• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.23 no.4
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• pp.361-376
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• 2001

The characteristics of SST variability in the East Sea are analyzed using NOAA/AVHRR weekly SST data with about $0.18^{\circ}{\times}0.18^{\circ}$ resolution ($1981{\sim}2000$) and reconstructed historical monthly SST data with $2^{\circ}{\times}2^{\circ}$ resolution $(1950{\sim}1998)$. The distinct feature of wintertime SST is high variability in the western and eastern parts of $38^{\circ}{\sim}40^{\circ}$ latitudinal band, which are the northern boundary of warm current in the East Sea during winter. However, summertime SST exhibits variability with similar magnitude in the entire region of the East Sea. The analysis of remote correlation also shows that SST in the East Sea is closely correlated with that in the region of Kuroshio in winter, but in summer is related with that in the western and eastern regions of the same latitudes. From these results it is postulated that the SST variability in the East Sea may be related with the variations of East Korean Warm Current and Tsushima Warm Current in winter, but in summer probably with the variations of atmospheric components. In the analysis of ENSO related SST anomaly, a significant negative correlation between SST anomalies in the East Sea and SST anomalies in the tropical Pacific is found in the months of August-October (ASO). The SST in the ASO period shows more significant cooling in E1 $Ni\~{n}o$ events than warming in La $Ni\~{n}a$ events. Also, the regional analysis shows by the Student's t-test that the negative SST anomalies in the E1 $Ni\~{n}o$ events are more significant in the southwestern part of the East Sea.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.439-466
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• 2014

Since the unification of the diverse oceanic current maps of the East Sea in secondary school science textbooks has recently been accomplished, there have been increasing requirements for the production of a current map of the Yellow Sea (YS) and the East China Sea (ECS). This study, as its first attempt, facilitated the prospective production process of the unified oceanic current maps in YS and ECS by analyzing the maps of scientific articles and those of the present textbooks as of 2014. First of all, the analogue current maps of the textbooks and scientific articles were digitalized to retrieve the characteristics of current maps quantitatively and to make intercomparison of the maps. The currents of both YS and ECS such as the Kuroshio Current, the Taiwan Warm Current, the Tsushima Warm Current, the Yellow Sea Warm Current, the Chinese Coastal Current, the Korea Coastal Current, and the Changjiang River Flow were selected and analyzed. We made 18 items to investigate the paths of the currents. Analyses of the oceanic current maps of secondary school science textbooks and scientific articles with respect to the selected criteria revealed that the current maps of the textbooks were considerably different from the up-to-date knowledge of the current maps acquired from the scientific articles. In addition, since the currents of YS and ECS have strong seasonality, we suggest that they should be presented with at least two current maps for summer and winter in the textbooks, which may go through active discussions among experts.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.373-378
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• 2008

Long-term tide-gauge data from around the Korean Peninsula were reanalyzed. Both the coastal water and the open sea surrounding the Korean Peninsula appeared to have been influenced by global warming. The long-term change in relative sea levels obtained from tidal stations showed a general rising trend, especially near Jeju Island. It is proposed that global warming may have caused shifting of the path of the Kuroshio branch (Tsushima Warm Current) toward Jeju Island, causing a persistent increase in the water levels along the coast of the island over the last few decades.

• Ocean and Polar Research
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.153-161
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• 2006

To investigate inflow path of the East Sea Intermediate Water (ESIW) into the Ulleung Basin, hydrographic data surveyed in July 2005 were analyzed. The ESIW was characterized by the Salinity Minimum Layer (SML) within a depth range of 100 to 360 meters. Averaged potential temperature and salinity of the SML were $1.835^{\circ}C$ and 34.049 psu, respectively. Mean potential density $({\sigma}_{\theta})$ of the SML was 27.221 with a standard deviation of 0.0393. On isopycnal surfaces of 27.14 and 27.18 $({\sigma}_{\theta})$ which correspond to upper layers of the ESIW, the coastal low salinity water was separated from the offshore low salinity water by the relatively warm and saline water which might be affected by the Tsushima Warm Current Water. Relatively cold and fresh water, however, intruded into the Ulleung Basin from the region of Korean coast on isopycnal surfaces of 27.22 and 27.26 which was lower layer of the ESIW. The salinity distribution in the isopycnal layer of $27.14{\sim}27.26$ with acceleration potential on 27.22 up surface also showed clearly that the low salinity water flowed from the coastal area and intruded into the Ulleung Basin. This implies that the ESIW flows ken the north to the south along the east coasts of Korea and spreads into the Ulleung Basin in summer.

• 한국해양학회지
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• v.30 no.3
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• pp.203-215
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• 1995

Two hydrographic surveys along with direct current measurements using drogues and moored current meters were conducted in Cheju Strait during April and May, 1983. The data clearly demonstrate that a branch of the Kuroshio characterized by high temperature and high salinity enters the Cheju Strait after turning around the western coast of Cheju-Do. The width of the current turning west of Cheju-Do is about 60 km and reduces to 20∼30 km in the strait, resulting in a high speed(＞10 cm/s) at the western entrance and in the middle of the strait, compared with a low speed (＞5 cm/s) west of Cheju-Do. The Tsushima Current water also originating from the Kuroshio shows its influence in the eastern part of the Cheju Strait. Thermohaline fronts formed between the warm current waters and the coastal waters suggest the southward extension of the Yellow Sea Coastal Water west of the Cheju Strait. A warming of the warm current waters occurs in May, while a cooling takes place in other areas. The major freshening and cooling of water take place in the middle of the Cheju Strait in May due to the intrusion of cold and low salinity water from the west of the Cheju Strait.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.13 no.5
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• pp.449-467
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• 2004

Interannual and decadal scale changes in body size of Pacific saury, catch and catch per unit effort were examined to investigate the environmental effects on the stock structure and abundance in the Tsushima Warm Current region. Interannual changes in thermal conditions are responsible for the different occurrence (catch) rates of sized group of the fish. Changes in body size due to environmental variables lead the stock to be homogeneous during the period of high abundance, while one of the reminder cohorts supports the stock during the period of low level of abundance. Migration circuits of two cohorts of saury stock are hypothesized on the basis of short life span and spatio-temporal changes of the stock structure in normal environmental conditions. Changes in upper ocean structure and production cycles by the decadal scale climate changes lead changes in stock structure and recruitment, resulting in the fluctuation of saury abundance. Hypothesized mechanism of the effects of climate changes on stock structure and abundance is illustrated on the basis of changes in thermal regime and production cycle.

• Journal of the korean society of oceanography
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• v.34 no.3
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• pp.151-166
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• 1999

Both benthic and planktonic foraminifera from Core 97-02 obtained in the northern East China Sea are quantitatively analyzed for reconstructing the paleocenography of late Quaternary. Since the earliest time of the core sediment (last not older than 18000 yr B.P.), the paleo-water depth has changed from less than 20 m to near 100 m at present, which is reflected by the benthic foraminiferal assemblages: before 14000 yr B.P., the water depth was shallower than 20 m; from 14000 to 7500 yr B.P., water depth was 20-50 m; and after 7500 yr B.P., water depth was 50-100 m. The foraminiferal fauna also disclose the water mass history: during the last glacial maximum, the water that dominated the study area might be the coastal water; at the end of the last glacial maximum(14000-9500 yr B.P.), the Yellow Sea Cold Water mostly affected this area; then it gave way to the Yellow Sea Warm Current after 9500 yr B.P.; and finally, the warm water has dominated this area since 9500 yr B.P. because of the westward shift and enhancement of the Kuroshio Current.

• Journal of Korean Society of Coastal and Ocean Engineers
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.215-220
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• 1996

Seasonal and interannual variations of the oceanic condition in the surface layer of the northwestern East Sea are described. The seasonal variation shows two types in the water circulation. In the first type the East Korean Warm Current (EUC) Water are dominant in the East Korean Bay in spring, while in summer the cold water region develops as the North Korean Cold Current (NKCC) becomes strong. In the second type the cold water appears in the East Korean Bay from spring, but in summer the EKWC comes close to the coast, thus influencing the coastal cold water region. The characteristics of the interannual variation can be classified into 4 types according to the relative strength between the EKWC and the NKCC, and the paths of these currents. In each case various sizes of cyclonic cold eddies and/or anti-cyclonic warm eddies are formed frequently in the East Korean Bay.

• Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.27 no.2
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• pp.76-86
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• 2024

The bio-logging method could be a valuable approach to studying the underwater movement of marine fish. We investigated the horizontal and vertical movement patterns of two yellowtails Seriola quinqueradiata weighing 8.7 kg and 9.5 kg with a popup satellite archival tag from October 2020 to January 2021 in the East Sea of Korea. Our results showed that a yellowtail migrated northward in October and November, and then shifted southward in mid-December. The average swimming depth and temperature of the fish monitored over 82 days were 24.9 ± 9.3 m (average ± SD) and 16.5 ± 1.9℃, respectively, and the total traveled distance was 1,172.4 km. The fish swam significantly deeper during the daytime (33.70 ± 14.80 m) than at nighttime (20.65 ± 8.44 m) from November to December (p < 0.05). These results suggest that the horizontal migratory route of yellowtails in accordance with the East Korea Warm Current which is the main branch of Tsushima Warm Current in the fall and early winter seasons, and showed significant diel vertical movement patterns from November to December.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Fisheries Technology Conference
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• 2000.05a
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• pp.181-182
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• 2000

Due to the instability of the EKWC, the oceanic conditions in the East Sea are affected by the fluctuations of the moving paths of the TWC, polar fronts, and warm eddies. In particular, warm eddies play an important role in spreading the surface water of the East Sea from its southern coastal region to its interior region (Isoda, 1994). However, the fluctuation characteristics of the meandering TWC and the warm eddies in the East Sea are not yet known due to the instability of the TWC. Hideaki(1999) showed that the moving paths and features of the TWC in the coastal regions of Japan were not constant. (omitted)