Fig. 16
From: Review of the Early–Middle Pleistocene boundary and Marine Isotope Stage 19
Monthly chlorophyll-a (Chl-a) concentrations and monthly sea-surface temperature (SST) for the western North Pacific in 2019 based on satellite observations. a–f Chlorophyll-a concentrations as a measure of primary (phytoplankton) productivity. The generalized positions of the Kuroshio Current (KC) and Kuroshio Extension (KE) are given in a. The position of the Kuroshio Extension Front (KEF; Fig. 15) is evident from sharply enhanced productivity around and north of ~ 30° N; greatest productivity in the mid-latitudes east and north of Chiba is during the boreal spring (March–May) with a subdued rise in the autumn (September–October). g–l Sea-surface temperature; the KEF moves only slightly northwards during summer–autumn but the latitudinal gradient across the KEF lessens significantly in summer with considerable northward diffusion of warm water during July–September. Note mesoscale eddies pinching off along the KEF and advecting heat northwards. NASA Earth Observations (2020)