• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.13-19
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• 2024

An analysis of the coastal water temperature in the Tongyeong waters, the eastern sea of the South Sea of Korea, revealed that the water temperature rose sharply before the typhoon made landfall. The water temperature rise occurred throughout the entire water column. An analysis of the sea surface temperature data observed by NOAA(National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) satellites, indicated that sea water with a temperature of 30℃ existed in the eastern waters of the eastern South Sea of Korea before the typhoon landed. The southeastern sea of Korea is an area where ocean currents prevail from west to east owing to the Tsushima Warm Current. However, an analysis of the satellite data showed that seawater at 30℃ moved from east to west, indicating that it was affected by the Ekman transport caused by the typhoon before landing. In addition, because the eastern waters of the South Sea are not as deep as those of the East Sea, the water temperature of the entire water layer may remain constant owing to vertical mixing caused by the wind. Because the rise in water temperature in each water layer occurred on the same day, the rise in the bottom water temperature can be considered as owing to vertical mixing. Indeed, the southeastern sea of Korea is a sea area where the water temperature can rise rapidly depending on the direction of approach of the typhoon and the location of high temperature formation.