Wang, K.; Feng, X.; Zhang, H.; Li, Z.; Fan, G., and Yu, Z., 2020. Climate change characteristics and adaptation in the offshore East China Sea from 1979 to 2017. In: Zheng, C.W.; Wang, Q.; Zhan, C., and Yang, S.B. (eds.), Air-Sea Interaction and Coastal Environments of the Maritime and Polar Silk Roads. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 99, pp. 54-59. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208.

The climate change characteristics and adaptation abilities of the offshore East China Sea area are very important issues against the backdrop of the Maritime and Polar Silk Roads strategy. Based on meteorological observation data and reanalysis data, the spatial distribution and temporal variation characteristics of sea surface temperature (SST), sea surface salinity (SSS) and winds in the offshore East China Sea area were analyzed. From 1979 to 2017, the offshore average SST increased by 0.18°C/10 a as a whole. The average SSS showed an interdecadal cycle from 1980 to 2017 with a peak in 2005 (34.54 g/kg) and a trough in 1995 (34.26 g/kg). The lowest offshore SSS was 34.0 g/kg in the southern Korean Peninsula and the southern Taiwan Strait, while the highest offshore SSS was 34.8 g/kg in the low-latitude Pacific offshore area. The climatic characteristics annual accumulated gale days, annual local maximum wind speed, absolute maximum wind speed and average wind speed from 1971 to 2017 were analyzed, which showed that the influence of gales on Zhejiang was more serious than their influence on the other provinces in East China. In addition, decision-making strategies for climate change adaptation are discussed to provide a scientific reference for controlling the risks of climate change to the East China coastal zone and the Maritime Silk Road strategy.