Numerical Simulation of Residual Currents and Low Salinity Dispersions by Changjiang Discharge in the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea

A three-dimensional hydrodynamic model with the fine grid is applied to simulate the barotropic tides, tidal currents, residual currents and salinity dispersions in the Yellow Sea and the East China Sea. Data inputs include seasonal hydrography, mean wind and river input, and oceanic tides. Computed tidal distributions of four major tides( and ) are presented and results are in good agreement with the observations in the domain. The model reproduces well the tidal charts. The tidal residual current is relatively strong around west coast of Korea including the Cheju Island and southern coast of China. The current by has a maximum speed of 10 cm/s in the vicinity of Cheju Island with a anti-clockwise circulation in the Yellow Sea. General tendency of the current, however, is to flow eastward in the South Sea. Surface residual current simulated with and with tidal forcing shows slightly different patterns in the East China Sea. The model shows that the southerly wind reduces the southward current created by freshwater discharge. In summer during high runoff(mean discharge about of Yangtze), low salinity plume-like structure(with S