AbundantevidencesofhighersealevelsfromJiangsuandFujiancoastshaveprovedamarinetransgressioneventduring30–40kaBP,suggestingthattherewasastagewithhighsealevelandawarmclimatewhenicesheetsshrankintheNorthernHemisphere.Thedurationof30–40kaBPspannedaperiodinthelateMarineIsotopeStage3(MIS3)andwasinnatureaninterstadialepochduringtheLastGlacialperiodoftheQuaternary.Differentfromtheglacialperiodwithacoldclimate,thismarinetransgressionconsideredasapenultimatehighersealevelduringtheQuaternaryremainsapuzzlethatwhytheevidenceiscontrarytotheQuaternaryglacialtheory.Itisimportanttounderstandsealevelrisefortheseareassensitivelyrespondingtotheglobalchangesinthefuture.Torecognizethekeyissuesonsealevelchanges,theeustaticsealevel(H_S)wasdefinedastheglaciation-climateforcedsealevels,andtherelativesealevelchange(H_R)wasdefinedasthatasealevelrecordwaspreservedinsedimentthatexperiencedmultiplesecondaryactionsoflandandseaeffects.Onthebasisasdefinedabove,weconstructedmulti-levelmodelsofclimate-drivenglacio-eustaticchangesandland-seasystems.Byintegratingdatasetsfromeightboreholecoresandprescribingtheboundaryconditions,wesimulatedthechangesofHSandHRintheEastChinaSeaandsouthernYellowSeaareasinthelateMIS3.Themarinetransgressionstratafromtheboreholecoredatawasidentifiedatca.30mbelowpresentsealevelasaresultofthecollectiveinfluenceoficemeltingwater,neotectonicsubsidence,sedimentcompactionandterrestrialsedimentfillingsinceca.35kaago,whereasthesimulatedrelativesea-levelsturnedouttobe–26.3––29.9ma.s.l.Thesmallerrorinvolvedinthesimulationresultsof±(2.5–4.5)mdemonstratedthecredibilityoftheresults.OurresultsindicatedthatsealevelchangeinthelateMIS3wasdominatedbyglacialeffects,inwhichtheeustaticsea-levelwasbetween–19.2�
