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Slowdown of the topography trapped wave propagation by the Dongsha Islands in the northern South China Sea

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Abstract

Based on the satellite altimeter data, it is found that the topography trapped wave (TTW) propagates along the continental shelf in the northern South China Sea (NSCS). The TTW obviously slows down while passing by the Dongsha Islands. Using a quasi-geostrophic equation including the topography effect, we found that the topographic gradient induced by the Dongsha Islands determines the propagation speed, leading to the slowdown of the TTW.

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Acknowledgments

This study is supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 41406038, No. 41376026, and 41476014) and by the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. XDA11010302). The numerical calculation is supported by the high-performance computing division and Ms. Dandan Sui of the South China Sea Institute of Oceanology.

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Correspondence to Qiang Wang.

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Responsible Editor: Tal Ezer

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Yang, Y., Wang, Y., Sui, J. et al. Slowdown of the topography trapped wave propagation by the Dongsha Islands in the northern South China Sea. Ocean Dynamics 66, 11–17 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10236-015-0904-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10236-015-0904-0

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