover, the reason for the heavy flood within the Changjiang River during the summer of 1998 is reviewed in this paper.     

Control factors of DIC in the Y3 seamount waters of the Western Pacific Ocean

An investigation was carried out in the Y3 seamount area of the Western Pacific Ocean in December 2014,and the distribution of dissolved inorganic carbon(DIC) and its relationship with environmental factors in this area were explored.The results show that DIC concentration was higher in the adjacent waters of the Y3 seamount area,and the uplift of DIC isolines at the stations was close to the seamount.Meanwhile,interaction between the North Equatorial Current(NEC) and the Y3 seamount affected the DIC distribution i.e.,the upwelling in the same direction of the NEC was obvious,resulting in a decreasing trend of average concentration of DIC in the 200 m water column from the top to the two side s in this direction but in the cross direction.The DIC concentration increased with the water depth increase,and its distribution was affected by various environmental factors.In the surface water,high temperature was a decisive factor for the decrease of the DIC concentration,but the photosynthesis of phytoplankton showing only a weak influence.In the North Pacific Tropic Water(NPTW),DIC production rate from organic matter decomposition was higher than that of DIC consumption by phytoplankton photosynthesis,leading to a continual increase of DIC.In the North Pacific Intermediate Water(NPIW),organic matter decomposition played a leading role in the increase of DIC.In the deep water,decomposition of organic matter weakened,and the dissolution of CaCO_3 controlled the carbonate system,and DIC had the smallest variation range.     

海南及邻区现今地壳三维运动特征及地球动力学环境分析

利用海南及邻区1999年以来GNSS资料及1970年以来水准数据获取三维运动速度场，分析地壳运动特征，结合东南亚水平运动背景场分析周缘板块对海南地块及华南地块陆缘速度场的影响。结果表明，海南岛三维运动以白沙断裂为界，岛北部以海口-屯昌为界。华南地块各观测点E向运动速率自西向东逐渐减小，至陆缘区域速率最小，各观测站间运动速率差异性小；S向运动速率自西向东逐渐增大；位于23°～26°N区域观测点的速度场与其南北两侧存在差异。华南地块运动受印度板块与欧亚板块碰撞和挤压影响，陆缘地带还受太平洋板块、菲律宾海板块活动及南海扩张运动影响，澳大利亚板块对区域运动影响较小。     

20世纪80年代初以来北太平洋海温变化特征

应用1979.1-2006.12北太平洋海表温度（SST）资料,采用一元线性回归、功率谱等统计方法对该区SST的变化特征进行分析,结果表明：（1）北太平洋SST年际变化较为显著,尤其在靠近亚洲大陆一带洋面、北太平洋中部中纬度海域及赤道中、东太平洋;（2）北太平洋西部和中部SST1-12月均呈上升趋势,靠近亚洲大陆的日本海一带和我国大陆以东洋面升温最快。除我国以东洋面升温中心在冬季外,其余海域升温均在夏秋季更迅速,20世纪90年代初以来尤为明显;北美海岸山脉以西及赤道中、东太平洋SST则呈弱的下降趋势;（3）赤道中、东太平洋春夏季存在显著5a和3.5a左右的年际变化;北太平洋中部30°N一带冬春季存在5-6a左右的年际变化和约14a的年代际变化;（4）除北太平洋中部（西风漂流区）外,各个海域大部分月份SST高值年和低值年分别与厄尔尼诺年和拉尼娜年对应,西风漂流区SST高值年均出现在20世纪末21世纪初,低值年与厄尔尼诺年对应。