Abstract

Abstract-- In this study, we used the Navy '..s Master Oceanographic Observation Data Set (MOODS), consisting of 116 019 temperature and 9 617 salinity profiles, during 1968-1984 to inves-tigate the temporal and spatial variabilities of South China Sea.th~ohaline structures and circulation. For temperature, profiles were binned into 204 monthly data sets from 1968 to 1984 (17 years). For salinity, profiles were binned into 12 climatological monthly data sets due to the data paucity. A two-scale optimal interpolation method was used to establish a three-dimens!onal monthly-varying gridded da-ta set from MOODS, covering the area of 5 °- 25°N and 105 °- 125°E and the depth from the surface to 400 m. After the gridded data set had been established, b;;!h oompa;ite analysis and the Empirical Or-thogonal Function (EOF) analysis (for temperature only) were used to identify the major thennohaline fratures including annual mean, monthly anomalies, and interannual thermal variabilities. The inverted monthly circulation pattern using the P- vector methOd is also discussed. Key worm The South China Sea, thermohaline structure, circulation