Kinematic characteristics and water mass transports of submesoscale
coherent vortices in the northeastern South China Sea
Abstract
As a unique phenomenon occurring in the subsurface ocean, submesoscale
coherent vortices (SCVs) are believed to have a pivotal role in the
long-distance ocean tracer transports. SCVs have been widely observed in
the global oceans, however, most of them are captured accidentally and
their kinematic characteristics and water mass transports have only been
studied in a limited number of regions. Here, we use 4-year observations
of velocity, temperature, and salinity from five moorings in the
northeastern South China Sea (NESCS) to examine dozens of newly
discovered SCVs. A total of 34 SCVs were identified during the
observational period, including 25 convex lens-like anticyclones and 9
concave lens-like cyclones. The maximum swirl velocity, mean radius, and
vertical length scale of the anticyclones (cyclones) are 0.19±0.07 m
s–1 (0.19±0.07 m s–1), 26.4±13.9 km (17.0±5.4 km), and 204±62 m
(188±53 m), respectively. Vertically, the velocity structure of the
observed SCVs conforms to a Gaussian function when the effect of
stratification is removed. Water mass analyses suggest that 88% (30/34)
of the SCVs carried Kuroshio water, which demonstrates the mechanism
proposed by Zhang et al. (2022) that they are formed by Kuroshio-islands
interactions within the Luzon Strait. This category of SCVs is therefore
named Luzon Strait island wake eddies (Liddies). We further estimate
that Liddies can result in an equivalent annual-mean volume transport of
0.20 Sv westward across the Luzon Strait, which suggests that they play
a nonnegligible role in the subsurface water transports between the
NESCS and the northwestern Pacific.