• Ocean Science Journal
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• v.40 no.2
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• pp.67-78
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• 2005

Complex physical, chemical and biological interactions off the Korean coast created several striking patterns in the phytoplankton blooms, which became conspicuous during the measurements of ocean color from space. This study concentrated on analyzing the spatial and temporal aspects of phytoplankton chlorophyll variability in these areas using an integrated dataset from a Sea-viewing Wide Field-of-view Sensor (SeaWiFS), Advanced Very High Resolution (AVHRR) sensor, and Conductivity Temperature Depth (CTD) sensor. The results showed that chlorophyll concentrations were elevated in coastal and open ocean regions, with strong summer and fall blooms, which appeared to spread out in most of the enclosed bays and neighboring waters due to certain oceanographic processes. The chlorophyll concentration was observed to range between 3 and $54\;mg\;m^{-3}$ inside Jin-hae Bay and adjacent coastal bays and 0.5 and $8\;mg\;m^{-3}$ in the southeast sea offshore waters, this gradual decrease towards oceanic waters suggested physical transports of phytoplankton blooms from the shallow shelves to slope waters through the influence of the Tsushima Warm Current (TWC) along the Tsushima Strait. Horizontal distribution of potential temperature $(\theta)$ and salinity (S) of water off the southeastern coast exhibited cold and low saline surface water $(\theta and warm and high saline subsurface water $({\theta}>12^{\circ}C; S>34.4)$ at 75dBar, corroborating TWC intrusion along the Tsushima Strait. An eastward branch of this current was called the East Korean Warm Current (EKWC), tracked with the help of CTD data and satellite-derived sea surface temperature, which often influenced the dynamics of mesoscale anticyclonic eddy fields off the Korean east coast during the summer season. The process of such mesoscale anticyclonic eddy features might have produced interior upwelling that could have shoaled and steepened the nutricline, enhancing phytoplankton population by advection or diffusion of nutrients in the vicinity of Ulleungdo in the East Sea.

• 한국해양학회지
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• v.30 no.5
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• pp.512-521
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• 1995

To investigate a short-term (from 2 hours to 24 hours) variability of a mixed layer, oceanographical data (water temperature, salinity, current) and meteorological data (wind, air temperature, solar radiation) were collected at a site in the Korea Strait at the interval of one hour for 48 hours from October 12 to 14, 1993. The average rates of temporal variations of the mixed layer depth (MLD) and temperature of the mixed layer (MLT), which are very weakly correlated with the wind stress and buoyancy flux at the sea surface, are about 5.2 m/hour and 0.2$^{\circ}C$/hour, respectively. The mixed layer is relatively shallow when both MLT and MLS (salinity of the mixed layer) are low, while MLD is relatively deep when they are high. MLT shows a sudden decrease or increase. Analysis of satellite infrared images and XBT data shows that sudden increase of MLT is caused by advection of warm water. These results suggest that the short-term variation of the mixed layer in the Korea Strait in autumn, in which surface current is relatively strong and different water masses exist, is mainly determined by advection rather than air0sea interaction such as wind stress or buoyancy flux.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.21 no.5
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• pp.541-552
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• 2000

The variations of physical properties due to inflow of seawater by sluice gates operation were observed in Shihwa Lake. The distributions of salinity and temperature were investigated at 11 stations during February, 1997 to July, 1998. The salinity of water mass in Shihwa Lake before gate operation was ranged below 15psu and strong stratification due to inflow of seawater was observed at the depth of 11 m. In July 1997, temperature difference of 10^{\circ}C$ was occurred between the surface and bottom water due to strong solar radiation. During October 1997 to February 1998, inversion of temperature distribution, which the temperature of bottom water was higher than that of surface water, was observed. In July 1997, temperature, salinity, current speed and current direction were investigated by RCM-7 at St.3 for 56 days. When sea water was intruded in Shihwa Lake, the symmetric distribution of temperature and salinity was observed and it seems to be resulted from inflow of seawater with low temperature and high salinity. After January 1998, salinity of Shihwa Lake was increased over 30psu due to continuous gate operation and the stratification was weakened.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.235-243
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• 2007

In order to understand the water mass properties in the southern location of the East Sea in the Korean coasts, the vertical distributions (down to 2,000 m deep) of water temperature, salinity, and dissolved inorganic nutrients were determined in April of 2005. The water mass of the surveyed location showed distinct vertical layers; highly saline surface, surface mixing layer, and thermocline of low temperature and salinity. The water layer below 300 m was characterized by water temperature lower than $1^{\circ}C$ and salinity 34.06, showing a representative water mass of the East Sea. The inorganic nutrients rapidly increased from 200m in the northern and southern parts around Ulleung Basin. A marked environmental difference was found between two layers separated by thermocline. The upper layer of the thermocline was oligotrophic and the vertical distribution of nutrient was very stable. In the water layer between 100 and 200m the nutrients slightly increased but remained still stable. From southern coasts to northeastern Ulleung, the water mass properties were site specific; the thickness of the surface mixed layer and nutricline showed a trend diminishing toward the northern locations probably due to diminished influence of Tsushima water. Redfield ratio (N:P=16:1) based on the ratio of chemical composition in organism revealed that nitrogen value continuously decreased to less than 16 with the water depth down to loom from the thermocline. The value in the water layer deeper than 100 to 200 m, thereafter, showed an increasing trend (over 16). This result was further supported by the finding of lower chlrophyll a content in the layer.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.124-131
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• 2008

This study was conducted around the southwest sea areas of Jeju and coastal sea areas of China in August 2003 and September 2004 to research distribution patterns of dissolved inorganic nutrients, dissolved and particulate organic carbon. Distribution patterns of nutrients in the East China Sea in summer were shown to be influenced by water masses and phytoplankton. Water masses in the East China Sea in summer, except for coastal sea areas of china, showed less vertical mixing process, causing decline in the inflow of nutrients to surface water. Bottom water, however, showed high concentration, since nutrients made by dissolved organic matters from surface water were accumulated at the bottom. Sea areas with high concentration of chlorophyll a showed low concentration of nutrients and vice versa, indicating biological activities control dissolved inorganic nutrients. The distribution of dissolved organic carbon didn't show any correlation with salinity, temperatures, and water masses. Areas around the river mouth of the Changjiang showed high concentration of dissolved organic carbon more than $100{\mu}M$, but relatively low concentration in the southwest sea areas of Jeju, indicating that the river mouth of the Changjiang coastal water has a great influence on dissolved organic carbon in the East China Sea. Distribution patterns of particulate organic carbon in the research areas showed the highest concentration of average $9.23{\mu}M$ in coastal areas of China influenced by the river mouth of the Changjiang coastal water. By comparison, the concentration was relatively low at $3.04{\mu}M$ in the southeast sea areas of Jeju on which the Taiwan warm current has influence, and was $7.23{\mu}M$ in the central sea areas of Jeju. Thus, there is much indication that the river mouth of the Changjiang coastal water serves as a supplier of particulate organic carbon along with autogenous source. In general, if particulate organic carbon has a high correlation with the concentration of Chlorophyll a, it is thought that it is originated from autogenous source. However, the southeast sea areas of Jeju shows low salinity below 30, therefore it is proper to think that its origin is terrestrial source rather than that of autogenesis.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.135-153
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• 2007

Temporal (seasonal) and spatial distributions and variations of various physico-chemical factors (salinity, temperature, pH, DO, COD, SPM, POC, silicate, DIP, DIN) in surface and bottom waters were studied in the coastal environment with typical macro-tidal range and monsoonal weather condition, Gyeonggi Bay, west coast of Korea. Spacial distribution patterns of these factors were generally similar to each other, and appeared to be inversely related to the distribution pattern of salinity, suggesting that water quality of the study area was primarily controlled by the physical mixing process of Han-River freshwater with nearby coastal seawater. During flooding season, silicate- and nitrogen-rich Han River water directly flowed into offshore as far as $20\sim30\;km$ from the river mouth, probably causing serious environmental problems such as eutrophication and unusual and/or noxious algal bloom, etc. Except the surface water during summer flooding season, high concentrations of nutrients appeared generally in dry season, whereas low values in spring, possibly because of the occurrence of spring phytoplankton bloom. On the other hand, nutrient flux through the estuary seems to be primarily depending on river discharge, sewage discharge and agricultural activities, especially during the rainy season. Also, nutrients in this coastal waters are considered to be supplied from the sediments of tidal-flats, which developed extensively around the Han-River mouth, especially during fall and winter of dry and low discharge seasons, possibly due to the stirring of tidal flat sediments with highly enriched pore-water nutrients by storm. And also, COD and DIN concentrations in the study area consistently increased during the last 20 years, probably because of agricultural activities and increasing discharge of industrial and domestic wastes.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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• v.3 no.4
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• pp.3-22
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• 2000

To know characteristics of water quality in coastal sea around the Keum river estuary in summer, we studied the water quality of surface, middle and bottom level during Jun e～september, 1998. The mean concentrations of COD, DIN, DIP & chlorophyll-a were 1.36mg/L, 28.60㎍-at/L, 0.48㎍-at/L and 4.14㎍/L, respectively, which were over eutrophication criteria in sea water. After the Keum river dyke was constructed, seasonal freshwater discharge was largely changed. About 80% of total annual freshwater discharge was concentrated in summer as rainy season from July to September. The correlation coefficient of DIN versus salinity was shown to be high, and thus the concentration of DIN was closely related to freshwater discharge. Maximum Chlorophyll-a concentration was occurred in September, due to increased DIP concentration, high water temperature and low salinity after heavy rainfall in August. The results of Principal Component Analysis showed that the first factor represented a series of eutrophication factors, the second factor w3s a valiance of seasonal fluctuation, and the third was a variance of progress of mass change.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.97-113
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• 2020

In-situ observations were carried out in April 2015 to investigate the occurrence of water temperature inversion in a region west of Jeju Island. Analysis of in-situ in the western part of Jeju island showed that cold water moved to the southeast from the surface to the middle layer and warm water moved from the middle to the lower layer of the northwest direction. The water temperature inversion occurred at 84 stations (63.1%) out of 133 stations. At the boundary of the water temperature inversion layer, it was formed in the middle layer and disappeared. In the strongly appearing, it started from the middle layer to the lower layer. The shape of the water temperature inversion layer was different. As a result of horizontal water temperature slope analysis of the water temperature inversion zone, maximum 0.23℃/km was obtained and the mean was 0.06℃/km. The role of water temperature inversion as an indicator to determine the formation of water front. As a result of the water mass analysis, Jeju Warm Current Water and Tsushima Warm Current Water of high temperature and high salt intruded from the middle to the bottom. In the middle layer occurred as the Yellow Sea Cold Water of low water temperature and low salinity expanded.

• Proceedings of the Korean Environmental Sciences Society Conference
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• 2005.05a
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• pp.241-244
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• 2005

The aim of this study was to determine the first outbreaks of nontoxic Gonyaulax polygramma Stein in Yeosu waters in place of harmful Cochlodinium polykrikoides Margalef, which has occurred annually in the same coastal region since 1995. The observation of cellular arrangement and structure by electron microscopy showed that G. polygramma isolated from Yeosu waters had a few spines connecting with mem-branes and prominent longitudinal ridges on the cell surface, with a cingular dis-placement 1.5 times their cell width. Furthermore, the location of the nucleus wasposterior of large oval formation according to electron microscopy. On 6 August, 2004,the first bloom of G. pozygramma occurred, the date of own its disappearance was with a maximum cell density of 8,000 cells ml$^{-1}$ on 21 August, 2004. During the period of this study, the horizontal distribution of sea water temperature and salinity showed a strong coastal front, whereas the front of DIN (Dissolved Inoganic Nitrogen) was significantly different between the occurrence and disappearance of G. polygramma blooms. These results suggested that the process of the breakdown of stratification by wind and a low level of inorganic nitrogen play important roles in the rapid growth of G. polygrmma, which is associated with a greater robustness in growth against DIN than that of C.polykrikoides in nature.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.14 no.7
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• pp.639-647
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• 2005

The aim of this study is to determine the outbreaks of nontoxic Gonyaulax polygramma Stein in Yeosu waters in place of harmful Cochlodinium polykrikoides Margalef, which has occurred annually in the same region since 1995. The observation of cellular arrangement and structure by electron microscopy showed that G. polygramma isolated from Yeosu waters had a few spines connecting with membranes and prominent longitudinal ridges on the cell surface, with a cingular displacement 1.5 times their cell width. Furthermore, the location of the nucleus was posterior of large oval formation according to electron microscopy. On 6 August, 2004, the first bloom of G. polygramma occurred, the date of its disappearance was with a maximum cell density of 8,000 cells $ml^{-1}$ on 21 August, 2004. During the period of this study, the horizontal distribution of sea water temperature and salinity showed a strong coastal front, whereas the front of DIN (Dissolved Inorganic Nitrogen) was significantly different between the occurrence and disappearance of G. polygramma blooms. These results suggested that the process of the breakdown of stratification by wind and a low level of inorganic nitrogen play important roles in the rapid growth of G. polygramma, which is associated with a greater robustness in growth against DIN than that of C. polykrikoides in nature.