Monthly sea surface temperature records reconstructed by δ18O of reef-building coral in the east of Hainan Island, South China Sea

Stable oxygen isotopic compositions of a coral colony ofPorites lutea obtained on a core allowed the reconstruction of a 56-a (1943–1998) proxy record of the sea surface temperatures. This coral δ18O data are from the east of Hainan Island water (22°20’N, 110°39’E), South China Sea. The relationship between δ18O in the skeletal aragonite carbonate and the sea surface temperature (SST) is SST = -5.36 δ18OPDB-3.51 (r = 0.73,n = 470), dδ18O/d(SST) = -0.187‱/ °C; and the thermometer was set at monthly resolution. The 56-a (1943–1998) proxy record of the sea surface temperatures reflected the same change trend in the northern part of South China Sea as the air temperature change trend in China.