Temporal and Spatial Variations of SST and Ocean Fronts in the Korean Seas by Empirical Orthogonal Function Analysis

Abstract

In the Korean seas, Sea Surface Temperature (SST) and Thermal Fronts (TF) were analyzed temporally and spatially during 8 years from 1993 to 2000 using NOAA/AVHRR MCSST. In the application of EOF analysis for SST, the variance of the 1st mode was 97.6%. Temporal components showed annual variations, and spatial components showed that where it is closer to continents, the SST variations are higher. Temporal components of the 2nd mode presented higher values of 1993, 94 and 95 than those of other years. Although these phenomena were not remarkable, they could be considered ELNI?NO effects to the Korean seas as the time was when ELNINO occurred. The Sobel Edge Detection Method (SEDM) delineated four fronts: the Subpolar Front (SPF) separating the northern and southern parts of the East Sea; the Kuroshio Front (KF) in the East China Sea, the South Sea Coastal Front (SSCF) in the South Sea, and the Tidal Front (TDF) in the West Sea. TF generally occurred over steep bathymetry slopes, and spatial components of the 1st mode in SST were bounded within these frontal areas. EOF analysis of SST gradient values revealed the temporal and spatial variations of the TF. The SPF and SSCF were most intense in March and October; the KF was most significant in March and May.