Effects of stratification and mesoscale eddies on Kuroshio path variation south of Japan

Bimodality of the Kuroshio current path south of Japan is investigated, focusing on the effects of stratification and mesoscale eddies. For this purpose, wind-driven numerical experiments are executed in barotropic and two-layered ocean models. Stratification has two effects on the path selection of the Kuroshio south of Japan. First, it makes an alongshore path stable at intermediate wind stress strength τ₀ by arresting an eddy southeast of Kyushu. This enables an alongshore path to appear in the entire experimental range of τ₀. Second, the upper limit of τ₀ which allows a meandering path decreases from ( in the Sverdrup transport at the Tokara Strait) to () as Δρ/ρ₀ increases from 2.0×10^-3 to 4.0×10^-3. While an anticyclonic eddy imposed upstream (southeast of Kyushu) can cause the transition from an alongshore to a meandering path, it occurs most easily when (). The transition from a meandering to an alongshore path requires an eddy imposed downstream (east of the meandering segment) which suppresses redevelopment of the meandering segment and breaks the balance between the advective and beta effects. Applicability of the results to previously observed path variations is discussed.     

Spring phytoplankton bloom in the fronts of the East China Sea

Frontal areas between warm and saline waters of the Kuroshio currents and colder and diluted waters of the East China Sea (ECS) influenced by the Changjiang River were identified from the satellite thermal imagery and hydrological data obtained from the Coastal Ocean Process Experiment (COPEX) cruise during the period between March 1^st and 10^th, 1997. High chlorophyll concentrations appeared in the fronts of the East China Seas with the highest chlorophyll-a concentration in the southwestern area of Jeju Island (~2.9 mg/m³) and the eastern area of the Changjiang River Mouth (~2.8 mg/m³). Vertical structures of temperature, salinity and density were similar, showing the fronts between ECS and Kuroshio waters. The water column was well mixed in the shelf waters and was stratified around the fronts. It is inferred that the optimal condition for light utilization and nutrients induced both from the coastal and deep waters enhances the high phytoplankton productivity in the fronts of the ECS. In addition, the high chlorophyll-a in the fronts seems to have been associated with the water column stability as well.     

黑潮与邻近东海生源要素的交换及其生态环境效应

黑潮与东海生源要素的交换对东海的生态环境有重大影响,交换主要是经台湾东北部海域输送至东海陆架和通过日本九州西南海域由东海陆架向外海的黑潮输出两个通道。中国科学院海洋先导专项对黑潮与邻近东海生源要素的交换特征进行了系统的调查和研究,获得了一些新的认识:(1)在台湾东北部区域,碳主要以表层水-次表层水为载体输入,秋季的输入量高于夏季;黑潮溶解态营养盐的输入占据绝对主导地位,且以黑潮次表层热带水-中层水的输入为主,输入通量春季高于夏、秋季,可为东海春季水华提供一定的物质基础,但输入到东海的黑潮水其氮磷比与Redfield比值(16:1)接近,这些"正常水"——黑潮的输入显然对调和东海异常高的氮磷比有重要的作用,从而对东海的生态环境起到"稳定和缓冲"作用。所以,黑潮水对东海的输入不仅维持补充了东海生态系统运转所需的生源要素,更为重要的是缓冲了受人为影响强烈的东海海水的高氮磷比,使东海本已失常的营养盐结构向合适的氮磷比方向转变。因此,黑潮与东海生源要素的输入在一定程度上起着稳定和缓和东海生态环境的作用。(2)通过构建的海水Ba-盐度新指标体系,定量细致刻画了黑潮对东海生源物质在台湾东北部区域的输入范围和程度,黑潮次表层水从台湾东北陆架坡折处沿底部向北偏西方向入侵东海,其近岸分支可以入侵到浙江近岸,其黑潮次表层水占比仍可达到65%左右。垂直方向上,陆架外侧站位受黑潮次表层水的影响范围更大,黑潮水占50%比例位置可延伸至外侧TW0-1站位(122.59°E,25.49°N)表层,而内侧靠近大陆的站位则只限于陆架中部位置底层。     

Study on interaction between the coastal water, shelf water and Kuroshio water in the Huanghai Sea and East China Sea

The main processes of interaction between the coastal water, shelf water and Kuroshiowater in the Huanghai Sea (HS) and East China Sea (ECS) are analyzed based on the observation and study results in recent years. These processes include the intrusion of the Kuroshio water into the shelf area of the ECS, the entrainment of the shelf water into the Kuroshio, the seasonal process in the southern shelf area of the ECS controlled alternatively by the Taiwan Strait water and the Kuroshio water intruding into the shelf area, the interaction between the Kuroshio branch water, shelf mixed water and modified coastal water in the northeastern ECS, the water-exchange between the HS and ECS and the spread of the Changjiang diluted water.     

Buoyancy leads to high productivity of the Changjiang diluted water: a note

Being the mightiest river emptying into the East China Sea （ECS） and the Pacific Ocean, compounded with the large increase of nitrogen and phosphorus input due to anthropogenic activities, the Changjiang River （Yangtze River） has become a dominating source of these nutrients to the estuary. The high nutrient concentrations notwithstanding, however, outside of the estuary the high biological productivity of the Changjiang diluted water （CDW） are most probably fueled mainly by nutrient-rich subsurface waters originating from the upwelled Kuroshio waters. This is because while the buoyancy of the CDW spreads it out on the ECS continen- tal shelf, the CDW entrains subsurface waters along with the nutrients. Nutrients thus supplied are several times more than those supplied by the Changjiang River.     

On the origin of the Tsushima Warm Current Water

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黄、东海溶解态无机砷的分布及其季节变化

本文综合2000～2003年期间9个航次的研究结果,讨论了总溶解态无机砷（TDIAs,[TDIAs]=[As^5＋]＋[As^3＋]）和亚砷酸盐（As^3＋）在黄、东海的分布和季节性变化。调查海区覆盖了黄、东海不同水文和化学性质的区域,研究重点放在自长江口向东南琉球群岛沿伸的PN断面以讨论陆源输送的物质对中国陆架边缘海的影响。利用氢化物发生原子荧光光谱法（HG-AFS）分析砷的不同形态（TDIAs,As^3＋）。TDIAs受河流陆源输送的影响在近岸区域含量较高,并随着离岸距离的增加含量逐步下降。在东海陆架坡折带的近底层水中也存在TDIAs的高值中心,此区域具有低温、高盐、低悬浮颗粒物含量的特征,显示出入侵陆架的黑潮水是陆架区TDIAs另一个主要的源。TDIAs的季节性变化趋势受到长江冲淡水水量及黑潮入侵陆架强度的季节及年际变化共同影响。研究区域中As^3＋的分布特征与TDIAs相反,其含量、分布及季节性变化受到浮游植物活动的影响,表现出与叶绿索含量存在正相关关系。夏季东海陆架PN断面中As／P的化学计量比值约为2×10^3。黄、东海溶解态砷的含量与世界其它海区相近,表明其未受到明显人为活动的影响。     

Upward transport of iron at the west shelf edge–slope of the Okinawa Trough in the East China Sea

We studied the behavior of chemical substances in the upper 300 m of the water column across the continental shelf–slope interface in the East China Sea off the Okinawa Trough. The behaviors of iron, inorganic nutrients, and humic-like fluorescent dissolved organic matter were strongly influenced by the extensive water exchange between the East China Sea and the Kuroshio Current across the shelf break and slope via upwelling and frontal processes. We attributed the high humic-like fluorescent intensity at the subsurface of the shelf break and slope regions to the lateral supply of humic-like fluorescent dissolved organic matter from the shelf sediments to the outer shelf region due to the intrusion of shelf water into Kuroshio subsurface water. We found that the behavior of iron at the continental shelf–slope was remarkably different from the conservative mixing of inorganic nutrients and humic-like fluorescent dissolved organic matter. In deep and bottom waters at the shelf–slope, high total iron concentrations, which were closely related to water transmittance, possibly resulted from the swept transport of iron-rich resuspended sediments over the shelf floor from the slope by the invading Kuroshio Intermediate Water close to the bottom.     

Distributions of nutrients in the East China Sea and the South China Sea connection

Surface maps of nitrate, phosphate and silicate of the East China Sea (ECS) have been constructed and are described. Reports on exchanges of material between the ECS and the South China Sea (SCS) through the Taiwan Strait are reviewed. Recent advances seem to have reversed the earlier view that the SCS exports nutrients to the ECS through the Taiwan Strait. This is because the northward flow of seawater in the summer carries little nutrient. On the other hand, the waters flowing southward along the coast of China in winter carry orders of magnitude higher nutrient concentrations. The outflow of subsurface waters from the SCS, however, is the major source of new nutrients to the ECS continental shelves because these subsurface waters flow out of the Luzon Strait, join the northwardly flowing Kuroshio and enter the Okinawa trough. Around 10% of the nutrients exported from the SCS through the Luzon Strait upwell onto the ECS shelf. These inputs are larger than the aggregate of all the rivers that empty into the ECS, contributing 49% of the externally sourced nitrogen, 71% of the phosphorous, and 54% of the silica for the ECS.     

中国东部边缘海冬季硅酸盐的分布特征及主要来源

利用2007年1～2月的调查资料,分析讨论了中国东部陆架边缘海(南黄海、东海)冬季硅酸盐的分布特征及其主要影响因素。结果表明:近岸海域硅酸盐的高值区位于受长江冲淡水影响的区域;东海的硅酸盐浓度高于南黄海。长江冲淡水和黑潮水是影响东海和南黄海硅酸盐分布的主要因素。黑潮中层水是东海陆架区硅酸盐的主要来源。     

A structure of the Kuroshio and its related upwelling on the East China Sea shelf slope

The ADCP on an advanced towed fish with controllable main and tail wings, called DRAKE measured a detailed sectional structure of the Kuroshio flowing to the NE along the East China Sea shelf slope west of Okinawa. At the observation period, a countercurrent directed to the SW formed in near-bottom water on the shelf slope. The horizontal flow perpendicular to the stream axis of the Kuroshio constructed a convergence zone around the boundary between the Kuroshio and the countercurrent. An intensive upwelling with the maximum velocity of 2.8 cm s^–1 was found to distribute on the shelf slope around the convergence zone. A dynamic cause of this intensive upwelling is discussed carefully.     

Dimethylsulfide in coastal zone of the East China Sea

Dimethylsulfide (DMS) in seawater were observed four times from February 1993 to August 1994 along a fixed section (PN line) in the East China Sea. The DMS concentrations showed remarkable temporal and spatial variations. The DMS concentrations were generally higher in the upper euphotic layer of the continental shelf zone in summer. The spatial variation, however, was more pronounced even in well mixed winter water, where the concentration of DMS varied widely from 3 to 106 ng-S/l in the continental shelf zone while the salinity was vertically almost uniform. This means that DMS in seawater is rapidly produced and decomposed with a time scale less than one month in the water column. The largest value of 376 ng-S/l was obtained at 5 m depth near the mouth of Changjiang River in August 1994. The mean concentrations in the surface 30 m layer in the continental shelf zone were 21, 54, 126 and 57 ng-S/l in February, October, June and August, respectively, which were about twice as large as those in the Kuroshio region. The mean fluxes of DMS from the East China Sea to the atmosphere are estimated to be 49 g-S/m²/day in winter and 194 g-S/m²/day in summer in the continental shelf zone, and to be 32 and 107 g-S/m²/day in the Kuroshio region.     

The characteristic distribution of silica over the East China Sea shelf slope

The localized near-bottom water with silica content higher than that in the adjacent shelf water was observed to exist at the eastern margins of the East China Sea continental shelf. The core of the high silica water possessed the silica content corresponding to that in the Kuroshio at depths greater than on the shelf. The mixing analysis of water masses using temperature (T) and silica (Si) showed that the core water can be produced through the vertical mixing of intermediate water of the Kuroshio deeper than 100 m. This study provides us a conclusion that the intermediate water of the Kuroshio is strongly mixed on the shelf slope and then upwelled to form the ridge-like distribution of water masses with low temperature and high silica content at the shelf edge.     

Impact of Kuroshio on the dissolved oxygen in the East China Sea region

A marine survey was conducted from 18 May to 13 June 2014 in the East China Sea (ECS) and its adjacent Kuroshio Current to examine the spatial distribution and biogeochemical characteristics of dissolved oxygen (DO) in spring. Waters were sampled at 10?25 m intervals within 100 m depth, and at 25?500 m beyond 100 m. The depth, temperature, salinity, and density (sigma- t ) were measured in situ with a conductivity-temperature-depth (CTD) sensor. DO concentrations were determined on board using traditional Winkler titration method. The results show that in the Kuroshio Current, DO content was the highest in the euphotic layer, then decreased sharply with depth to about 1 000 m, and increased with depth gradually thereafter. While in the ECS continental shelf area, DO content had high values in the coastal surface water and low values in the near-bottom water. In addition, a low-DO zone off the Changjiang (Yangtze) River estuary was found in spring 2014, and it was formed under the combined influence of many factors, including water stratification, high primary productivity in the euphotic layers, high accumulation/ sedimentation of organic matter below the euphotic layers, and mixing/transport of oceanic current waters on the shelf. Most notable among these is the Kuroshio intruded water, an oceanic current water which carried rich dissolved oxygen onto the continental shelf and alleviated the oxygen deficit phenomenon in the ECS, could impact the position, range, and intensity, thus the formation/destruction of the ECS Hypoxia Zone.     

Physical dynamics and biological implications of a mesoscale eddy in the lee of Hawai’i: Cyclone Opal observations during E-Flux III

E-Flux III (March 10–28, 2005) was the third and last field experiment of the E-Flux project. The main goal of the project was to investigate the physical, biological and chemical characteristics of mesoscale eddies that form in the lee of Maui and the Island of Hawai’i, focusing on the physical–biogeochemical interactions. The primary focus of E-Flux III was the cyclonic cold-core eddy Opal, which first appeared in the NOAA GOES sea-surface temperature (SST) imagery during the second half of February 2005. During the experiment, Cyclone Opal moved over 160 km, generally southward. Thus, the sampling design had to be constantly adjusted in order to obtain quasi-synoptic observations of the eddy. Analyses of ship transect-depth profiles of CTD, optical and acoustic Doppler current profiler (ADCP) data revealed a well-developed feature characterized by a fairly symmetric circular shape with a radius of about 80 km. Depth profiles of temperature, salinity and density were characterized by an intense doming of isothermal, isohaline and isopycnal surfaces. Isopleths of nutrient concentrations were roughly parallel to isopycnals, indicating the upwelling of deep nutrient-rich water. The deep chlorophyll maximum layer (DCML) shoaled from a depth of about 130 m in the outer regions of the eddy to about 60 m in the center. Chlorophyll concentrations reached their maximum values in Opal's core region (about 40 km in diameter), where nutrients were upwelled into the euphotic layer. ADCP velocity data clearly showed the cyclonic circulation associated with Opal. Vertical sections of tangential velocities were characterized by values that increased linearly with radial distance from near zero close to the center to a maximum of about at roughly 25 km from the center, and then slowly decayed. The vertical extent of the cyclonic circulation was primarily limited to the upper mixed layer, as tangential velocities decayed quite rapidly within a depth range of 90–130 m. Potential vorticity analysis suggests that only a relatively small (about 50 km in diameter) and shallow (to a depth of approximately 70 m) portion of the eddy is isolated from the surrounding waters. Radial movements of water can occur between the center of the eddy and the outer regions along density surfaces within an isopycnal range of σ–t_23.6 () and σ–t_24.4 (). Thus the biogeochemistry of the system might have been greatly influenced by these lateral exchanges of water at depth, especially during Opal's southward migration. While the eddy was translating, deep water in front of the eddy might have been upwelled into the core region, leading to an additional injection of nutrients into the euphotic zone. At the same time, part of the chlorophyll-rich waters in the core region might have remained behind the translating eddy and, thus contributed to the formation of an eddy wake characterized by relatively high chlorophyll concentrations.     

~(234)U/~(238) as a potential tracer for tracking water masses mixing in the northern East China Sea

The optimum multiparameter(OMP) method was often used to determine the percentages of water masses based on temperature, salinity and other parameters, like nutrient or dissolved oxygen(DO). There are a number of water masses in the East China Sea(ECS), a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean. However, it is difficult to clarify the proportion of water masses using traditional parameters, such as temperature, salinity, nutrient or DO because of the occurring of intensive biogeochemical processes in the near shore and shelf areas. Here, we reported the use of ~(234)U/~(238)Uactivity ratio embedded in the OMP method. The results indicate that seawater in the northern ECS mainly consisted of the estuarine water of Changjiang River(CEW), Kuroshio water(KW), and Yellow Sea Coastal Current(YSCC). In March 2017, the CEW only influenced the offshore waters shallower than30 m; the KW affected the east edge and the YSCC contributed more than 75% in the northern ECS.     

Potential impacts of Three Gorges Dam in China on the ecosystem of East China Sea

The Changjiang River in China was dammed in 2003. The possible changes in matters fluxes from the river downstream after the completion of Three Gorges Dam and their potential impacts on the ecosystem of the East China Sea are discussed . The estuarine and coastal waters in the East China Sea were heavily fertilized by the inflow of nutrient-rich freshwater from the Changjiang River, which has led to severe eutrophication and frequent harmful algal blooms ,thus worsening the ecosystem health in this area. Analy- sis showed that the nutrient loadings are very likely to be reduced in the lower Changjiang River due to the construction of Three Gorges Dam. Especially for the total phosphorus, the discharges to the East China Sea will be reduced by one-third, which would relieve the severe eutrophication in this area. However, the expected decrease in the riverine silicate discharge would lead the ratio of silicon to nitrogen to be much less than 1 in the estuarine and coastal waters and thus may cause an elevation of flagellate growth. The changes in the annual water discharges and their seasonal distributions below the dam will be minor. Reduction of suspended particulate matter loading, due to the sedimentation behind the dam, will reduce the nutrient loadings of the particulate form especially for phosphorus, and decrease the turbidity of estuarine and coastal waters. On the other hand, this may enhance the erosion of the delta and the coasts as well as modifythe benthic ecosystem.     

东海北部海水中硝酸盐(NO_3-N)的分布及其成因

本文根据“中日黑潮合作调查”在东海的调查资料,探讨了硝酸盐的分布特征,以及水文条件对其分布的影响,并比较了不同年份夏季硝酸盐的分布差异及其原因。分析表明,表层海水中硝酸盐分布明显受长江冲淡水影响,陆架区测值高于外海,冬季测值高于夏季; ５０ｍ ,１００ｍ 层上陆架、黑潮锋区存在着硝酸盐锋面,黑潮主干的摆动可能是影响锋面位置的主要因素     

The Current System in the Yellow and East China Seas

During the 1990s, our knowledge and understanding of the current system in the Yellow and East China Seas have grown significantly due primarily to new technologies for measuring surface currents and making high-resolution three-dimensional numerical model calculations. One of the most important new findings in this decade is direct evidence of the northward current west of Kyushu provided by satellite-tracked surface drifters. In the East China Sea shelf region, these recent studies indicate that in winter the Tsushima Warm Current has a single source, the Kuroshio Branch Current in the west of Kyushu, which transports a mixture of Kuroshio Water and Changjiang River Diluted Water northward. In summer the surface Tsushima Warm Current has multiple sources, i.e., the Taiwan Warm Current, the Kuroshio Branch Current to the north of Taiwan, and the Kuroshio Branch Current west of Kyushu. The summer surface circulation pattern in the East China Sea shelf region changes year-to-year corresponding to interannual variations in Changjiang River discharge. Questions concerning the Yellow Sea Warm Current, the Chinese Coastal Current in the Yellow Sea, the current field southwest of Kyushu, and the deep circulation in the Okinawa Trough remain to be addressed in the next decade. This revised version was published online in August 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

234U/238U as a potential tracer for tracking water masses mixing in the northern East China Sea

The optimum multiparameter (OMP) method was often used to determine the percentages of water masses based on temperature, salinity and other parameters, like nutrient or dissolved oxygen (DO). There are a number of water masses in the East China Sea (ECS), a marginal sea of the western Pacific Ocean. However, it is difficult to clarify the proportion of water masses using traditional parameters, such as temperature, salinity, nutrient or DO because of the occurring of intensive biogeochemical processes in the near shore and shelf areas. Here, we reported the use of 234U/238U activity ratio embedded in the OMP method. The results indicate that seawater in the northern ECS mainly consisted of the estuarine water of Changjiang River (CEW), Kuroshio water (KW), and Yellow Sea Coastal Current (YSCC). In March 2017, the CEW only influenced the offshore waters shallower than 30 m; the KW affected the east edge and the YSCC contributed more than 75% in the northern ECS.