In industrial facilities sites, the conventional method determining the earthquake magnitude (M) using earthquake ground-motion records is generally not applicable due to the poor quality of data. Therefore, a new methodology is proposed for determining the earthquake magnitude in real-time based on the amplitude measures of the ground-motion acceleration mostly from S-wave packets with the higher signal-to-ratios, given the Vs30 of the site. The amplitude measures include the bracketed cumulative parameters and peak ground acceleration (As). The cumulative parameter is either CAV (Cumulative Absolute Velocity) with 100 SPS (sampling per second) or BSPGA (Bracketed Summation of the PGAs) with 1 SPS. The arithmetic equations to determine the earthquake magnitude are derived from the CAV(BSPGA)-As-M relations. For the application to broad ranges of earthquake magnitude and distance, the multiple relations of CAV(BSPGA)-As-M are derived based on worldwide earthquake records and successfully used to determine the earthquake magnitude with a standard deviation of ±0.6M.

For the vast majority of geostationary satellites currently in orbit, station keeping activities including orbit determination and maneuver planning and execution are ground-directed and dependent on the availability of ground-based satellite control personnel and facilities. However, a requirement linked to satellite autonomy and survivability in cases of interrupted ground support is often one of the stipulated provisions on the satellite platform design. It is especially important for a geostationary military-purposed satellite to remain within its designated orbital window, in order to provide reliable uninterrupted telecommunications services, in the absence of ground-based resources due to warfare or other disasters. In this paper we investigate factors affecting the robustness of a geostationary satellite’s orbit in terms of the maximum duration the satellite’s station keeping window can be maintained without ground intervention. By comparing simulations of orbit evolution, given different initial conditions and operations strategies, a variation of parameters study has been performed and we have analyzed which factors the duration is most sensitive to. This also provides valuable insights into which factors may be worth controlling by a military or civilian geostationary satellite operator. Our simulations show that the most beneficial factor for maximizing the time a satellite will remain in the station keeping window is the operational practice of pre-emptively loading East-West station keeping maneuvers for automatic execution on board the satellite should ground control capability be lost. The second most beneficial factor is using short station keeping maneuver cycle durations.

Jang Bogo Station (JBS), the second Korean Antarctic research station, was established in Terra Nova Bay, Antarctica (74.62°S 164.22°E) in February 2014 in order to expand the Korea Polar Research Institute (KOPRI) research capabilities. One of the main research areas at JBS is space environmental research. The goal of the research is to better understand the general characteristics of the polar region ionosphere and thermosphere and their responses to solar wind and the magnetosphere. Ground-based observations at JBS for upper atmospheric wind and temperature measurements using the Fabry-Perot Interferometer (FPI) began in March 2014. Ionospheric radar (VIPIR) measurements have been collected since 2015 to monitor the state of the polar ionosphere for electron density height profiles, horizontal density gradients, and ion drifts. To investigate the magnetosphere and geomagnetic field variations, a search-coil magnetometer and vector magnetometer were installed in 2017 and 2018, respectively. Since JBS is positioned in an ideal location for auroral observations, we installed an auroral all-sky imager with a color sensor in January 2018 to study substorms as well as auroras. In addition to these observations, we are also operating a proton auroral imager, airglow imager, global positioning system total electron content (GPS TEC)/scintillation monitor, and neutron monitor in collaboration with other institutes. In this article, we briefly introduce the observational activities performed at JBS and the preliminary results of these observations.

Since the operation of the King Sejong Station (KSS) started in Antarctic Peninsula in 1989, there have been continuous efforts to perform the observation for the upper atmosphere. The observations during the initial period of the station include Fabry-Perot Interferometer (FPI) and Michelson Interferometer for the mesosphere and thermosphere, which are no longer in operation. In 2002, in collaboration with York University, Canada, the Spectral Airglow Temperature Imager (SATI) was installed to observe the temperature in the mesosphere and lower thermosphere (MLT) region and it has still been producing the mesopause temperature data until present. The observation was extended by installing the meteor radar in 2007 to observe the neutral winds and temperature in the MLT region during the day and night in collaboration with Chungnam National University. We also installed the all sky camera in 2008 to observe the wave structures in the MLT region. All these observations are utilized to study on the physical characteristics of the MLT region and also on the wave phenomena such as the tide and gravity wave in the upper atmosphere over KSS that is well known for the strong gravity wave activity. In this article, brief introductions for the currently operating instruments at KSS will be presented with their applications for the study of the upper atmosphere.