The Impact Of Local Wind Stress On The Path Of The Kuroshio At The Luzon Strait

Based on the hysteresis phenomenon of the Kuroshio at the Luzon Strait theimpact of the local wind jet associated with the mountains and topography on the pathof Kuroshio is studied. First a1.5-layer reduce-gravity model is used to simulate thehysteresis phenomenon of the Kuroshio at the Luzon Strait, then the critical states atwhich the Kuroshio is about to change regimes to study the impact of the local windjet on the regime shift of the Kuroshio. The model results show that the easterly windand northerly wind can induce the change from the leap state to the penetration statewhen the Kuroshio is at the critical point from leap to penetration, but the westerlyand southerly wind can’t induce the regime shifts; at the critical point frompenetration to leap the wind from all directions except for westerly wind can inducethe change from the penetration state to the leap state. Analysis shows that the windstress curl has a stronger impact on the WBC shift than the Ekman transport. Thedynamics are that the local wind stress curl produces Ekman pumping, which forcesthe thermocline to change. As a result, the path of Kuroshio will shift eastwardly orwestwardly. Because of the existence of the hysteresis process, this change isirreversible. When the external influence is appropriate, the leap state and thepenetration state can change to be each other.