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Climate modulation on sea surface height in China seas

  • Remote sensing
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Abstract

The climate modulation on the sea surface height (SSH) in China seas is investigated using a China Ocean Reanalysis (CORA) dataset from 1958–2008. The dataset is constructed by assimilating the temperature/salinity profiles derived from the satellite altimetry data and historical observational temperature/salinity profiles. Based on the Empirical Orthogonal Function (EOF), the CORA sea surface height anomaly (SSHa) is decomposed, and the interannual and decadal variability of the first three leading modes are analyzed. On the interannual timescale, the first principal component (PC1) is significant positively correlated with the El Niño/Southern Oscillation (ENSO). On the decadal timescale, North Pacific Gyre Oscillation (NPGO) has significant negative correlation with PC1 whereas Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) is in phase with PC3. Analysis shows that the decadal variability of SSH is mainly modulated by the wind stress curl variability related to the NPGO and PDO. In addition, the effect of net heat flux associated to the NPGO and PDO on SSH is also investigated, with net heat flux variability in the Luzon strait and tropic Pacific found to influence the decadal variability of SSH.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Information Technology, SOA, National Marine Data and Information Service, Tianjin, 300171, China

    Xiaoshuang Zhang  (张晓爽), Xidong Wang  (王喜冬), Yingzhi Cao  (曹英志), Lianxin Zhang  (张连新), Caixia Shao  (邵彩霞), Chunjian Sun  (孙春健), Xinrong Wu  (吴新荣), Hongli Fu  (付红丽) & Lili Xuan  (宣莉莉)

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

    Lianxin Zhang  (张连新)

  3. National University of Defense Technology, Changsha, 410073, China

    Caixia Shao  (邵彩霞)

Authors
  1. Xiaoshuang Zhang  (张晓爽)
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  2. Xidong Wang  (王喜冬)
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  3. Yingzhi Cao  (曹英志)
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  4. Lianxin Zhang  (张连新)
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  5. Caixia Shao  (邵彩霞)
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  6. Chunjian Sun  (孙春健)
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  7. Xinrong Wu  (吴新荣)
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  8. Hongli Fu  (付红丽)
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  9. Lili Xuan  (宣莉莉)
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Xidong Wang  (王喜冬).

Additional information

Supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (973 Program) (No. 2013CB430304), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Nos. 41176003, 41206178, 41376013, 41376015, 41306006), the National High Technology Research and Development Program of China (863 Program) (No. 2013AA09A505), and the Global Change and Air-Sea Interaction of China (No. GASI-01-01-12)

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Zhang, X., Wang, X., Cao, Y. et al. Climate modulation on sea surface height in China seas. Chin. J. Ocean. Limnol. 33, 1245–1255 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00343-015-4120-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00343-015-4120-z

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