Southern coast turning subtropical

By Bae Ji-sook

Staff reporter

The average temperature of the nation' southern coast has jumped by as high as 1.7 degrees Celsius over the past decade, turning the eco-system there increasingly subtropical, a state-run institute said Friday.

The warmer and humid weather means more volatile environmental phenomena such as typhoons or tsunamis, according to the Korea Hydrographic and Oceanographic Administration (KHOA).

In its report on water temperature off the south coast between 2000 and 2009, temperatures in the waters between Yeosu of South Jeolla Province and northern Jeju Island rose by 1.7 degrees, while the waters near Moseulpo on Jeju Island and Busan increased by 0.7 degrees and 0.2 degrees, respectively.

"Considering that the global average seawater temperature elevation marked around 0.5 degrees during the same period, the increase rate here is faster than other parts of the world," KHOA researcher Kim young-taek said.

The main culprit behind the warming effect is the inflow of the salty and warmer Tsushima Current to the southern part of Korea, raising the overall temperature during the winter.

The think tank stated that the South Sea has become a marine environment for subtropical fish such as smooth hammerhead, white tongue cravalle, which are found in subtropical zones around Okinawa. The subtropical environment is around 25 to 30 degrees latitude with an average temperature of 20 degrees Celsius.

It also forecast that more "natural disasters" such as typhoons or tsunamis will affect Korea. "Subtropical seas have lots of thermal energy on their surface, which could strengthen such meteorological phenomena," Kim said. Many experts project that typhoons become about 5 percent more powerful for every 1 degree-increase in temperature.

Last year, the National Fisheries, Research and Development Institute said the temperature of seas off Yeosu had risen by 1.3 degrees between 1965 and 2007. "The East Sea will be as warm as the South Sea in a very short period of time," it said.

아열대로 변하는 남해안

지난 10년 동안 우리나라 남해안의 평균기온이 1.7도나 올라 점점 아열대로 변하고 있다고 금요일 한 국영 연구소가 말했다.

국립해양연구소에 따르면 온난화한 습한 날씨는 태풍이나 쓰나미 등이 생기는 취약한 환경 현상을 의미한다. 연구 보고서에 따르면 2000년부터 2009년까지 전라남도 여수와 제주도 사이 남해안의 온도는 1.7도나 올랐고, 제주도 모슬포와 부산은 각각 0.7도, 0.2도 올랐다.

연구소의 김영택 연구원은 "지구의 평균 수면온도가 0.5도 오른 것을 감안하면 우리나라 기온은 훨씬 빠르게 오르고 있다"고 말했다.

또한 남해는 일본 오키나와지역의 아열대 기후 해역에서 볼 수 있는 귀상어와 민정갱이 등 아열대 물고기들이 살수 있는 환경이 되었다고 이 연구소는 말했다.

국립수산과학원은 작년 여수해안 온도가 1965에서 2007년까지 1.3도 올랐다며 "동해는 더 짧은 시간 내에 남해안과 비슷하게 따뜻해 질 것"이라고 말했다.