Seasonal variability of intrusion of the Kuroshio water across the continental shelf northeast of Taiwan

Abstract

The currents over the East China Sea continental slope northeast of Taiwan were monitored from mid-July to early December, 1992 and again from late March to early August, 1993, covering the two transition periods of monsoon seasons. In 1992, we found massive Kuroshio intrusion (onshore velocity reaching 25 cm/s or more) occurred at mid-October, a lag of one month after the wind pattern changed from southerly to northeasterly. By comparing the surface meteorological with observed cross-slope velocity, we suggest that cooling rather than direct wind forcing, i.e., mid-October cold air outbreaks associated with the Siberia highs moving across the East China Sea, may be the major cause for triggering the observed winter intrusion event. The intrusion continued until the end of the 1992 data in early December and again in late March and early April of 1993 when the data became available. In mid-April, 1993, the intrusion suddenly halted when the lows replaced the highs and the wind reversed with warm air from south. In addition, we found that short-period intrusions appeared in August and early September, 1992 and in late July, 1993. All of these summer intrusions coincide with the occurrence of typhoon passages over or further offshore of the area northeast of Taiwan.