Spatio-temporal variations of sea surface temperature in the Banda Sea during the period of 2002-2008

Abstract

Spatial and temporal variations of sea surface (SST) in the Banda Sea are studied for the period of June 2002 – May 2008. An empirical orthogonal function (EOF) analysis has been applied to an optimum interpolation SST (OISST) having spatial resolution of 0.25° and temporal resolution of 1 day. The results revealed that the four EOF modes account for 53.1% of the total SST variance. The first EOF mode, which accounts for 33.2% of the total variance, revealed the east-west SST pattern in the Banda Sea. This indicates 180° out of phase temporal variability between the eastern and the western parts of the Banda Sea. The second and the fourth modes explain 9.6% and 4.6% of the total variance respectively. Both two modes show the southeast-northwest spatial pattern. Meanwhile, the third mode accounting for 5.4% of the total variance indicates that the high SST variation is concentrated in the central Banda Sea. In addition, the corresponding principal component time series of the first mode revealed robust seasonal variability. The southeast monsoon (June – September) season is characterized by very low SST (26°C) occupied the Banda Sea region. Meanwhile, during the northwest monsoon (November – February) season, high SST (30°C) was observed in the Banda Sea region. The principal component time series of the second and the third modes, on the other hand, showed intraseasonal variation, which may relate to the local air-sea interaction in the Banda Sea. Meanwhile, the principal component time series of the fourth mode shows inter-annual variations. It is hypothesized that the Indian Ocean Dipole influence the SST in the Banda Sea on the inter-annual timescale.