• Journal of the korean society of oceanography
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• v.39 no.1
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• pp.1-13
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• 2004

The Yellow Sea Warm Current (YSWC) and the Yellow Sea Cold Bottom Water (YSCBW) are two protruding features, which have strong influence on the community structure and distribution of zooplankton in the Yellow Sea. Both of them are seasonal phenomena. In winter, strong north wind drives southward flow at the surface along both Chinese and Korean coasts, which is compensated by a northward flow along the Yellow Sea Trough. That is the YSWC. It advects warmer and saltier water from the East China Sea into the southern Yellow Sea and changes the zooplankton community structure greatly in winter. During a cruise after onset of the winter monsoon in November 2001 in the southern Yellow Sea, 71 zooplankton species were identified, among which 39 species were tropical, accounting for 54.9 %, much more than those found in summer. Many of them were typical for Kuroshio water, e.g. Eucalanus subtenuis, Rhincalanus cornutus, Pareuchaeta russelli, Lucicutia flavicornis, and Euphausia diomedeae etc. 26 species were warm-temperate accounting for 36.6% and 6 temperate 8.5%. The distribution pattern of the warm water species clearly showed the impact of the YSWC and demonstrated that the intrusion of warmer and saltier water happened beneath the surface northwards along the Yellow Sea Trough. The YSCBW is a bottom pool of the remnant Yellow Sea Winter Water resulting from summer stratification and occupy most of the deep area of the Yellow Sea. The temperature of YSCBW temperature remains ${\leq}{\;}10^{\circ}C$ in mid-summer. It is served as an oversummering site for many temperate species, like Calanus sinicus and Euphaisia pacifica. Calanus sinicus is a dominant copepod in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea and can be found throughout the year with the year maximum in May to June. In summer it disappears in the coastal area and in the upper layer of central area due to the high temperature and shrinks its distribution into YSCBW.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.55 no.5
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• pp.625-637
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• 2022

The southern coast of the East Sea is an important area affected by large warm currents as it connects the coastal waters of Jeju Island, the South Sea, and Dokdo. From 2017 to 2021, the average catch per unit effort (CPUE; kg/day/ship) of set net fishery at six ports in the Gyeongbuk region off the southern coast of the East Sea was the highest in Gampo, Gyeongju, and the lowest in Hupo, Uljin. Although the seasonal variation in the CPUE differed by region and year, it was generally high in autumn. In the set net fishery in Pohang from 2019 to 2021, we identified 72 species, which decreased to 56 species in 2019, 46 in 2020, and 41 in 2021. The species diversity index slightly increased over the three-year periods. We found positive correlations between the total catch (kg) of subtropical species in autumn and the water temperature at 50 m. Among the most abundant species, we found substantially positive correlations between the CPUE of Scomber japonicus, Scomberomous spp. and Carangids. We also noted positive correlations between the CPUE of Todarodes pacificus, Seriola spp. and Carangids.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.47 no.5
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• pp.654-658
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• 2014

We report the first identification of a spawning ground of the blackfin flounder Glyptocephlaus stelleri near the Wangdol-cho sea mountains, located in the southern East Sea. Eggs and larval fish of G. stelleri were collected during April and June, 2014, when an abundance of eggs was found in the southern area of Wangdol-cho. Our findings suggest that G. stelleri prefers to spawn in the vicinity of the off-shore sea mountains, where the temperature is between 10 and $12^{\circ}C$ and the water depth is 100 m, rather than inshore.

• Korean Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences
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• v.38 no.1
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• pp.29-38
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• 2005

The distributions of fish larvae and juveniles from the East China Sea, Yellow Sea and near Tsushima Island were investigated in Spring using the Maruchi (1994-1995) and Unagi (1996-1997) nets. A total of 94 species of fish larvae and juveniles belonging to 49 families under 17 orders were identified, of which Engraulis japonicus was dominant in every year except 1995 where Trachurus japonicus was dominant. Cluster analysis based on abundance and species composition by sampling stations (St.) revealed that the similar stations formed an arcuate group from Tsushima Island to southern Jeju Island in 1994, and from the Yellow Sea to southern Jeju Island in 1996. We concluded that these patterns resulted from the influence of the Tsushima Current prevailing in the east, and the Chinese Continental Waters and/or Hwanghae Cold Waters prevailing in the west, with Jeju Island exerting an influence in the centre. The diversity and composition of St. 97-3 and St. 97-5, both located where the Tsushima Current splits from the Kuroshio Current, was greatly different despite their close proximity. However, the former is located on the continental shelf, with the latter on the continental slope. This suggested that both topography and the Kuroshio Current have the most influence on the distribution of fish larvae and juveniles in this region. Furthermore, the weak Hwanghae Cold Waters of 1997 may have also limited the mixing of fish larvae and juveniles between the two stations.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
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• v.9 no.2
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• pp.65-72
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• 2003

Oceanic conditions of the Tsushima Warm Current (TWC) region in the southern area of the East Sea (Japan Sea) are examined using data obtained from a CREAMS (Circulation Research if the East Asian Marginal Seas) cruise in June 1996. In 1990s, a lower temperature appears in 1996 and in this period, two branches of the TWC exist and the first branch of the TWC flows inshore of the Japanese coastal region compared to that in the other years, especially in the shallower water layer at depth less than about 200 m. The TWC cored with the higher salinity (>34.6 psu) is clearly observed over the continental shelf in the Japanese coastal region and offshore and identified by geostrophic calculation. Intrusion of the TWC into the East Sea through the Korea Strait (the Tsushima Strait) makes the density structure in the water column change and the water mass in the TWC region is unstable based on Brunt­Vaisala frequency.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.21 no.2
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• pp.125-133
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• 2012

Climatological trend for the period of 1970 to 2009 in sea water temperature around the Antarctic Peninsular waters in the Southern Ocean was investigated. During the period from 1970 to 2009, sea water temperature in the top 500 m water column except 100 m increased at a rate of $0.003-0.011^{\circ}C{\cdot}yr^{-1}$, but at 100 m it decreased at a rate of $-0.003^{\circ}C{\cdot}yr^{-1}$. Although long-term trend is generally warming, there were several periods of sharp changes between 1970 and 2009. Annual mean sea water temperature between surface and 500 m except 100 m decreased from the early of 1970s to the end of 1980s, and then it increased to the end of 2000s. In the entire water column between the surface and 500 m, sea water temperature closely correlated with the El Nino events expressed as the Southern Oscillation Index(SOI), and SOI and sea water temperature have a dominant period of about 3-5 years and decade.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.22 no.10
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• pp.1363-1371
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• 2013

In this study, we estimate the interannual spatial and temporal distributions of fishing grounds at night in the East Sea based on satellite and in-situ data. We observe that the $15^{\circ}C$ thermal front moves in the north-south direction according to the movement of the warm water (above $18^{\circ}C$) in the Tsushima Warm Current (TWC) area, forcing the cold water area (below $10^{\circ}C$) to either expand or shrink. The interannual variations of sea surface temperature (SST) in winter represented by the indicator SST of $6^{\circ}C$ are consistent with the east-west zonal areas in the central East Sea which represented over $1^{\circ}C$ standard deviation of SST in February during 1990-2000. Annual SST in the fishing grounds of common squid fishing vessels, observed both by fishing vessels and satellites range from 9-$22^{\circ}C$, with the satellite-observed data having a larger range than the fishing vessel-based ones. The interannual distributions of the common squid fishing grounds in the East Sea are mostly concentrated in the TWC area in the southwestern part of the East Sea and in the coast of southern Honshu and Hokkaido in Japan. The interannual distributions of the nighttime fishing vessels are consistent with the catches investigated from the fishing vessel.

• Journal of Fisheries and Marine Sciences Education
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.58-66
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• 2005

Floating debris was observed using a training ship, KAYA, of Pukyong National University with cruising speed of about 10-12 knot during July 12~25, 2003. The area sampled was the East Sea enclosed by 3 nations, namely, Korea, Japan and Russia, and was divided into 68 unit segments on survey routes [Fig. 1]. Debris fabrication materials were categorized with 6 items, e.g., man-made or natural wood items, paper and cardboard, nylon rope, styrofoam, vinyl and plastic, floating metal and glass containers. All identified items within $100{\pm}10 m$ wide band were recorded but ignored if beyond this boundary. The results of this study are as follows: 1. The average numbers of debris per unit area, $1km^2$, were found as 16.3 pieces (items) in the sea. 2. The highest densities of numbers, $32.3pieces/km^2$, were discovered in vicinity of the Oki strait of Japan, area of 'NEK' in Fig. 1. 3. Especially, styrofoam item only was composed to 63.6% of all in the sea of 'SD', located in the southern part of Dokdo Island, Korea. The item seems to be derive from the Southern Sea of Korea. 4. Therefore, comparing the distribution of debris numbers (the results of above 2 and 3) with flow patterns of Kuroshio currents, it was shown that their relation was good agree each other. Further more surveys are being conducted and a much wider coverage can be achieved with other countries, then it can be obtained that the East Sea is polluted to some extent, where is the origin of debris, and the finding of floating routes and stationary sea.

• Ocean Science Journal
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• v.40 no.4
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• pp.191-200
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• 2005

In this study an analytical tide model of uniform width with three sub-regions is presented. The three-subregions model takes into account step-like variations in depths in the direction of the channel as a way to examine the $M_2$ tide of the East China Sea (ECS) as well as the Yellow Sea (YS). A modified Proudman radiation condition has been applied at the northern open head, while the sea surface elevation is specified at the southern open boundary. It is seen that, due to the presence of an abrupt change in depth, co-amplitude lines of the $M_2$ tide are splitted to the east and west near the end of the ECS shelf region. Variations in depths, bottom friction and the open head boundary conditions all contribute to the determination of formation of amphidromes as well as overall patterns of $M_2$ tidal distribution. It is seen that increasing water depth and bottom friction in the ECS shelf results in the westward shift of the southern amphidrome. There is however no hint at all of the well-known degenerated tidal pattern being formed. It is inferred that a lateral variation of water depth has to be somehow incorporated to represent the tidal patterns in ECS in a realistic manner. Regarding the radiation factor introduced by Fang et al. (1991), use of a value larger than one, possibly with a phase shift, appears to be a proper way of incorporating the reflected waves from the northern Yellow Sea (NYS).

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Fisheries Technology Conference
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• 2000.05a
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• pp.181-182
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• 2000

Due to the instability of the EKWC, the oceanic conditions in the East Sea are affected by the fluctuations of the moving paths of the TWC, polar fronts, and warm eddies. In particular, warm eddies play an important role in spreading the surface water of the East Sea from its southern coastal region to its interior region (Isoda, 1994). However, the fluctuation characteristics of the meandering TWC and the warm eddies in the East Sea are not yet known due to the instability of the TWC. Hideaki(1999) showed that the moving paths and features of the TWC in the coastal regions of Japan were not constant. (omitted)