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Comparison between the response of the Northwest Pacific Ocean and the South China Sea to Typhoon Megi (2010)

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Abstract

The upper-ocean responses to Typhoon Megi (2010) are investigated using data from ARGO floats and the satellite TMI. The experiments are conducted using a three-dimensional Princeton Ocean Model (POM) to assess the storm, which affected the Northwest Pacific Ocean (NWP) and the South China Sea (SCS). Results show that the upwelling and entrainment experiment together account for 93% of the SST anomalies, where typhoon-induced upwelling may cause strong ocean cooling. In addition, the anomalous SST cooling is stronger in the SCS than in the NWP. The most striking feature of the ocean response is the presence of a two-layer inertial wave in the SCS—a feature that is absent in the NWP. The near-inertial oscillations can be generated as typhoon wakes, which have maximum flow velocity in the surface mixed layer and may last for a few days, after the typhoon’s passage. Along the typhoon tracks, the horizontal currents in the upper ocean show a series of alternating negative and positive anomalies emanating from the typhoon.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the two anonymous reviewers for their helpful comments. This work was supported by the National Key Basic Research and Development Plan (Grant No. 2015CB953900), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 41176005), the Public Science and Technology Research Funds Projects of the Ocean (Grant No. GYHY201105018), and the China R&D Special Fund for Public Welfare Industry (GYHY 201306016).

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  1. Physical Oceanography Laboratory, College of Oceanic and Atmospheric Sciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266100, China

    Zi-Liang Li & Ping Wen

  2. Hunan Provincial Meteorological Station, Changsha, 430100, China

    Ping Wen

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Li, ZL., Wen, P. Comparison between the response of the Northwest Pacific Ocean and the South China Sea to Typhoon Megi (2010). Adv. Atmos. Sci. 34, 79–87 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00376-016-6027-9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00376-016-6027-9

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