Simulation of the formation process of the Japan/East Sea intermediate water with the nested model

Kawamura, Hideyuki  ; Yoon, J.-H.*; Ito, Toshimichi 

The Japan/East Sea Intermediate Water (JESIW) characterized by Salinity Minimum Layer (SML) with dissolved oxygen (DO) maximum was frequently observed in the Japan Sea. It is suggested that the origin of the JESIW is the coastal fresh water along the Primorye and North Korean coasts. The fresh water near the subpolar front along 40N advected from the coastal region has the possibility to sink into intermediate depth. This study aims to understand the formation mechanism of the JESIW by using the three-dimensional nested model. The results show that 1/18-resolution model can reproduce the strong downward velocity with the maximum of about 0.05 cm/s along the subpolar front in the Japan Sea. It results in the patch of low salinity water in the intermediate depth, which is consistent with the observational result. It is indicated that the high-resolution model is useful to reproduce the JESIW, since it can reproduce the meso-scale phenomenon such as baroclinicity near the frontal area, which is an important factor for surface water transport into the intermediate depth.