• Title/Summary/Keyword: Geostrophic Flow

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Geostrophic Response of the Yellow Sea to Cyclone Passage

  • Oh, Im-Sang;Subbotina, Marina M.
    • Journal of the korean society of oceanography
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    • v.31 no.4
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    • pp.183-195
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    • 1996
  • A barotropic non-linear numerical model is used to study the response of the Yellow Sea to winter cyclone passage. Cyclones normally come from the outside of the western boundary, China, and pass the region eastward. The cyclone parameters used for the present study are the following: the intensity, i.e., the maximum wind speed of the cyclone; the effective radius corresponding to this maximum; and the translation speed. The equations of motion are integrated over the depth which is supposed to be a constant. The Gaussian function is used to define the stream function of the wind. The following results have been found. A northward current is generated by the frontal part of the cyclone near the western boundary. After the cyclone leaves the sea area, a southward current is generated by the rear part of the cyclone. After that, a northward current is generated once again due to the westward propagating Rossby waves. The response of the sea to the cyclone passage is strongly influenced by a steady current when the steady current and the current due to the cyclone wind are of the same order. The steady current diminishes the sea response and reduces the speed of the southward current, and enhances the northward current speed. The intensity and the translation speed of a cyclone also influence the flow pattern significantly.

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Physical Structure of Eddies in the Southwestern East Sea (동해남서해역 와류의 물리적구조)

  • 이흥재;변상경
    • 한국해양학회지
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    • v.30 no.3
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    • pp.170-183
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    • 1995
  • Eddies and surface current field in the southwestern part of the East Sea were investigated using satellite-tracked drifters, CTD, and ADCP from November 1992 to September 1993. Trajectories of surface drifters provided information for the first time on the meandering motion of the East Korean Warm Current in the Ullung Basin (referred as UB) and clearly indicated the existence of cyclonic and anticyclonic eddies of various scales. Anticyclonic eddies persisting for a relatively long period were observed in UB and the southwestern corner of the Northern (Japan) Basin (SNB), while a cyclonic eddy was found in the coastal area between Sokcho and Donghae during the summer. Analysis shows that the eddy in UB behaved as a stationary eddy at least during the observation period and the cyclonic eddy was closely related to the existence of a cold water mass. The anticyclonic eddy in SNB was larger than that in UB, but much elongated in shape. The eddy in UB is characteristic of major and minor axes of about 120 and 70 km, revolution period of 13.6 days, mean swirl velocity of about 24 cm/s, and mean eddy kinetic energy of 392 cm$\^$2//s$\^$2/. The eddy in SNB is described as follows; major and minor axes of 168 and 86 km, period of 14.9 days, mean swirl velocity of 29 cm/s and mean eddy kinetic energy of 629 cm$\^$2//s$\^$2/. The mean translational speed is about 3 cm/s for both eddies. The agreement of the surface current pattern in UB observed by ADCP with the geostrophic flow pattern may suggest that the eddy in UB was nearly in geostrophic balance. The eddy was found to be strongly bottom-controlled.

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Longitudinal Distribution of Zooplankton at 10.5°N in the Northeastern Pacific (북동태평양 북위 10.5°에서 동물플랑크톤의 경도별 분포 특성)

  • Kang, Jung-Hoon;Cho, Kyu-Hee;Son, Ju-Won;Kim, Woong-Seo
    • Ocean and Polar Research
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    • v.29 no.4
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    • pp.283-295
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    • 2007
  • We investigated the longitudinal variations in zooplankton abundances and their related physicochemical properties at nine stations located between $136^{\circ}W$ and $128^{\circ}W$ at $10.5^{\circ}N$ in the northeastern Pacific in summer 2004. Temperature, salinity, inorganic nutrients, chlorophyll-a (hereafter chl-a) and zooplankton ($>200\;{\mu}m$) were sampled within the depth from the surface to 200 m depth at $1^{\circ}$ longitude intervals. Zooplankton($>200\;{\mu}m$) samples were vertically collected at two depth intervals from surface to 200 m, consisting of surface mixed and lower layers (thermocline$\sim$200 m). Longitudinal distributional pattern of hydrological parameters (especially salinity) was physically influenced by the intensity of westward geostrophic current passage relating to the NEC (North Equatorial Current). Data from the longitudinal survey showed clear zonal distributions in the hydrological parameters(temperature, salinity and nutrients). However, spatial patterns of the chl-a concentrations and zooplankton abundances were mostly independent of the zonal distributions of hydrological parameters. The two peaks of zooplankton abundance in the surface mixed layer were characterized by different controlling factors such as bottom-up control from nutrients to zooplankton ($129^{\circ}W$) and accumulation by increment of friction force and taxonomic interrelationship ($133^{\circ}$ and $134^{\circ}W$). Divergence-related upwelling caused introduction of nutrients into surface waters leading to the increment of chl-a concentration and zooplankton abundances ($129^{\circ}W$). Increased friction force in relation to reduced flow rates of geostrophic currents caused accumulation of zooplankton drifting from eastern stations of study area($133^{\circ}$ and $134^{\circ}W$). Besides, high correlation between immature copepods and carnivorous groups such as chaetognaths and cyclopoids also possibly contributed to the enhanced total abundance of zooplankton in the surface mixed layer (p<0.05). Zooplankton community was divided into three groups (A, B, C) which consecutively included the eastern peak of zooplankton($129^{\circ}W$), the western peak($133^{\circ}$ and $134^{\circ}W$) and high nutrient but low chl-a concentration and zooplankton abundance ($136^{\circ}W$). Moreover, Group B corresponded to the westward movement of low saline waters(<33.6 psu) from 128 to $132^{\circ}W$. In summary, longitudinal distributions of zooplankton community was characterized by three different controlling factors: bottom-up control ($129^{\circ}W$), accumulation by increased friction force and relationships among zooplankton groups ($133^{\circ}$ and $134^{\circ}W$), and mismatch between hydrological parameters and zooplankton in the high nutrient low chlorophyll area ($136^{\circ}W$) during the study period.

The Fluctuation Characteristics of the Water Mass and the Current Structure of the Southeastern Region of The East Sea

  • Lee Chung Il;Cho Kyu Dae
    • Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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    • v.3 no.2
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    • pp.97-110
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    • 2000
  • To investigate characteristics of water masses and current structures around Noto Peninsula located in south-east coastal region of the East Sea, observation results of CREAMS (Circulations Research of the East Asian Marginal Seas) cruise and data report of oceanographic observation (Japan Meteorological Agency) in June, 1995 and 1996 were used. Water mass showing characteristics of Tsushima Warm Current (TWC) exists over the continental shelf. The depth is shallower than 200m and its width and thickness are 190km and 200m, respectively. Minimum level of dissolved oxygen occurred at the layers of maximum salinity. In the current structure, a noteworthy phenomenon is that the positions of the high-salinity water (more than 34.6 psu) match well with the distributions of the southwestward flow. In June of 1995 and June of 1996, a southwestward flow were separated into two parts along line C and line G. Current directions derived from the temperature and salinity match well with the distributions of the geostrophic currents in the vertical sections. The isothermal lines and the isohaline, which exist horizontally along the coastal area of the Japan, change abruptly at the frontal area of the Noto Peninsula, then turn toward the center of the East Sea. The dynamic depth anomalies centering around the region far northwest of the Noto Peninsula were relatively high, compared to those of other regions. The isopycnic surface (sigma-t, 25.8) existed near the surface in the central part of the East Sea, but, at the depth of 100m, the isopycnic surface was found in the coastal waters.

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Experimental Simulation of Local External Forcing of the Contained Rotating Flow (회전반 유체실험에서 국지적 외력의 실험적 모의)

  • Yi, Chang-Won;Na, Jung-Yul
    • The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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    • v.5 no.2
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    • pp.77-85
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    • 2000
  • Simulation of local external forcing and its response in the rotation table experiment has been investigated. Spatially-uniform external forcings have been applied in many experimental studies, however, based on the fact that the north-south distribution of the wind-stress curl and the existence of local maximum of the sea surface heat loss in the northern part of the East Sea, new method of combined effects of local forcings has been employed in separate experiments. Carefully designed local source or sink at the bottom of the cylindrical container can produce horizontal pressure gradient within the Ekman layer, and consequently the interior also attains the same pressure gradient that produces geostrophic interior circulation. In order to keep free surface during the local-surface cooling, a side-wall cooling method is suggested. For the various type of local forcing including the effects local cooling and the periodic change of local wind-stress curl, western-boundary flow in terms of its strength, position of separation from the boundary have been observed.

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Laboratory Experiments on Rotating Two-layered Fluid in Circular Annulus (Circular Annulus 대 회전 이층유체 실험)

  • Hwang, Byong-Jun;Na, Jung-Yul
    • The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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    • v.4 no.1
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    • pp.10-17
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    • 1999
  • The purpose of this study is to investigate the baroclinic response of the upper-layer of two-layered fluid when the lower-layer motion is driven by pumping an external fluid into the lower-layer or by pumping out the lower-layer fluid. Recent observations of the barotropic nature of deep water movements in the East Sea (fakematsu et al., 1994; KORDI, 1997) may suggest a possibility of interaction between the upper and lower layer via interface tilting. For homogeneous fluid, steady and axisymmetric source or sink causes axisymmetric geostrophic flow, and the lower-layer motion in two-layered fluid was similar to homogeneous flow. But as Rossby number (${\varepsilon}$) or internal Froude number ($f_2$) increases, the lower-layer motion was affected by the interface tilting. The interface tilting calculated based on the observed azimuthal velocities of upper- and lower-layers becomes greater as $f_2$ increases. In other words, the increase of the $f_2$ changes the barotropic system to baroclinic system.

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Self-excited Variability of the East Korea Warm Current: A Quasi-Geostyophic Model Study

  • Lee, Sang-Ki
    • Journal of the korean society of oceanography
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    • v.34 no.1
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    • pp.1-21
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    • 1999
  • A two-layer quasi-geostrophic numerical model is used to investigate the temporal variability of the East Korea Warm Current (EKWC), especially the separation from the Korean coast and the generation of warm eddies. An attention is given on the active role of the nonlinear boundary layer process. For this, an idealized flat bottom model of the East Sea is forced with the annual mean wind curl and with the inflow-outflow specified at the Korea (Tsushima) and Tsugaru Straits. Two types of separation mechanisms are identified. The first one is influenced by the westward movement of the recirculating leg of the EKWC (externally driven separation),the second one is solely driven by the boundary layer dynamics (internally driven separation). However, these two processes are not independent, and usually coexist. It is hypothesized that 'internally driven separation' arises as the result of relative vorticity production at the wall, its subsequent advection via the EKWC, and its accumulation up to a critical level characterized by the separation of the boundary flow from the coast. It is found that the sharp southeastern corner of the Korean peninsula provides a favorable condition for the accumulation of relative vorticity. The separation of the EKWC usually accompanies the generation of a warm eddy with a diameter of about 120 km. The warm eddy has a typical layer-averaged velocity of 0.3 m/s and its lifespan is up to a year. In general, the characteristics of the simulated warm eddy are compatible with observations. A conclusion is therefore drawn that the variability of the EKWC is at least partially self-excited, not being influenced by any sources of perturbation in the forcing field, and that the likely source of the variability is the barotropic instability although the extent of contribution from the baroclinic instability remains unknown. The effects of the seasonal wind curl and inflow-outflow strength are also investigated.

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Descriptive hydrography of shelikof Strait, Gulf of Alaska, during the Spring Spawning Time of Walleye Pollock, Theragra chalcogramma, in the Early 1980's (명태(Theragra chalcogramma)의 산란장, 알라스카만 쉘리코프 해협의 1980년대 초반의 해황에 관한 연구)

  • KIM, SUAM
    • 한국해양학회지
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    • v.28 no.1
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    • pp.35-46
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    • 1993
  • To delineate water properties and current patterns in the spawning area of walleye pollock, hydrographic cast and current meter data collected in Strait, Gulf of alaska, were analysed, three water masses are identified in Shelikof Strait. A small amount of cold and dilute water ($<{\;}3^{\circ}C{\;}and{\;}<{\;}31.5\textperthousand$) originates from the lower Cook Inlet and flows southwestward close to the Alaska Peninsula coast. One branch of alaska coastal Current which enters the strait from the northeast comprises the main body of the upper and middle layers of the strait, and flows toward the southwest. Estimation of geostrophic baroclinic currents reveals that comparatively fast flow exists in the surface over the deepest portion of the strait, and most water exits through the southwestern entrance between Semidi and chirikof Is. On the other hand, a relatively slow-moving warm and saline ($>{\;}5^{circ}C{\;}and{\;}>{\;}32\textperthousand$) of the southwestern entrance flows northeasterly, and occupies the bottom layer in Shelikof Strait.

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A Study on Mesoscale Atmospheric Dispersion of Radioactive Particles Released from Nuclear Power Plants (원전부지 주변 국지순환에 따른 방사성 물질의 대기확산 특성 연구)

  • Lee, Gab-Bock;Lee, Myung-Chan;Song, Young-I1
    • Journal of Radiation Protection and Research
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    • v.22 no.4
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    • pp.273-288
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    • 1997
  • A three dimensional sea-land breeze model and Lagrangian particle dispersion model have been employed for the study on the mesoscale atmospheric dispersion of radioactive materials released from Wolsung NPPs. In this study, atmospheric dispersion simulations are carried out under two synoptic weather conditions : the geostrophic flow is a weak northerly wind(CASE 1) and a strong northerly wind(CASE 2) on a clear day in spring. The results show that atmospheric dispersion is affected by sea-land breeze and the recirculation of particles by the change of wind direction between sea breeze and land breeze plays an important role in atmospheric concentration distribution of radoactive materials.

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Numerical Simulation of Ocean - Ice Shelf Interaction: Water Mass Circulation in the Terra Nova Bay, Antarctica (해양-빙붕 상호작용을 고려한 남극 테라노바 만에서 수괴 형성과 순환의 수치 시뮬레이션)

  • Taekyun, Kim;Emilia Kyung, Jin;Ji Sung, Na;Choon Ki, Lee;Won Sang, Lee;Jae-Hong, Moon
    • Ocean and Polar Research
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    • v.44 no.4
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    • pp.269-285
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    • 2022
  • The interaction between ocean and ice shelf is a critical physical process in relation to water mass transformations and ice shelf melting/freezing at the ocean-ice interface. However, it remains challenging to thoroughly understand the process due to a lack of observational data with respect to ice shelf cavities. This is the first study to simulate the variability and circulation of water mass both overlying the continental shelf and underneath an ice shelf and an ice tongue in the Terra Nova Bay (TNB), East Antarctica. To explore the properties of water mass and circulation patterns in the TNB and the corresponding effects on sub ice shelf basal melting, we explicitly incorporate the dynamic-thermodynamic processes acting on the ice shelf in the Regional Ocean Modeling System. The simulated water mass formation and circulation in the TNB region agree well with previous studies. The model results show that the TNB circulation is dominated by the geostrophic currents driven by lateral density gradients induced by the releasing of brine or freshwater at the polynya of the TNB. Meanwhile, the circulation dynamics in the cavity under the Nansen Ice shelf (NIS) are different from those in the TNB. The gravity-driven bottom current induced by High Salinity Shelf Water (HSSW) formed at the TNB polynya flows towards the grounding line, and the buoyance-driven flow associated with glacial meltwater generated by the HSSW emerges from the cavity along the ice base. Both current systems compose the thermohaline overturning circulation in the NIS cavity. This study estimates the NIS basal melting rate to be 0.98 m/a, which is comparable to the previously observed melt rate. However, the melting rate shows a significant variation in space and time.