The Laboratory of Ocean Circulation and Waves, the Institute of Oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IOCAS) traces its origins to the Marine Environment Group established in 1950. Its immediate predecessor was the Open Research Laboratory of Ocean Circulation and Shallow Sea Dynamics, which was formed through the merger of the Physical Oceanography Laboratory (1957-2000) and the Laboratory of Ocean Circulation and Air-Sea Interaction (1989-2000). It stands as the key disciplinary laboratory for physical oceanography at IOCAS.

This laboratory has consistently maintained a leading or advanced position, both nationally and internationally, in research areas such as ocean circulation, air-sea interaction, and land-sea interaction. Since the 1950s, our laboratory has pioneered the identification and investigation of most major scientific questions concerning the circulation in the western Pacific Ocean and China's marginal seas. Groundbreaking discoveries including the South China Sea warm current, the East China Sea cold eddy, the Zhejiang coastal upwelling, and the Mindanao undercurrent, along with representative original theoretical contributions such as the theory of the Yellow Sea Cold Water Mass circulation, the theory of the turning mechanism of the Changjiang River Diluted Water, and the theory of tidal quasi-harmonic analysis, have played a pivotal role in driving and leading the development of physical oceanography in China. The laboratory has fostered a cohort of internationally renowned scientists, exemplified by figures like MAO Hanli, HU Dunxin, YUAN Yeli, and FANG Guohong, alongside numerous outstanding mid-career and young scientists, earning high reputation and influence globally.

In the new era, building upon its solid foundation and traditional strengths, the laboratory has continued to achieve new systematic and original results, particularly in fields like the tropical western Pacific Ocean circulation variability and its climatic and environmental effects. In recent years, we have led several major national research initiatives, including the Innovative Research Group project, Major and Key Projects from the National Natural Science Foundation of China, Key Research & Development Programs from the Ministry of Science and Technology, and the Strategic Priority Research Program of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, making numerous pioneering and leading contributions to the advancement of physical oceanography in China.

The laboratory currently has 97 permanent research staff, including 1 academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and 32 professors. The laboratory director is Professor WANG Jianing, and the chair of the academic committee is Academician FU Bojie. Aligned with national strategic needs and scientific frontiers, and focusing on the CAS "Innovation 2020" initiative and the IOCAS "One-Three-Five" major breakthrough goals, our laboratory is dedicated to research in dynamics of ocean circulation and its climatic and environmental effects, ocean waves and mixing, marine system modeling, remote sensing, and big data mining. We strive to achieve breakthrough academic accomplishments and are committed to developing into one of the world's premier research centers for ocean circulation and waves.