Sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies of the Yellow and East China Seas in July of 2020

Abstract

With the global warming, the long term variations of sea surface temperature and its anomalies in the Yellow and East China Seas, especially for the July of 2020 due to the abnormally torrential rain along Changjiang/Yangtze River Valley, have been investigated based on the Merged Satellite and In-situ Data Global Daily sea surface temperature (MGDSST) provided by the Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA) using the methods of composite and correlation analyses. The results suggest, contrary to warming anomalies in the North-western Pacifica Ocean, the sea surface temperature in the East China Sea is cooler around 0.5°C and that in the East China Sea is cooler around 1.3°C than the normal values. The sea surface temperatures approach the extreme low value in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea in July, and warm up to the normal year in August. In addition, the south-westerly summer monsoon over this region, is proposed to contribute the transport of Kuroshio and its pathway. The obvious westerly wind anomalies, correspond to the lower sea surface temperature over the Yellow and East China Seas in July of 2020, leads to a clear less heat advection from Kuroshio to this region. Further, the low sea surface temperature, leading a downward air motion with a convergence at near sea surface level, is helpful for the enhance of the westerly wind anomalies until the strong surface heat flux in August. This study suggests that the local horizontal circulation advection and net heat flux are also dominated on the heat content of the East China waters. Further quantitative studies are worth conducting.