• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.31 no.2
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• pp.177-187
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• 2009

This study examined the multi-scale variabilities of sea surface temperature (SST) and salinity in the Japan/East Sea (JES) based on statistical analyses of observational data, with a focus on the northwestern part of the sea. The regionality of JES SST variability was estimated for different frequency ranges on semimonthly (11-17 days), monthly to seasonal (30-90 days), quasi-semiannual (157-220 days), and quasi-biennial (1.5-3 years) time scales using cluster analyses of daily gridded SST data for 1996 to 2007 from the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA). Several significant peaks and regional cores were found in each frequency range of the SST anomaly (SSTA) oscillations. Quasi-semiannual SSTA oscillations with high amplitude were found in the south-southwestern part of the Japan Basin ($41-43^{\circ}N$) and were amplified in the area adjacent to Peter the Great Bay. Oscillations with periods of 79 and 55 days also prevailed over the southwest Japan Basin between the Yamato Rise and the continental slope. A similar method was applied to classify SST and the annual cycle of surface salinity using Generalized Digital Environmental Model (GDEM) gridded data. The Tatarskii Strait and adjacent area showed the most specific annual cycles and variability in salinity on interannual to interdecadal time scales. The most significant inverse relationship between surface salinity in the Tatarskii Strait and southern JES areas was found on the interdecadal time scale. Linkages of sea water salinity in the Tatarskii Strait with Amur River discharge and wind velocity over Amurskii Liman were also revealed.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.26 no.7
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• pp.714-724
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• 2005

The East Sea, a semi-enclosed marginal sea with shallow straits in the northwest Pacific, is marked by the nearly geographic isolation and the low sea surface salinity during the last glacial maximum (LGM). The East Sea might have the only connection to the open ocean through the Korea Strait with a sill depth of 130 m, allowing the paleo-Tsushima Water to enter the sea during the LGM. The low paleosalinity associated with abnormally light $\delta^{18}O$ values of planktonic foraminifera is interpreted to have resulted from river discharge and precipitation. Nevertheless, two LGM features in the East Sea are disputable. This study attempts to estimate volume transport of the paleo-Tsushima Water via the Korea Strait and further examines its effect on the low sea surface salinity (SSS) during the lowest sea level of the LGM. The East Sea was not completely isolated, but partially linked to the northern East China Sea through the Korea Strait during the LGM. The volume transport of the paleo-Tsushima Water during the LGM is calculated approximately$(0.5\~2.1)\times10^{12}m^3/yr$ on the basis of the selected seismic reflection profiles along with bathymetry and current data. The annual influx of the paleo-Tsushima Water is low, compared to the 100 m-thick surface water volume $(about\;79.75\times10^{12}m^3)$ in the East Sea. The paleo-Tsushima Water influx might have changed the surface water properties within a geologically short time, potentially decreasing sea surface salinity. However, the effect of volume transport on the low sea surface salinity essentially depends on freshwater amounts within the paleo-Tsushima Water and excessive evaporation during the glacial lowstands of sea level. Even though the paleo-Tsushima Water is assumed to have been entirely freshwater at that time period, it would annually reduce only about 1‰ of salinity in the surface water of the East Sea. Thus, the paleo-Tsushima Water influx itself might not be large enough to significantly reduce the paleosalinity of about 100 m-thick surface layer during the LGM. This further suggests contribution of additional river discharges from nearby fluvial systems (e.g. the Amur River) to freshen the surface water.