• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.33-44
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• 2012

Transparent exopolymer particles (TEP) are formed by aggregation of polysaccharide products excreted by phytoplankton and have sticky character like gel. They play important role in the production of marine snow in water column. To study the distribution pattern of TEP concentration and its role in carbon cycle in the surface ocean, we measured pH, Total alkalinity (TA), and chlorophyll-a in addition to physical characteristics of seawater within the surface water column. TEP concentrations ranged from nearly undetectable values to $338{\mu}g\;Xeq\;l^{-1}$. They were considerably lower than previously reported values from costal sites, but showed similar values observed in other oceanic region during phytoplankton bloom periods. The spatial distribution of TEP concentrations were similar to those of chlorophyll-a, which indicate that the production of TEP were closely related to phytoplankton. Calculated total dissolved inorganic carbon ($TCO_2$) from the pH and TA was normalized to 35 psu of salinity ($NTCO_2$) and showed negative linear relationship with temperature. Biological drawdown of $NTCO_2$ ($NTCO_{2bio}$) was estimated from the difference between theoretical $NTCO_2$ values and observed $NTCO_2$. In the warm region located south of $40^{\circ}N$ along the $132.5^{\circ}N$ meridional lines, $NTCO_{2bio}$ showed negative value and TEP concentrations were high. This suggested that negative $NTCO_{2bio}$ may be attributed to the biological processes. At the stations located between 44 and $46^{\circ}N$, TEP concentrations showed high concentration at the chlorophyll-a maximum layer within the water column while they showed low concentration in the surface layer. Carbon content of TEP constituted about 40% of $NTCO_{2bio}$ at the chlorophylla maximum layer. In this study, we could not observe any positive and negative relationship between TEP concentration and $NTCO_2$ or pH. It is obvious that we should consider the importance of TEP in the biological carbon cycling processes within surface layer.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.56-76
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• 2024

We for the first time made a successful longest continuous sectional observation in the East Sea by an underwater glider during 95 days from September 18 to December 21 2020 in the Korea along the 106 Line (129.1 °E ~ 131.5 °E at 37.9 °N) of the regular shipboard measurements by the National Institute of Fishery Science (NIFS) and obtained twelve hydrographic sections with high spatiotemporal resolution. The glider was deployed at 129.1 °E in September 18 and conducted 88-days flight from September 19 to December 15 2020, yielding twelve hydrographic sections, and then recovered at 129.2 °E in December 21 after the last 6 days virtual mooring operation. During the total traveled distance of 2550 km, the estimated deviation from the predetermined zonal path had an average RMS distance of 262 m. Based on these high-resolution long-term glider measurements, we conducted a comparative study with the bi-monthly NIFS measurements in terms of spatial and temporal resolutions, and found distinguished features. One is that spatial features of sub-mesoscale such as sub-mesoscale frontal structure and intensified thermocline were detected only in the glider measurements, mainly due to glider's high spatial resolution. The other is the detection of intramonthly variations from the weekly time series of temperature and salinity, which were extracted from glider's continuous sections. Lastly, there were deviations and bias in measurements from both platforms. We argued these deviations in terms of the time scale of variation, the spatial scale of fixed-point observation, and the calibration status of CTD devices of both platforms.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.12 no.4
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• pp.328-336
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• 2007

A piston core (587 cm long) was recovered from the upper slope of a seamount in the Korea Plateau. Three episodes of sedimentation were identified based on sedimentary facies, grain size distribution, carbonate constituents and initial $^{87}Sr/^{86}Sr$ ratio of carbonates. The lower part of the core, Unit I-a (core depth $465{\sim}587cm$) is composed of shallow marine carbonate sediments the deposited by storm surges, and is about $13{\sim}15Ma$ (Middle Miocene) based on $^{87}Sr/^{86}Sr$ initial ratio. This suggests that the depositional environment was relatively shallow enough to be influenced by storm activities. Unit I-b (core depth $431{\sim}465cm$) is mostly composed of turbidites, and Sr isotope ages of bivalves and planktonic formaminifera are about $11{\sim}14\;and\;6{\sim}13Ma$, respectively. This indicates that the Korea Plateau maintained shallow water condition until 11 Ma, and began to subside since then. However, planktonic foraminifera were deposited after 11 Ma and redeposited as turbidites as a mixture of planktonic foraminifera and older shallow marine carbonates about 6 Ma ago. Unit II (core depth $0{\sim}431cm$) is composed of pelagic sediments, and the Sr isotope age is younger than 1 Ma, thus the time gap is about 5 Ma at the unconformity. About 1 Ma ago, the Korea Plateau subsided down to a water depth of about 600 m. The sampling locality was intermittently influenced by debris flows and/or turbidity currents along the slope, resulting the deposition of re-transported coarse shallow marine and volcaniclastic sediments.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.22 no.7
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• pp.846-853
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• 2016

This study prioritizes Noxious Liquid Substances (NLS) transported by sea via a risk-based database containing 596 chemicals to prepare against NLS incidents. There were 158 chemicals transported in Korean waters during 2014 and 2015, which were prioritized, and then chemicals were grouped into four categories (with rankings of 0-3) based on measures for preparedness against incident. In order to establish an effective preparedness system against NLS spill incidents on a national scale, a compiling process for NLS chemicals ranked 2~3 should be carried out and managed together with an initiative for NLS chemicals ranked 0-1. Also, it is advisable to manage NLS chemicals ranked 0-1 after considering the characteristics of NLS specifically transported through a given port since the types and characteristics of NLS chemicals relevant differ depending on the port. In addition, three designated regions are suggested: 1) the southern sector of the East Sea (Ulsan and Busan); 2) the central sector of the South Sea (Gwangyang and Yeosu); and 3) the northern sector of the West Sea (Pyeongtaek, Daesan and Incheon). These regions should be considered special management sectors, with strengthened surveillance and the equipment, materials and chemicals used for pollution response management schemes prepared in advance at NLS spill incident response facilities. In the near future, the risk database should be supplemented with specific information on chronic toxicity and updated on a regular basis. Furthermore, scientific ecotoxicological data for marine organisms should be collated and expanded in a systematic way. A system allowing for the identification Hazardous and Noxious Substances (HNS) should also be established, noting the relevant volumes transported in Korean waters as soon as possible to allow for better management of HNS spill incidents at sea.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.66-75
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• 2014

This study aims to understand environmental factors that determine spatial distribution of macrozoobenthic community in the southern area (ca 100-500 m depth) of East Sea, Korea, known as a candidate site for carbon storage under the seabed. From sixteen locations sampled in the summer of 2012, a total of 158 species were identified, showing density of $843indiv/m^2$ and biomass of $26.2g\;WW/m^2$, with increasing faunal density towards biologically higher diverse locations. Principal component analysis showed that a total of 33 environmental parameters were reduced to three principal components (PC), indicating sediment, bottom water, and depth, respectively. As sand content was increasing, number of species increased but biomass decreased. Six dominant species including two bivalve species favored high concentrations of ${\Omega}$ aragonite and ${\Omega}$ calcite, indicating that the corresponding species can be severely damaged by ocean acidification or $CO_2$ effluent. Cluaster analysis based on more than 1% density dominant species classified the entire study area into four faunal assemblage (location groups), which were delineated by characteristic species, including (A) Ampelisca miharaensis, (B) Edwardsioides japonica, (C) Maldane cristata, (D) Spiophanes kroeyeri, and clearly separated in terms of geography, bottom water and sediment environment. Overall, a discriminant function model was developed to predict four faunal assemblages from five simply-measured environmental variables (depth, sand content in sediment, temperature, salinity and pH in bottom water) with 100% accuracy, implying that benthic faunal assemablages are closed linked to certain combinations of abiotic factors.

• The Sea:JOURNAL OF THE KOREAN SOCIETY OF OCEANOGRAPHY
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• v.20 no.4
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• pp.192-198
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• 2015

Picophytoplankton, a group of tiny microorganisms of less than $3{\mu}m$, play an important role as a major primary producer in tropical open ocean as well as temperate coastal waters. Until now, more than 20 and 10 clades of Synechococcus and Prochlorococcus, respectively, have been identified in various marine environments, and its biogeographical distribution have been well studied as well as ecological niches of its major clades. To understand a distribution of diverse picocyanobacterial clades and environmental factors regulating their distribution, picocyanobacterial abundance and genetic diversity was investigated in adjacent waters of Dokdo showing diverse physical properties not only by seasonal variation but also by diverse physical processes. Synechococcus abundances were low in winter and then exponentially increased as water temperature increased up to $20^{\circ}C$. Above $20^{\circ}C$, the abundances tended to be saturated. On the contrary, Prochlorococcus was undetected or occupied a minor fraction of picocyanobacteria in most seasons. In summer, however, Prochlorococcus belonging to HLII ecotype occupied a significant fraction (up to 7%) of picocyanobacteria. In spring and early summer, the steep increase of Synechococcus abundances were resulted from growth of cold water-adapted Synechococcus belonging to clades I and IV. In summer, diverse Synechococcus clades including warm and pelagic water-favoring clade II tended to replace clades I and IV with maintaining high abundance. The water-column stability as well as temperature were found to be important factors regulating the Synechococcus abundances. Moreover, inflow and mixing of distinct water masses with different origins exerted significant influence on the composition of Synechococcus in the study area. Thus, physical processes as well as natural seasonal variation of environmental factors should be considered to better understand ecology of planktonic organisms around Dokdo.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.60-76
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• 2022

This study presents a software full setup and the following test execution times in a Linux cluster for the United Kingdom Earth System Model (UKESM) and then compares the model results from control and experimental simulations of the UKESM relative to various observations. Despite its low resolution, the latest version of the UKESM can simulate tropospheric chemistry-aerosol processes and the stratospheric ozone chemistry using the United Kingdom Chemistry and Aerosol (UKCA) module. The UKESM with UKCA (UKESM-UKCA) can treat atmospheric chemistryaerosol-cloud-radiation interactions throughout the whole atmosphere. In addition to the control UKESM run with the default CMIP5 SO₂ emission dataset, an experimental run was conducted to evaluate the aerosol effects on meteorology by changing atmospheric SO₂ loading with the newest REAS data over East Asia. The simulation period of the two model runs was 28 years, from January 1, 1982 to December 31, 2009. Spatial distributions of monthly mean aerosol optical depth, 2-m temperature, and precipitation intensity from model simulations and observations over East Asia were compared. The spatial patterns of surface temperature and precipitation from the two model simulations were generally in reasonable agreement with the observations. The simulated ozone concentration and total column ozone also agreed reasonably with the ERA5 reanalyzed one. Comparisons of spatial patterns and linear trends led to the conclusion that the model simulation with the newest SO₂ emission dataset over East Asia showed better temporal changes in temperature and precipitation over the western Pacific and inland China. Our results are in line with previous finding that SO₂ emissions over East Asia are an important factor for the atmospheric environment and climate change. This study confirms that the UKESM can be installed and operated in a Linux cluster-computing environment. Thus, researchers in various fields would have better access to the UKESM, which can handle the carbon cycle and atmospheric environment on Earth with interactions between the atmosphere, ocean, sea ice, and land.

• Economic and Environmental Geology
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• v.57 no.2
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• pp.143-159
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• 2024

Natural aggregate is an essential resource for human activities, closely related to construction. The aggregate demand has been increasing annually, and due to the nature of the resource, it is difficult to procure from distant locations. This study identifies the distribution and characteristics of aggregate-bearing areas as part of a municipal-level aggregate resource survey conducted in Nonsan City, Korea, in 2023. Nonsan City is located approximately 35 km straight distance from the Geum River estuary and lies at the passageway of the main stream of the Geum River. The topography of Nonsan City features eastern mountainous areas and western plains, creating an east-high-west-low geomorphic setting, with 33 streams distributed across the city, including tributaries of the Geum River like Nonsan Stream, Noseong Stream, and Ganggyeong Stream. All streams originate from the highlands in the north and east, converge with Nonsan Stream, and then join the west bank of the main stream of the Geum River at the western boundary of Nonsan City. Drilling core results show shallow depths in the highlands to the north and east, deepening towards the west, reaching a maximum depth of 25 m near the main stream of the Geum River. The total reserve of land aggregates is calculated to be 246,789,000 m³, with a developable amount of 172,750,000 m³. The total reserve of river aggregates is 5,236,000 m³, with a developable amount of 3,765,000 m³. The distribution of aggregates varies according to the geomorphic, geologic, and development pattern of the river system. Reserves are scarce in mountainous areas but are abundant in regions with rivers and wide alluvial plains, although reserves appear at depths greater than 4m. The distribution of aggregate resources in Nonsan City is influenced by stream activities and sea level changes, with the tidal range of the Yellow Sea acting as an unfavorable condition for the preservation of aggregate resources.

• Korean Journal of Ichthyology
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• v.34 no.2
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• pp.113-118
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• 2022

The feeding habits of sandfish, Arctoscopus japonicus were studied using 781 specimens collected by Eastern Sea Danish and gill net from January 2020 to December 2021 in the coastal waters of East Sea, Korea. The size of the specimens ranged from 14.8 to 25.4 cm in total length. A. japonicus were fed mainly on amphipods that constituted 54.7% in IRI. Cephalopods were the second largest prey component. The diets also include small quantities of euphausiids, crabs, shrimps, fishes, and worms. The diet composition of A. japonicus showed changes in season. The cephalopods feeding rate was highest in summer, whereas the proportion of euphausiids was higher in spring than in other seasons. The proportion of cephalopods has increased as the body size of A. japonicus increased, whereas the proportion of amphipods and euphausiids decreased gradually. As the body size of A. japonicus increased the mean weight of prey per the stomach (mW/ST) tended to increase significantly (One-way ANOVA, P<0.05).

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.680-687
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• 1999

To understand the role of shelf sediment in phosphorus biogeochemical cycle, we carried out sequential sediment extraction (SEDEX) of P and porewater analysis on 14 core samples collected in the South Sea of Korea, SEDEX classified P-pools into 5 phases and results are grouped into two categories: reactive P (loosely sorbed-P and Fe bound-P) and refractory P (detrital inorganic-p, authigenic mineral-P and organic-P). Total P concentrations are decreased with sediment depth in all samples as a result of dissolution to porewater. Reactive P comprises about $20\~50\%$ of total P, and iron bound-P is the major form consisting $70\~80\%$ of reactive P-pool. Iron bound-P decreases sharply with depth. Depth profiles of dissolved P concentration in porewater show mirror image of iron bound-P, revealing the role of FeOOH as a regulator of reactive P supply to overlying water column. Authigenic mineral-P consists less than $5\%$ of total P, thus removal of reactive P by converting into refractory P seems inefficient in shelf sediment. This implies that continental shelf sediment sequesters P temporarily rather than permanently. Results show local variation. Nakdong estuary receiving large amount of terrigenous input shows the highest concentration of total P and reactive P. Here iron oxyhydroxides at the surface sediment control the water column flux of P from sediment. Although total P content at the surface is comparable (500$\~$600 ${\mu}g{\cdot}g^{-1}$) between the South Sea and East China Sea, the former contains more iron bound-P and less derital inorganic-P than the latter. Reasons for the difference seem due in part to particle texture, and to biological productivity which depends roughly on the distance from land.