Non Linear Internal Wave Dynamics in the South China Sea - Analysis of NCOM Surface Circulation and Sea Level

摘要

The project had two main objectives. The first objective was to measure the 15 m depth circulation in South China Sea and in the Luzon Strait region during fall and winter (October through January) with Surface Velocity Program (SVP) drifters and to measure the upper ocean mass transport through the Luzon Strait. The time period was chosen because a significant intrusion of the Kuroshio in the South China Sea through the Luzon Strait is known to occur during these months. The second objective was to use drifting instruments to measure vertical profiles of velocity and temperature within large amplitude, non-linear internal waves and to compute their phase velocity and the magnitude of the non-linear terms. The third objective is to use the existing and new datasets of surface circulation to compare with the results of the ROMS numerical model to evaluate the model ability to reproduce a realistic flow field in the Kuroshio region and in the East China Sea.