Spatial and Temporal Variability of Sea Surface Temperature in the Northern South China Sea

The spatio-temporal variability of sea surface temperature (SST) in the northern South China Sea was examined using monthly SST data during 1985-2009. The missing data were first reconstructed by using Data INterpolating Empirical Orthogonal Function (DINEOF) algorithm. The reconstructed SST data were verified to be qualified for further application based on statistical and image analyses. Then, EOF analyses of cloud-free datasets were used to quantify the SST variability. The first mode of SST is all dominated by positive values and the corresponding temporal evolution is an annual periodicity peaking in summer and winter; the second mode is dominated by the negative (positive) signal in coastal waters (offshore waters) and the exact timing of the peak varies in different years; the third mode is an augmentation of the variability signal of mode 2 in coastal waters and the time evolution function reaches its positive and negative peaks both in winter.