Western Boundary Current Regions Research Articles

Interannual to Decadal Variability of the Upper-Ocean Heat Content in the Western North Pacific and Its Relationship to Oceanic and Atmospheric Variability

Three-dimensional oceanic thermal structures and variability in the western North Pacific (NP) are examined on the interannual to decadal time scales and their relationship to oceanic and atmospheric variability is discussed by analyzing observation and reanalysis data for 45 years (1964–2008), which is much longer than the satellite-altimetry period. It is shown that the meridional shift of the Kuroshio Extension (KE) and subarctic frontal zone (SAFZ) is associated with the overall cooling/warming over the KE and SAFZ region (KE–SAFZ mode). It appears, however, that changes in KE strength induce different signs of thermal anomalies to the south and north of the KE, not extended to the SAFZ (KE mode), possibly contributing to noncoherent variability between the KE and SAFZ. Thus, the KE and SAFZ are dependent on each other in the context of the KE–SAFZ mode, while the KE is independent of the SAFZ in terms of the KE mode. This intricate relationship is associated with different linkages to atmospheric variability; the KE–SAFZ mode exhibits a relatively fast response to the large-scale wind stress curl forcing in the NP, whereas the KE mode is related to a delayed response to the atmospheric forcing via jet-trapped baroclinic Rossby wave propagation. It is suggested that further knowledge of the underlying mechanisms of the two modes would contribute to understanding ocean–atmosphere feedback as well as potential predictability over the western boundary current region in the NP.

Frontal eddies along a western boundary current

Cyclonic frontal eddies are distinguishable from the surrounding water due to their unique biological and physical characteristics and have been observed in all western boundary current regions. These eddies spawn from cut-off meanders and are found on the landward side of the current. Here, we report for the first time observed frontal eddies for the intensification zone (north of 28°S) of the East Australian Current (EAC) off Southeast Queensland, Australia, by analysing remotely sensed sea surface temperature (SST) and chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) data. The frontal eddies were detected initially in the analysis of satellite tracked surface drifters. The shelf-crossing cyclonic drifter pathways indicated the presence of drifter-trapping cyclonic frontal eddies. The subsequent analysis of satellite images allows to quantify key eddy characteristics, cross-shelf volume transports associated with eddy filaments, eddy-driven shelf water renewal time scales, and export of total Chl-a and carbon per day. The observed frontal eddies have core radii of approximately 13 km and 15 km. The cold core surface SST anomaly and elevated chl-a indicates eddy entrainment of shelf water. The translational or core displacement velocity is estimated with 0.17 m s−1 or 15 km per day and the tangential velocity quantified from tracking surface drifters is 0.28 m s−1 to − 0.5 m s−1. This results in a rotational period of 1.9 days to 3.9 days. We use maximum Chl-a and SST gradients to approximate the width of importing and exporting filaments associated with the frontal eddy to derive volume transports of 1.5 Sv and 1.9 Sv (import) and 0.3 Sv and 1.8 Sv (export), respectively. Chl-a concentrations of the exporting filaments are about 0.4 mg m−3 to 0.6 mg m−3 yielding a total export of 13–78 t of Chl-a per day. The frontal eddy induced on-shelf transport of 130 km3–160 km3 per day represents between 18% and 22% of the shelf volume. Therefore, it would take approximately five days to renew all shelf water. We conclude that the observed frontal eddies of the northern intensification zone of the EAC potentially play an important role in determining cross-shelf exchanges, contribute to on-shelf marine conditions, enhancing coastal primary productivity and are possibly important to the export of shelf water properties such as the fish larvae of subtropical species via entrainment.

Seasonality in Transition Scale from Balanced to Unbalanced Motions in the World Ocean

AbstractThe transition scale Lt from balanced geostrophic motions to unbalanced wave motions, including near-inertial flows, internal tides, and inertia–gravity wave continuum, is explored using the output from a global 1/48° horizontal resolution Massachusetts Institute of Technology general circulation model (MITgcm) simulation. Defined as the wavelength with equal balanced and unbalanced motion kinetic energy (KE) spectral density, Lt is detected to be geographically highly inhomogeneous: it falls below 40 km in the western boundary current and Antarctic Circumpolar Current regions, increases to 40–100 km in the interior subtropical and subpolar gyres, and exceeds, in general, 200 km in the tropical oceans. With the exception of the Pacific and Indian sectors of the Southern Ocean, the seasonal KE fluctuations of the surface balanced and unbalanced motions are out of phase because of the occurrence of mixed layer instability in winter and trapping of unbalanced motion KE in shallow mixed layer in summer. The combined effect of these seasonal changes renders Lt to be 20 km during winter in 80% of the Northern Hemisphere oceans between 25° and 45°N and all of the Southern Hemisphere oceans south of 25°S. The transition scale’s geographical and seasonal changes are highly relevant to the forthcoming Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) mission. To improve the detection of balanced submesoscale signals from SWOT, especially in the tropical oceans, efforts to remove stationary internal tidal signals are called for.

Enhanced warming of the subtropical mode water in the North Pacific and North Atlantic

Warming of surface ocean waters is well known, but how the subsurface waters are changing is less clear. This study shows that subtropical mode water in the North Atlantic and North Pacific is warming at twice the rate of the surface waters. Over the past six decades, the subtropical surface ocean has warmed at rates close to those of global mean surface ocean temperature1 except in western boundary current regions where the surface warming is locally enhanced by a factor of two2. Changes in the subsurface ocean, however, remain unclear because of lack of data. Compiling historical temperature measurements—some available for the first time—here we show that the subtropical mode water has warmed over the past six decades in both the North Pacific and North Atlantic. The rate of the warming is twice as large in the mode waters than at the surface. Subtropical mode waters are important water masses of vertically uniform temperature that are a few hundred metres thick and distributed widely in the main thermocline of the subtropical oceans3. The enhanced warming of subtropical mode waters can be traced back to the surface warming in the formation regions along the western boundary current extensions. Furthermore, we detect increased temperature stratification and decreased dissolved oxygen in the subtropical mode waters. The latter change has clear implications for predicting biogeochemical responses to climate warming.

The annual cycle of surface eddy kinetic energy and its influence on eddy momentum fluxes as inferred from altimeter data

The annual cycle of surface eddy kinetic energy (EKE) and its influence on eddy momentum fluxes are investigated using an updated record of satellite altimeter data. It is found that there is a phase difference between the annual cycles of EKE in the western boundary current regions and EKE in the interior of the subtropical gyres, suggesting that different mechanisms may be at work in different parts of the subtropical gyres. The annual cycles of EKE averaged in the two hemispheres are found to be of similar magnitude but in opposite phase. As a result, the globally-averaged EKE shows little seasonal variability. The longer record of altimeter data used in this study has brought out a clearer and simpler picture of eddy momentum fluxes in the Gulf Stream and Kuroshio Extensions: eddies in both regions systematically flux westerly momentum into the western boundary current jets. Considerable seasonal variations in eddy momentum fluxes are found in the western boundary current regions, which potentially play an important role in modulating the strength of the western boundary currents and their associated recirculation gyres on the seasonal time scale.

Subregional characterization of mesoscale eddies across the Brazil‐Malvinas Confluence

AbstractHorizontal and vertical motions associated with coherent mesoscale structures, including eddies and meanders, are responsible for significant global transports of many properties, including heat and mass. Mesoscale vertical fluxes also influence upper ocean biological productivity by mediating the supply of nutrients into the euphotic layer, with potential impacts on the global carbon cycle. The Brazil‐Malvinas Confluence (BMC) is a western boundary current region in the South Atlantic with intense mesoscale activity. This region has an active role in the genesis and transformation of water masses and thus is a critical component of the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation. The collision between the Malvinas and Brazil Currents over the Patagonian shelf/slope creates an energetic front that translates offshore to form a vigorous eddy field. Recent improvements in gridded altimetric sea level anomaly fields allow us to track BMC mesoscale eddies with high spatial and temporal resolutions using an automated eddy tracker. We characterize the eddies across fourteen 5° × 5° subregions. Eddy‐centric composites of tracers and geostrophic currents diagnosed from a global reanalysis of surface and in situ data reveal substantial subregional heterogeneity. The in situ data are also used to compute the evolving quasi‐geostrophic vertical velocity (QG‐ω) associated with each instantaneous eddy instance. The QG‐ω eddy composites have the expected dipole patterns of alternating upwelling/downwelling, however, the magnitude and sign of azimuthally averaged vertical velocity varies among subregions. Maximum eddy values are found near fronts and sharp topographic gradients. In comparison with regional eddy composites, subregional composites provide refined information about mesoscale eddy heterogeneity.

A comparison of the structure, properties, and water mass composition of quasi-isotropic eddies in western boundary currents in an eddy-resolving ocean model

Using output from a near-global eddy-resolving ocean model, we analyse the properties and characteristics of quasi-isotropic eddies in five Western Boundary Current (WBC) regions, including the extensions of the Agulhas, East Australian Current (EAC), Brazil-Malvinas Confluence (BMC), Kuroshio and Gulf Stream regions. We assess the model eddies by comparing to satellite and in situ observations, and show that most aspects of the model’s representation of eddies are realistic. We find that the mean eddies differ dramatically between these WBC regions - all with some unique and noteworthy characteristics. We find that the vertical displacement of isopycnals of Agulhas eddies is the greatest, averaging 350–450 m at depths of over 800–900 m. EAC (BMC) eddies are the least (most) barotropic, with only 50% (85–90%) of the velocity associated with the barotropic mode. Kuroshio eddies are the most stratified, resulting in small isopycnal displacement, even for strong eddies; and Gulf Stream eddies carry the most heat. Despite their differences, we explicitly show that the source waters for anticyclonic eddies are a mix of the WBC water (from the boundary current itself) and water that originates equatorward of the WBC eddy-field; and cyclonic eddies are a mix of WBC water and water that originates poleward of the WBC eddy-field.

Radiolarian biogeography in surface sediments of the Northwest Pacific marginal seas

Overall abundance and species composition of radiolarian faunas were analyzed in surface sediment samples from representative areas of South China Sea, East China Sea, Sea of Japan, Sea of Okhotsk, Bering Sea, Philippine Sea, and the western boundary current regions of the North Pacific, in order to understand the biogeographic distribution of radiolarians in the Northwest Pacific and explore its relationship with the main environmental factors and the North Pacific circulation. The results showed that radiolarians in the Northwest Pacific surface sediments can be divided into two large biogeographic provinces—cluster A and cluster B. Cluster A is characterized by the dominance of warm-water species and distributed primarily in tropical and subtropical seas with high radiolarian abundance and diversity; whereas cluster B is predominated by cold water species and distributed mainly in the Arctic and subarctic seas with comparably low abundance and diversity. Cluster A is further divided into five subclusters, A1 to A5, which correspond to East China Sea, Philippine Sea, South China Sea, Sea of Japan, and Kuroshio Current, respectively; cluster B is divided into three subclusters, B1 to B3, which correspond to Sea of Okhotsk, Bering Sea, and subarctic gyre area, respectively. Based on the relationships between radiolarian faunas and major environment parameters in different biogeographic provinces, we suggest that the sea surface temperature (SST) and sea surface salinity (SSS) are primary factors that influence productivity, composition, and distribution pattern of the radiolarian fauna in the Northwest Pacific regions, while water depth is likely responsible for regional differences in the radiolarian fauna in each marginal sea. In addition, according to the distribution and abundance patterns of common radiolarian species in different areas, we identified five special radiolarian assemblages, which may be used as indicators for main Kuroshio Current, Kuroshio-East China Sea Branch, Kuroshio-South China Sea Branch, Tsushima Current, and Oyashio Current water masses.

Submesoscale transition from geostrophic flows to internal waves in the northwestern Pacific upper ocean

With radar interferometry, the next-generation Surface Water and Ocean Topography satellite mission will improve the measured sea surface height resolution down to 15 km, allowing us to investigate for the first time the global upper ocean variability at the submesoscale range. Here, by analysing shipboard Acoustic Doppler Current Profiler measurements along 137°E in the northwest Pacific of 2004–2016, we show that the observed upper ocean velocities are comprised of balanced geostrophic flows and unbalanced internal waves. The transition length scale, Lt, separating these two motions, is found to depend strongly on the energy level of local mesoscale eddy variability. In the eddy-abundant western boundary current region of Kuroshio, Lt can be shorter than 15 km, whereas Lt exceeds 200 km along the path of relatively stable North Equatorial Current. Judicious separation between the geostrophic and internal wave signals represents both a challenge and an opportunity for the Surface Water and Ocean Topography mission.

Work done by atmospheric winds on mesoscale ocean eddies

AbstractMesoscale eddies are ubiquitous in the ocean and dominate the ocean's kinetic energy. However, physical processes influencing ocean eddy energy remain poorly understood. Mesoscale ocean eddy‐wind interaction potentially provides an energy flux into or out of the eddy field, but its effect on ocean eddies has not yet been determined. Here we examine work done by atmospheric winds on more than 1,200,000 mesoscale eddies identified from satellite altimetry data and show that atmospheric winds significantly damp mesoscale ocean eddies, particularly in the energetic western boundary current regions and the Southern Ocean. Furthermore, the large‐scale wind stress curl is found to on average systematically inject kinetic energy into anticyclonic (cyclonic) eddies in the subtropical (subpolar) gyres while mechanically damps anticyclonic (cyclonic) eddies in the subpolar (subtropical) gyres.

A Quality Control Procedure for Climatological Studies Using Argo Data in the North Pacific Western Boundary Current Region

AbstractA quality control (QC) procedure is developed to estimate monthly mean climatologies from the large Argo dataset (2005–12) over the North Pacific western boundary current region. In addition to the individual QC procedure, which checks for instrumental, transmission, and gross errors, the paper describes and shows the impact of climatological checks (collective QC) on the quality of both processed profiles and resultant climatological distributions. Objective analysis (OA) is applied progressively to produce the gridded climatological fields. The method uses horizontal regional climatological averages defined in five regime-oriented subregions in the Kuroshio area and the Japan Sea. Performing the QC procedure on specific coherent subregions produces improved profiling data and climatological fields because more details about the local hydrodynamics are taken into consideration. Nonrepresentative data and random noises are more effectively rejected by this method, which has value both in defining a climatological mean and identifying outlier data. Assessing with both profiling and coordinated datasets, the agreement is reasonably good (particularly for those areas with abundant observations), but the results (although already smoothed) can capture more detailed or mesoscale features for further regional studies. The method described has the potential to meet future challenges in processing accumulating Argo observations in the coming decades.

Combining Observations from Multiple Platforms across the Kuroshio Northeast of Luzon: A Highlight on PIES Data

AbstractThis study presents amended procedures to process and map data collected by pressure-sensor-equipped inverted echo sounders (PIESs) in western boundary current regions. The modifications to the existing methodology, applied to observations of the Kuroshio from a PIES array deployed northeast of Luzon, Philippines, consist of substituting a hydrography-based mean travel time field for the PIES-based mean field and using two distinct gravest empirical mode (GEM) lookup tables across the front that separate water masses of South China Sea and North Pacific origin. In addition, this study presents a method to use time-mean velocities from acoustic Doppler current profilers (ADCPs) to reference (or “level”) the PIES-recorded pressures in order to obtain time series of absolute geostrophic velocity. Results derived from the PIES observations processed with the hydrography-based mean field and two GEMs are compared with hydrographic profiles sampled by Seagliders during the PIES observation period and with current velocity measured concurrently by a collocated ADCP array. The updated processing scheme leads to a 41% error decrease in the determination of the thermocline depth across the current, a 22% error decrease in baroclinic current velocity shear, and a 61% error decrease in baroclinic volume transports. The absolute volume transport time series derived from the leveled PIES array compares well with that obtained directly from the ADCPs with a root-mean-square difference of 3.0 Sv (1 Sv ≡ 106 m3 s–1), which is mainly attributed to the influence of ageostrophic processes on the ADCP-measured velocities that cannot be calculated from the PIES observations.

Eddy stirring and horizontal diffusivity from Argo float observations: Geographic and depth variability

AbstractStirring along isopycnals is a significant factor in determining the distribution of tracers within the ocean. Salinity anomalies on density surfaces from Argo float profiles are used to investigate horizontal stirring and estimate eddy mixing lengths. Eddy mixing length and velocity fluctuations from the ECCO2 global state estimate are used to estimate horizontal diffusivity at a 300 km scale in the upper 2000 m with near‐global coverage. Diffusivity varies by over two orders of magnitude with latitude, longitude, and depth. In all basins, diffusivity is elevated in zonal bands corresponding to strong current regions, including western boundary current extension regions, the Antarctic Circumpolar Current, and equatorial current systems. The estimated mixing lengths and diffusivities provide an observationally based data set that can be used to test and constrain predictions and parameterizations of eddy stirring.

Characterising primary productivity measurements across a dynamic western boundary current region

Determining the magnitude of primary production (PP) in a changing ocean is a major research challenge. Thousands of estimates of marine PP exist globally, but there remain significant gaps in data availability, particularly in the Southern Hemisphere. In situ PP estimates are generally single-point measurements and therefore we rely on satellite models of PP in order to scale up over time and space. To reduce the uncertainty around the model output, these models need to be assessed against in situ measurements before use. This study examined the vertically-integrated productivity in four water-masses associated with the East Australian Current (EAC), the major western boundary current (WBC) of the South Pacific. We calculated vertically integrated PP from shipboard 14C PP estimates and then compared them to estimates from four commonly used satellite models (ESQRT, VGPM, VGPM-Eppley, VGPM-Kameda) to assess their utility for this region. Vertical profiles of the water-column show each water-mass had distinct temperature–salinity signatures. The depth of the fluorescence-maximum (fmax) increased from onshore (river plume) to offshore (EAC) as light penetration increased. Depth integrated PP was highest in river plumes (792±181mgCm−2d−1) followed by the EAC (534±116mgCm−2d−1), continental shelf (140±47mgCm−2d−1) and cyclonic eddy waters (121±4mgCm−2d−1). Surface carbon assimilation efficiency was greatest in the EAC (301±145mgC (mgChl-a)−1d−1) compared to other water masses. All satellite primary production models tested underestimated EAC PP and overestimated continental shelf PP. The ESQRT model had the highest skill and lowest bias of the tested models, providing the best first-order estimates of PP on the continental shelf, including at a coastal time-series station, Port Hacking, which showed considerable inter-annual variability (155–2957mgCm−2d−1). This work provides the first estimates of depth integrated PP associated with the East Australian Current in temperate Australia. The ongoing intensification of all WBCs makes it critical to understand the variability in PP at the regional scale. More accurate predictions in the EAC region will require vertically-resolved in situ productivity and bio-optical measurements across multiple time scales to allow development of other models which simulate dynamic ocean conditions.

Holocene tropical western Indian Ocean sea surface temperatures in covariation with climatic changes in the Indonesian region

AbstractThe sea surface temperature (SST) of the tropical Indian Ocean is a major component of global climate teleconnections. While the Holocene SST history is documented for regions affected by the Indian and Arabian monsoons, data from the near‐equatorial western Indian Ocean are sparse. Reconstructing past zonal and meridional SST gradients requires additional information on past temperatures from the western boundary current region. We present a unique record of Holocene SST and thermocline depth variations in the tropical western Indian Ocean as documented in foraminiferal Mg/Ca ratios and δ18O from a sediment core off northern Tanzania. For Mg/Ca and thermocline δ18O, most variance is concentrated in the centennial to bicentennial periodicity band. On the millennial time scale, an early to mid‐Holocene (~7.8–5.6 ka) warm phase is followed by a temperature drop by up to 2°C, leading to a mid‐Holocene cool interval (5.6–4.2 ka). The shift is accompanied by an initial reduction in the difference between surface and thermocline foraminiferal δ18O, consistent with the thickening of the mixed layer and suggestions of a strengthened Walker circulation. However, we cannot confirm the expected enhanced zonal SST gradient, as the cooling of similar magnitude had previously been found in SSTs from the upwelling region off Sumatra and in Flores air temperatures. The SST pattern probably reflects the tropical Indian Ocean expression of a large‐scale climate anomaly rather than a positive Indian Ocean Dipole‐like mean state.

An examination of a multi-scale three-dimensional variational data assimilation scheme in the Kuroshio Extension using the naval coastal ocean model

The implementation of a multi-scale three dimensional variational (MS3DVAR) data assimilation scheme for use with the Navy Coastal Ocean Model (NCOM) in the Kuroshio Extension western boundary current region is presented here. This work leverages on Li et al. (2013), who initially developed this method. MS3DVAR data assimilation allows for the effective assimilation of both spatially coarse and dense collections of observations. Traditional 3DVAR produces an inherent filtering of dynamical features smaller than the decorrelation length. The MS3DVAR allows for a scale selective background error covariance capable of handling a wider range of ocean scales. Here the MS3DVAR is examined in an energetic coastal regime using simulated and real observations. The results show that the MS3DVAR reduces analysis errors when compared to a traditional 3DVAR scheme. Forecast errors appear to be similar for both systems and are most likely due to the coarse resolution of the surface forceing being applied.

Coastal upwelling off Cape São Tomé (22°S, Brazil): The supporting role of deep ocean processes

The regional ocean off Cape São Tomé (CST, 22°S, Brazil) is known to feature transient coastal upwelling and intense mesoscale activity associated with the Brazil Current (BC). Satellite and in situ observations are used to characterize the coastal upwelling and the oceanic pycnocline water intrusions onto the continental shelf. Coastal upwelling events around CST are found to be less intense than the ones around Cape Frio (23°S), confirming previously reported findings. It is shown that the quasi-standing growth of a BC cyclonic meander is an effective supporting mechanism to this primarily wind-driven coastal upwelling system. A typical propagating cyclonic meander event is described and compared with its quasi-standing counterpart. The propagating cyclones also appear to promote oceanic pycnocline water intrusions, but at a lesser extent than the quasi-standing features. The supporting effect of the BC cyclones was quantified via simplified numerical experiments carried out with a 2D, primitive-equation numerical model. It is shown that meanders enhance intrusions as they grow, and may decrease by ≈50% the momentum input needed from the wind to cause coastal upwelling. Also, the role of the sloping of the isolines linked to the mean baroclinic structure of the Brazil Current is examined in idealized numerical experiments. This structure is shown to be sufficient to explain the observed time scales of coastal upwelling. The kind of meander-driven intrusion investigated here appears to be a regional singularity of the CST region, and may provide insight into the cross-shelf dynamics of other Western Boundary Current regions where similar quasi-standing instabilities exist.

Climate change projection of the Tasman Sea from an Eddy‐resolving Ocean Model

The ocean's western boundary current regions display the greatest rate of twentieth century warming and global climate models project that the accelerated rate of warming will continue with climate change. All existing global climate change projections come from simulations that do not fully resolve either these boundary currents or their eddies. Using an Ocean Eddy‐resolving Model (OEM) that captures the dynamics of the East Australian Current (EAC) and its eddies we show the response of the Tasman Sea to climate change differs from what is projected with a coarse resolution Global Climate Model (GCM). With climate change, the OEM projects increased EAC transport with increased eddy activity and an approximately 1° southward latitudinal shift in the point where the EAC separates from the shelf and flows eastward. The OEM increased eddy activity in the Tasman Sea with climate change increases the nutrient supply to the upper ocean and causes an increase in the phytoplankton concentrations and primary productivity by 10% in the oligotrophic waters of the Tasman Sea. The increase in primary productivity is absent in the GCM climate change projection, which projects the region will have a decrease in primary productivity with climate change. Applying the OEM climate change projection for the Tasman Sea to other western boundary current regions suggests the projected intensification of all western boundary currents with climate change should increase eddy activity and provide an important nutrient supply mechanism to counter the increased stratification projected with global warming.

Global surface eddy diffusivities derived from satellite altimetry

Velocities derived from AVISO sea‐surface height observations, adjusted to be nondivergent, are used to simulate the evolution of passive tracers at the ocean surface. Eddy mixing rates are derived from the tracer fields in two ways. First, the method of Nakamura is applied to a sector in the East Pacific. Second, the Osborn‐Cox diffusivity is calculated globally to yield estimates of diffusivity in two dimensions. The results from the East Pacific show weak meridional mixing at the surface in the Southern Ocean (<1000 m2 s−1, consistent with previous results) but higher mixing rates (~3000–5000 m2 s−1) in the tropical ocean. The Osborn‐Cox diagnostic provides a global picture of mixing rates and agrees reasonably well with the results from the East Pacific. It also shows extremely high mixing rates (~104 m2 s−1) in western boundary current regions. The Osborn‐Cox diffusivity is sensitive to the tracer initialization, which we attribute to the presence of anisotropic mixing processes. The mixing rates are strongly influenced by the presence of a mean flow nearly everywhere, as shown by comparison with an eddy‐only calculation, with the mean flow absent. Finally, results are compared with other recent estimates of mixing rates using Lagrangian and inverse methods.

Progress of regional oceanography study associated with western boundary current in the South China Sea

Recent progress of physical oceanography in the South China Sea (SCS) associated with the western boundary current (WBC) and eddies is reviewed in this paper. It includes Argo observations of the WBC, eddy detection in the WBC based on satellite images, cross-continental shelf exchange in the WBC, eddy-current interaction, interannual variability of the WBC, air-sea interaction, the SCS throughflow (SCSTF), among others. The WBC in the SCS is strong, and its structure, variability and dynamic processes on seasonal and interannual time scales are yet to be fully understood. In this paper, we summarize progresses on the variability of the WBC, eddy-current interaction, air-sea interaction, and the SCSTF achieved in the past few years. Firstly, using the drifting buoy observations, we point out that the WBC becomes stronger and narrower after it reaches the central Vietnam coast. The possible mechanisms influencing the ocean circulation in the northern SCS are discussed, and the dynamic mechanisms that induce the countercurrent in the region of northern branch of WBC in winter are also studied quantitatively using momentum balance. The geostropic component of the WBC was diagnosed using the ship observation along 18°N, and we found that the WBC changed significantly on interannual time scale. Secondly, using the ship observations, two anti-cyclonic eddies in the winter of 2003/2004 in the northern SCS, and three anti-cyclonic eddies in the summer of 2007 along 18°N were studied. The results show that the two anti-cyclonic eddies can propagate southwestward along the continental shelf at the speed of first Rossby wave (∼0.1 m s−1) in winter, and the interaction between the three anti-cyclonic eddies in summer and the WBC in the SCS is preliminarily revealed. Eddies on the continental shelf of northern SCS propagated southeastward with a maximum speed of 0.09 m s−1, and those to the east of Vietnam coast had the largest kinetic energy, both of which imply strong interaction between eddy activity and WBC in the SCS. Thirdly, strong intraseasonal variability (ISV) of sea surface temperature (SST) near the WBC regions was found, and the ISV signal of SST in winter weakens the ISV signal of latent heat flux by 20%. Fourthly, the long-term change of SCSTF volume transport and its connection with the ocean circulation in the Pacific were discussed.