• Journal of the korean society of oceanography
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• v.39 no.2
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• pp.119-135
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• 2004

A three-dimensional numerical model using POM (the Princeton Ocean Model) is established in order to understand the dispersion processes of the Yangtze River water in the Yellow and East China Seas. The circulation experiments for the seas are conducted first, and then on the bases of the results the dispersion experiments for the river water are executed. For the experiments, we focus on the tide effects and wind effects on the processes. Four cases of systematic experiments are conducted. They comprise the followings: a reference case with no tide and no wind, of tide only, of wind only, and of both tide and wind. Throughout this study, monthly mean values are used for the Kuroshio Current input in the southern boundary of the model domain, for the transport through the Korea Strait, for the river discharge, for the sea surface wind, and for the heat exchange rate across the air-sea interface. From the experiments, we obtained the following results. The circulation of the seas in winter is dependent on the very strong monsoon wind as several previous studies reported. The wintertime dispersion of the Yangtze River water follows the circulation pattern flowing southward along the east coast of China due to the strong monsoon wind. Some observed salinity distributions support these calculation results. In summertime, generally, low-salinity water from the river tends to spread southward and eastward as a result of energetic vertical mixing processes due to the strong tidal current, and to spread more eastward due to the southerly wind. The tide effect for the circulation and dispersion of the river water near the river mouth is a dominant factor, but the southerly wind is still also a considerable factor. Due to both effects, two major flow directions appear near the river mouth. One of them is a northern branch flow in the northeast area of the river mouth moving eastward mainly due to the weakened southerly wind. The other is a southern branch flow directed toward the southeastern area off the river mouth mostly caused by tide and wind effects. In this case, however, the tide effect is more dominant than the wind effect. The distribution of the low salinity water follows the circulation pattern fairly well.

• Journal of the korean society of oceanography
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.185-199
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• 1999

With a realistic geography and topography the Princeton Ocean Model is used to study the effects of topography, wind and time-varying Chanajiang (Yangtze) River discharge on the dispersion of the Chanaiiang River plume in the Yellow and East China Seas. The topographic feature of deepening offshore suppresses the offshore expansion of the discharged low salinity water while spreading along the coast is not hindered. Also the spreading of the Chanajiang River plume is very sensitive to wind conditions and the southerly wind is most responsible for the eastward expansion toward the Cheju Island. It is also shown that the influence of the Chanajiang River Diluted Water on the hydrography and circulation of the Yellow Sea including the South Sea of Korea is substantial even in the absence of tide, wind and current.

• Journal of the Korean Society for Marine Environment & Energy
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• v.10 no.2
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• pp.67-85
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• 2007

A three-dimensional hydrodynamic model with the fine grid is applied to simulate the barotropic tides, tidal currents, residual currents and salinity dispersions in the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea. Data inputs include seasonal hydrography, mean wind and river input, and oceanic tides. Computed tidal distributions of four major tides($M_2,\;S_2,\;K_1$ and $O_1$) are presented and results are in good agreement with the observations in the domain. The model reproduces well the tidal charts. The tidal residual current is relatively strong around west coast of Korea including the Cheju Island and southern coast of China. The current by $M_2$ has a maximum speed of 10 cm/s in the vicinity of Cheju Island with a anti-clockwise circulation in the Yellow Sea. General tendency of the current, however, is to flow eastward in the South Sea. Surface residual current simulated with $M_2$ and with $M_2+S_2+K_1+O_1$ tidal forcing shows slightly different patterns in the East China Sea. The model shows that the southerly wind reduces the southward current created by freshwater discharge. In summer during high runoff(mean discharge about $50,000\;m^3/s$ of Yangtze), low salinity plume-like structure(with S < 30.0 psu) extending some 160 km toward the northeast and Changjiang Diluted Water(CDW), below salinity 26 psu, was found within about 95 km. The offshore dispersion of the Changjiang outflow water is enhanced by the prevailing southerly wind. It is estimated that the inertia of the river discharge cannot exclusively reach the around sea of Cheju Island. It is noted that spatial and temporal distribution of salinity and the other materials are controlled by mixture of Changjiang discharge, prevailing wind, advection by flowing warm current and tidal current.