Observations of the Intermediate Water Exchange Between the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean Deduced From Transient Tracer Measurements

Abstract

AbstractThe South China Sea (SCS) is the largest semienclosed marginal sea in the western Pacific (WP) and connects to the west Pacific through the Luzon Strait (LU). In this study, we use the observation of transient tracer chlorofluorocarbon‐12 (CFC‐12) to calculate the ventilation time scales of the SCS, LU, and WP. The CFC‐12 and oxygen data are used together to identify the sandwiched structure vertically of the flows across the LU. The CFC‐12 and oxygen distributions reveal a pronounced decrease westward across the LU and a slight decrease southward in the transport of the SCS. The mean age gradient of the salinity minimum (Smin) water between the WP and the northern SCS could be a consequence of intensive mixing and entrainment of the inflow water from the WP. An expected difference in age between the LU and SSCS is verified to reflect the transit time for the given water layers in the SCS. Thus, a mean transit time of 77 ± 20 years is estimated for the intermediate water in the SCS interior.