CR 73:217-231 (2017)  -  DOI: https://doi.org/10.3354/cr01471

ABSTRACT: A sea surface temperature (SST) data set was recently reconstructed for the China Seas and their adjacent waters (100-150°E, 0-50°N). Hereafter, we refer to this new regional data set as SST-CS. SST-CS has a monthly temporal resolution and a spatial resolution of 1° latitude by 1° longitude for the period from January 1960 to December 2012. This data set is merged by SST observations from the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) of China and the SST observations from Release 2.5 of the International Comprehensive Ocean-Atmosphere Data Set (ICOADS R2.5) from 1960-2012. SST-CS has improved the data coverage over the China Seas (105-130°E, 15-45°N) compared with ICOADS R2.5. Results show that SST-CS is more consistent with SST observations over the China Seas than COBE SST2 and HadISST1, especially in the offshore areas, and can better capture the temporal and spatial variability of SST in the China Seas. The warming rate of the annual mean SST derived from SST-CS is about 0.153°C every 10 yr for the past 53 yr over the China Seas. Regarding seasonal variation, the most significant warming trend appears in winter, about 0.181°C per 10 yr, and the lowest warming trend occurs in summer (0.102°C per 10 yr). SST-CS can provide a more suitable and available data source for climatic and oceanographic studies in the China Seas and their adjacent waters.

KEY WORDS: Sea surface temperature · China Seas · Data set · Observation · Climate change