Seasonal Characteristics and Temporal Variations of Ocean Wave in the Chinese Offshore Waters and Adjacent Sea Areas

Abstract

In this paper,the TOPEX satellite altimeter data observed from December 1992 to March 2005 are used to analyze the seasonal characteristics and temporal variations of ocean wave in the Chinese offshore waters.It is shown from the analysis results that the average wave height in winter is the greatest,and the high wave areas in winter are located in the Taiwan Strait,the northern South China Sea,the sea area southeast of Indo-China Peninsula and the sea area outside of the Luzon Strait;the average wave height in summer is the smallest;and spring and autumn are transitional seasons.It is shown from the study results that the annual variation of ocean wave in the high wave area in winter is the main temporal variation characteristics,the intraseasonal variation is another important feature,and the interannual variations of average wave height with a 5 year period are well consistent with the ENSO event.