• Journal of the korean society of oceanography
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.96-106
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• 2004

A total of 116 surface sediment samples were obtained on the Yellow Sea and analyzed for grain size and geochemical elements in order to interpret the present sediment transportation. Thirty-nine cores and 3,070 line-km shallow seismic profiles are analyzed for sedimentary records of Yellow Sea in the past. Results show that the boundary of sediment transport between Korean side and Chinese side is about between $123^{\circ}E$ and $124^{\circ}E$. The similar result is produced from Shi et al. (in this publication). Two cyclonic patterns of surface sediments are recognized in the northeastern and southwestern Yellow Sea, while the strong front zone of the mud patch and sandy sediments are found in the southeastern Yellow Sea (the southwestern part of Korean coasts). The formation of fine-particle sediment packages, called for Northwest Mudbelt Deposit (NWMD), Hucksan Mudbelt Deposit (HSMD) and Jeju Mudbelt Deposit (JJMD), are resulted from eddies (gyres) of water circulations in the Yellow Sea. NWMD has been formed by cyclonic (anticlockwise) eddy. NWMD is composed of thick, homogeneous, relatively semi-consolidated gray clay-dominated deposit. On the other hand, HSMD and JJMD are formed by anticyclonic (clockwise) eddies. They are thick, homogeneous, organic-rich gray, silt-dominated deposit. Both core and surface sediments show that the middle zone across Chinese and Korean side contains bimodal frequency of grain-size distribution, indicating that two different transport mechanisms exist. These mud packages are surrounded by sand deposits from both Korea and China seas, indicating that Yellow Sea, which is the shallow sea and epicontinental shelf, is formed mostly by sand deposits including relict sands. The seismic profiles show such as small erosional/non-depositional channels, sand-ridges and sand-waves, Pleistocene-channelfilled deposits, a series of channels in the N-S major channel system, and thick Holocene sediment package, indicating that more complex sedimentary history exists in the Yellow Sea.

• Ocean Science Journal
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• v.42 no.3
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• pp.153-163
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• 2007

This study is based on a series of numerical modeling experiments to understand the tidal circulation in the Kangjin Bay (KB). The tidal circulation in the KB is mostly controlled by the inflow from two channels, Noryang and Daebang which introduce the open ocean water into the northern part of the KB with relatively strong tidal current, while in the southern part of the KB, shallowest region of the entire study area, weak tidal current prevails. The model prediction of the sea level agrees with observed records at skill scores exceeding 90 % in terms of the four major tidal constituents (M2, S2, K1, O1). However, the skill scores for the tidal current show relatively lower values of 87, 99, 59, 23 for the semi-major axes of the constituents, respectively. The tidal ellipse parameters in the KB are such that the semi-major axes of the ellipse for M2 range from 1.7 to 38.5 cm/s and those for S2 range from 0.5 to 14.4 cm/s. The orientations of the major-axes show parallel with the local isobath. The eccentricity values at various grid points of ellipses for M2 and S2 are very low with 0.2 and 0.06 on the average, respectively illustrating that the tidal current in the KB is strongly rectilinear. The magnitude of the tidal residual current speed in the KB is on the order of a few cm/s and its distribution pattern is very complex. One of the most prominent features is found to be the counter-clockwise eddy recirculation cell at the mouth of the Daebang Channel.