The effect of oceanic mesoscale eddies on the looping path of the Kuroshio intrusion in the Luzon Strait

In this study, the effects of oceanic mesoscale eddies on the looping path of the Kuroshio intrusion (KI) were symmetrically investigated by composite analysis using merged satellite data. We found that the mesoscale eddies propagating from the east have a significant impact on the looping path over a time scale of 30–60 days. Cyclonic eddies (CEs) enhance the looping path, but anticyclonic eddies decrease it. We also found that strong eddies do not have strong effects on the looping path. For instance, strong CEs induce the strong surface intrusion of the Kuroshio, but the looping currents are weak due to the presence of the strong Luzon Cold Eddy in the South China Sea, which tends to prevent loop formation. The complicated relationship between eddies and the path of the KI results in a nonsignificant correlation coefficient between the KI and eddy activities in the western Pacific.