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Numerical study of seasonal circulation and variability over the inner shelf of the northern South China Sea

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Abstract

This study examines seasonal circulation, hydrography, and associated spatial variability over the inner shelf of the northern South China Sea (NSCS) using a nested-grid coastal ocean circulation model. The model external forcing consists of tides, atmospheric forcing, and open boundary conditions based on the global ocean circulation and hydrography reanalysis produced by the Hybrid Coordinate Ocean model. Five numerical experiments are conducted with different combinations of external forcing functions to examine main physical processes affecting the seasonal circulation in the study region. Model results demonstrate that the monthly mean circulation in the study region features the Guangdong Coastal Current (GCC) over coastal waters and the South China Sea Warm Current (SCSWC) in the offshore deep waters. The GCC produced by the model flows nearly southwestward in winter months and northwestward in summer months, which agrees with previous studies. The SCSWC flows roughly northeastward and is well defined in summer months. In winter months, by comparison, the SCSWC is superseded by the southwestward strong wind-driven currents. Analysis of model results in five different experiments demonstrates that the monthly mean circulation over coastal and inner shelf waters of the NSCS can be approximated by barotropic currents forced by the southwestward monsoon winds in winter months. In summer months, by comparison, the monthly mean circulation in the study region is affected significantly by baroclinic dynamics associated with freshwater runoff from the Pearl River and advection of warm and saline waters carried by the SCSWC over the NSCS.

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Acknowledgments

This study is supported by the National Special Research Fund for Non-Profit Sector (No. 201301072), the Special Fund for Chinese Central Government for Basic Scientific Research Operations in Commonweal Research Institutes (No. 2011B06314, and No. 2014B05214), open foundation of State Key Laboratory of Hydrology-Water Resources and Hydraulic Engineering (No. 2013490311), and the Joint Research Projects NSFC-NWO (No. 51061130545). JS is also supported by Lloyd’s Register Foundation, which helps predict life and property by supporting engineering-related education, public engagement and the application of research.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Hydrology-Water Resources and Hydraulic Engineering, Hohai University, Nan**g, 210098, China

    **aomei Ji, **yu Sheng, **hai Zheng & Wei Zhang

  2. Department of Oceanography, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, B3H 4J1

    **yu Sheng

Authors
  1. **aomei Ji
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  2. **yu Sheng
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  3. **hai Zheng
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  4. Wei Zhang
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Correspondence to **aomei Ji.

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Responsible Editor: **aoming Zhai

This article is part of the Topical Collection on Atmosphere and Ocean Dynamics: A Scientific Workshop to Celebrate Professor Dr. Richard Greatbatch’s 60th Birthday, Liverpool, UK, 10–11 April 2014

Appendix

Appendix

1.1 Model performance using two-way and one-way nesting techniques

As mentioned in Section 2, a simple two-way nesting (TWN) technique is used in exchanging the hydrographic information between the inner and middle models. This TWN technique has an advantage over the one-way nesting (OWN) technique to have a better representation of interaction between the estuarine and coastal currents in the middle model. A comparison of monthly mean sea surface currents and salinity in May of 1998 produced by the middle model between the TWN and OWN cases (Fig. 16a, b) demonstrates that the estuarine plume is more realistically simulated in the TWN case than in the OWN case.

It should be noted that the circulation and hydrography over the study region produced by the middle model using either the TWN or OWN nesting technique are better than the counterparts produced by the HYCOM/NCODA. Figure 16 presents the monthly mean sea surface currents and salinity in May extracted from the HYCOM/NCODA global ocean reanalysis. The estuarine plume and the SCSWC are not well represented by the HYCOM/NCODA reanalysis. In addition, the GCC in this reanalysis is too strong.

Fig. 16
figure 16

Monthly mean sea surface currents and salinity in May of 1998 produced by the middle model using a two-way nesting and b one-way nesting techniques; and c by the HYCOM/NCODA. Velocity vectors are plotted at every 9th grid point

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Ji, X., Sheng, J., Zheng, J. et al. Numerical study of seasonal circulation and variability over the inner shelf of the northern South China Sea. Ocean Dynamics 65, 1103–1120 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10236-015-0862-6

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