Characteristics of Upper Mantle Activity in the South China Sea Region and the Indochina Mantle Plume

Abstract According to computed results of the mantle traction field beneath the lithosphere based on satellite-modelled gravity anomalies of different degrees, it has been revealed that the three types of mantle convection on different scales existing in the South China Sea region is the key factor controlling the geodynamics. The mantle convection models on large and middle scales have been proved by natural seismic S-wave tomographic data and interpreted by using the present mantle plume concept. In consideration of other relevant geological and geophysical data, the authors put emphasis on discussing the expression form, origin and age of the Indochina mantle plume and its important effect on the conversion of organic matter and hydrocarbon accumulation in Cenozoic basins.

Characteristics of seismic reflections in central region of the South China Sea and their geological significance

More than 4 000 km 48-channel seismic reflection data from the central region of the South China Sea have been interpreted. Five seismic interfaces have been distinguished, named T1, T2, T4, T6 and Tg respectively Meanwhile, five seismic sequences numbered I - V have been divided with the ages of Quaternary and Pliocene, Later Mocene, Earlier and Middle Miocene, Oligocene and Pre- Oligocene separately. Sequences I-II overlie all parts of the area. In the continental slope and island slope, Sequences III-V are mainly found in the grabens. Sequence III is found at moot profiles of the deep-sea basin, and Sequnce IV is seen not only at the margins of the east subbasin but also at the margins of the southwest subbasin. Strong reflection from Moho is found at most profiles of the deep-sea basin. The depth of Moho varies between 10 and 12 km, with a thickness of 6- 8 km for the crust. Calculated by age-basement depth correlation formula, the age of basaltic basement in the southwest subbasin is 51-39 Ma. It is indicated that the evolution of the southwest subbasin is simultaneous with or earlier than that of the east subbasin.

Dynamic Controls on the Formation of Mantle Plume Beneath the South China Sea Region

The South China Sea(SCS)has attracted intensive structural and geophysical research over the past decades,with a focus on its extensional history and relevant dynamic tectonic models.Seismic tomographic images obtained

Economic stability analysis of blue carbon cooperation in the South China sea region using evolutionary game model with Weber's law

The political environment of the South China Sea Region(SCSR)has gradually stabilized,such that regional cooperation in the preservation of marine resources seems realistic.Blue carbon international cooperation is an important solution to the problem of global warming,which has a large number of economic and political attributes.As a region that has incredibly abundant blue carbon resources,further cooperation among SCSR governments would present the opportunity to establish meaningful economic and environmental protections that would promote peaceful blue carbon development of this region.To examine the feasibility of such an undertaking,we leverage the imitator's dynamic game as a research method and introduce Weber's law to examine the subjective psychological factors(i.e.,biases)of participants in qualifying the economic stability of blue carbon cooperation in the SCSR.The results suggest that the economic stability of blue carbon cooperation correlates to Weber's coefficient and the income produced by the different strategies.Based on these findings,we discussed policy recommendations to promote the sustainable economic development of SCSR.

Evaluation of reanalysis surface wind products with quality-assured buoy wind measurements along the north coast of the South China Sea

Three archived reanalysis wind vectors at 10 m height in the wind speed range of 2-15 m/s,namely,the second version of the National Centres for Environmental Prediction(NCEP)Climate Forecast System Reanalysis(CFSv2),European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasting Interim Reanalysis(ERA-I)and NCEPDepartment of Energy(DOE)Reanalysis 2(NCEP-2)products,are evaluated by a comparison with the winds measured by moored buoys in coastal regions of the South China Sea(SCS).The buoy data are first quality controlled by extensive techniques that help eliminate degraded measurements.The evaluation results reveal that the CFSv2 wind vectors are most consistent with the buoy winds(with average biases of 0.01 m/s and 1.76°).The ERA-I winds significantly underestimate the buoy wind speed(with an average bias of-1.57 m/s),while the statistical errors in the NCEP-2 wind direction have the largest magnitude.The diagnosis of the reanalysis wind errors shows the residuals of all three reanalysis wind speeds(reanalysis-buoy)decrease with increasing buoy wind speed,suggesting a narrower wind speed range than that of the observations.Moreover,wind direction errors are examined to depend on the magnitude of the wind speed and the wind speed biases.In general,the evaluation of three reanalysis wind products demonstrates that CFSv2 wind vectors are the closest to the winds along the north coast of the SCS and are sufficiently accurate to be used in numerical models.

Cretaceous magmatic arc in Hainan and the peri-South China Sea asevidenced by geochemical fingerprinting of granitoids in the region

Mesozoic magmatic rocks occur widely in the South China Block and are generally interpreted as the manifestations of the subduction of the Paleo-Pacific oceanic lithosphere beneath Asia.Subductiondriven magmatism in southeast(SE)China continued from the Late Permian through the Late Cretaceous with an inferred lull between 125 Ma and 115 Ma that is known in the literature as the Cretaceous"magmatic quiescence".We report in-situ zircon U-Pb ages,Hf-O and whole-rock Sr-Nd isotopes,and whole-rock geochemistry of Cretaceous granitoids on Hainan Island and discuss their magmatic evolution within the framework of the Late Mesozoic geodynamics of SE China.We recognize two main stages of the emplacement of Cretaceous granitoids on Hainan,first around 120 Ma and then around 100-95 Ma,displaying high-K calc-alkaline,I-type geochemical affinities.Granites in both age groups are enriched in LILE and LREE,but depleted in Nb,Ta,Ba,Sr,and Eu.The 120 Ma granites have zircon ε_(Hf)(t)values of-2.6 to 2.3 corresponding to Hf crustal model ages,ranging from 0.79 Ga to 1.03 Ga,and δ^(18)O values ranging from 6.9‰to 7.7‰.Zircons from 100-95 Ma granites have ε_(Hf)(t)values of-4.2 to 1.1 corresponding to Hf crustal model ages of 1.08 Ga to 1.42 Ga,and δ^(18)O values ranging from 6.7‰to 8.4‰.Increasing ε_(Hf)(t)values of the Cretaceous Hainan granites with younger crystallization ages indicate addition of more juvenile components and reworking of crustal material into their melt evolution.The ε_(Nd)(t)values of the 120 Ma and 100-95 Ma granitoids range between-4.1 to-0.4 and-7.7 to-4.0,respectively.The calculated two-stage model age of the 100-95 Ma granitoids clusters between 1.25 Ga and 1.53 Ga.These isotopic data suggest that magmas of the Cretaceous granitoids were produced by partial melting of Mesoproterozoic metabasaltic rocks,which make up much of the crystalline basement of the southern Cathaysia block.The geochemical and isotopic characteristics of the Cretaceous granitoids on Hainan resemble those of magmatic arcs in the Circum-Pacific orogenic belts and identical to those of nearly coeval granitoid intrusions in the continental fragments within the South China Sea basin.We interpret these Cretaceous granitoids in the Peri-South China Sea region as the remnants of a once contiguous Late Mesozoic magmatic arc system that bounded the southern margin of the entire continental Southeast Asia.Our findings do not support the existence of an episode of magmatic quiescence in the geological record of SE China during the Aptian.

Interpreting the sea surface temperature warming trend in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea

Previous studies have demonstrated that the low-frequency sea surface temperature(SST) variability in the Yellow Sea and East China Sea(YECS) is linked to large-scale climate variability, but explanations on the mechanisms vary. This study examines the low-frequency variability and trends of some atmospheric and oceanic variables to discuss their different effects on the YECS warming. The increasing temperature trend is also observed at a hydrographic section transecting the Kuroshio.The increasing rate of ocean temperature decreases with depth, which might result in an increase in vertical stratification and a decrease in vertical mixing, and thus plays a positive role on the YECS warming. The surface net heat flux(downward positive)displays a decreasing trend, which is possibly a result of the YECS warming, and, in turn, inhibits it. Wind speeds show different trends in different datasets, such that its role in the YECS warming is uncertain. The trends in wind stress divergence and curl have large uncertainties, so their effects on SST warming are still unclear. The Kuroshio heat transport calculated in this study,displays no significantly increasing trend, so is an unlikely explanation for the SST warming. Limited by sparse ocean observations,sophisticated assimilative climate models are still needed to unravel the mechanisms behind the YECS warming.

Development characteristics and construction prospects for a multi-integrated economic zone in the South China Sea Region

The Belt and Road Initiative(BRI)instigated by China is catalyzing the evolution of a new global economic landscape.To cope with the great changes in the economic landscape,China needs to view the South China Sea Region(SCSR)as a strategic focus and study carefully the characteristics of regional development and explore the possibility for construction of a strategic multi-integrated economic zone which includes China and ASEAN countries.Based on key indicators,this paper outlines the overall development characteristics of the SCSR and analyzes the regional structural characteristics of industry and global trade based on the indexes of industrial structure similarity and trade commodity structure coincidence;the paper also depicts the spatial characteristics of the nine core growth areas(CGAs)in the region and discusses the construction prospects for a multi-integrated economic zone in the SCSR.The results show that,first,from 2000 to 2017,the main economic indicators of the SCSR grew quite well,and the development trend was much better than the global average for the same period.Second,driven by the global industrial transfer stages and spatial paths,the level of comprehensive development in the SCSR has evolved into four categories.Third,the index values for industrial structure similarity and trade commodity structure coincidence for the 11 countries in the SCSR have remained at a high level,and reveal an integration trend not only from the horizontal and vertical perspective,but also from an upgrading and downgrading standpoint.Fourth,nine CGAs have been established in the SCSR and the advantaged industries and the export commodity types between different countries exhibited the characteristics of convergence and complementarity due to the polarization and diffusion effects of the CGAs.Finally,from a long-term perspective,the SCSR has already acquired the internal and external conditions such as the 5 th global industrial transfer initiative,the reconstruction of the global value chain,regional production-consumption networks and spatial entities for building a multi-integrated economic zone in the SCSR.

A Recombination Clustering Technique for Forecasting of Tropical Cyclone Tracks Based on the CMA-TRAMS Ensemble Prediction System

Despite marked improvements in tropical cyclone(TC) track ensemble forecasting,forecasters still have difficulty in making quick decisions when facing multiple potential predictions,so it is demanding to develop post-processing techniques reducing the uncertainty in TC track forecasts,and one of such techniques is the cluster-based methods.To improve the effect and efficiency of the previous cluster-based methods,this study adopts recombination clustering(RC) by optimizing the use of limited TC variables and constructing better features that can accurately capture the good TC track forecasts from the ensemble prediction system(EPS) of the China Meteorological Administration Tropical Regional Atmosphere Model for the South China Sea(CMA-TRAMS).The RC technique is further optimized by constraining the number of clusters using the absolute track bias between the ensemble mean(EM) and ensemble spread(ES).Finally,the RC-based deterministic and weighted probabilistic forecasts are compared with the TC track forecasts from traditional methods.It is found that(1) for deterministic TC track forecasts,the RC-based TC track forecasts outperform all other methods at 12–72-h lead times;compared with the skillful EM(118.6 km),the improvements introduced by the use of RC reach up to 10.8%(8.1 km),10.2%(13.7 km),and 8.7%(20.5 km) at forecast times of 24,48,and 72 h,respectively.(2) For probabilistic TC track forecasts,RC yields significantly more accurate and discriminative forecasts than traditional equal-weight track forecasts,by increasing the weight of the best cluster,with a decrease of 4.1% in brier score(BS) and an increase of 1.4% in area under the relative operating characteristic curve(AUC).(3) In particular,for cases with recurved tracks,such as typhoons Saudel(2017) and Bavi(2008),RC significantly reduces track errors relative to EM by 56.0%(125.5 km) and 77.7%(192.2 km),respectively.Our results demonstrate that the RC technique not only improves TC track forecasts but also helps to unravel skillful ensemble members,and is likely useful for feature construction in machine learning.