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Study on the mesoscale eddies around the Ryukyu Islands

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Abstract

Results of the Ocean General Circulation Model for the Earth Simulator (OFES) from January 1977 to December 2006 are used to investigate mesoscale eddies near the Ryukyu Islands. The results show that: (1) Larger eddies are mainly east of Taiwan, above the Ryukyu Trench and south of the Shikoku Island. These three sea areas are all in the vicinity of the Ryukyu Current. (2) Eddies in the area of the Ryukyu Current are mainly anticyclonic, and conducive to that current. The transport of water east of the Ryukyu Islands is mainly toward the northeast. (3) The Ryukyu Current is significantly affected by the eddies. The lower the latitude, the greater these effects. However, the Kuroshio is relatively stable, and the effect of mesoscale eddies is not significant. (4) A warm eddy south of the Shikoku Island break away from the Kuroshio and move southwest, and is clearly affected by the Ryukyu Current and Kuroshio. Relationships between the mesoscale eddies, Kuroshio meanders, and Ryukyu Current are discussed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Physical and Environmental Oceanography, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, 266100, China

    Shuzong Han, Yongbin Fan & Xingchi Wang

  2. State Key Laboratory of Satellite Ocean Environment Dynamics, Second Institute of Oceanography, State Oceanic Administration, Hangzhou, 310012, China

    Changsan Xu & Huiming Wu

  3. Nantong Marine Environmental Monitoring Center, State Oceanic Administration, Nantong, 226005, China

    Changsan Xu & Huiming Wu

  4. School of Mathematical Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, 3800, Australia

    Gang Wang

  5. East Sea Information Center, State Oceanic Administration, Shanghai, 200137, China

    Junfeng Pei

Authors
  1. Shuzong Han
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  2. Changsan Xu
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  3. Huiming Wu
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  4. Gang Wang
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  5. Junfeng Pei
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  6. Yongbin Fan
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  7. Xingchi Wang
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Changsan Xu.

Additional information

Foundation item: The National Natural Science Foundation of China under contract No. 41076003; the Youth Science and Technology Foundation of East China Sea Branch, SOA under contract Nos 201314 and 201203; the open fund of State Key Laboratory of Satellite Ocean Environment Dynamics under Contract No. SOED1402.

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Han, S., Xu, C., Wu, H. et al. Study on the mesoscale eddies around the Ryukyu Islands. Acta Oceanol. Sin. 35, 38–45 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-016-0824-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13131-016-0824-y

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