• Journal of Positioning, Navigation, and Timing
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• v.8 no.2
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• pp.69-77
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• 2019

This study introduces MATLAB Graphical User Interface (GUI)-based software to monitor ionospheric disturbances. This software detects ionospheric disturbances using Global Positioning System (GPS) and Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) measurements, and estimates a location of the disturbance source through the detected disturbance. In addition, this software includes a sky plot making function and frequency analysis function through wavelet transform. To evaluate the performance of the developed software, data of 2011 Tohoku earthquake in Japan were analyzed by using the software. The analysis results verified that the ionospheric disturbances were detected through GPS and GLONASS measurements, and the location of the disturbance source was estimated through the detected disturbance.

• Journal of Positioning, Navigation, and Timing
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.157-161
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• 2022

The Nuri rocket developed by South Korea was launched at approximately 07:00 UT on June 21, 2022. We use GPS observations obtained from the Korean GNSS network to analyze ionospheric total electron content (TEC) disturbances induced by the 2022 Nuri rocket launch. TEC disturbances are observed south over South Korea 4-5 min after the rocket launch. In addition, the maximum depletion in the vertical TEC shows approximately 8 TEC units (TECU). We also compute a horizontal velocity from initial ionospheric disturbances triggered by the 2022 Nuri rocket launch. Its velocity is about 1.4 km/s. It may be related to the rocket's flight trajectory at the observation time of the ionospheric TEC disturbance.

• Journal of Advanced Navigation Technology
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• v.22 no.6
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• pp.616-622
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• 2018

Energy which is released by a huge earthquake can reach the ionosphere and induce disturbances. Those disturbances can detected by analyzing the global navigation satellite system (GNSS) satellite's signal. For detecting those disturbances, band-pass filter is generally used. Therefore, it is important to select proper pass band that can contain disturbance's frequency. In this paper, we analyzed a frequency of the ionospheric disturbances which are induced by earthquake by using GNSS signal. For analyzing seismogenic ionospheric disturbances, we calculated a geometry free combination of carrier phase to obtain a ionospheric delay. After that, the fast Fourier transform was applied to the 1 mHz high-passed ionospheric delay. As a result of analyzing disturbances, the frequency band of earlier disturbances was 4.5 mHz~11mHz and the representative frequency was 5.7 mHz. The frequency band of subsequent disturbances was 6 mHz~10 mHz and the representative frequency was 7.3 mHz.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Surveying, Geodesy, Photogrammetry and Cartography
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• v.29 no.6
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• pp.651-657
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• 2011

There exists a high correlation between the ionospheric delays and the integer ambiguity in GPS observation equation, so that the sufficient time span is required to revolve the integer ambiguity. This means that the ambiguity resolution plays a key role especially in rapid-static positioning mode. To analyze the effect of ionospheric disturbances on the positioning accuracy, 02/19/2011 day of dataset was selected processed in rapid-static positioning mode. The total of 141 30-minute sessions were processed, i.e., the estimation procedure started every 10 minutes, and the time-to-fix information of each data interval is obtained. In this study, the analysis is performed by comparing the time-to-fix with the magnitudes of ionospheric delays. The computed correlation coefficient between the time-to-fix and the magnitudes of ionospheric delays is 0.31, which indicates the ionospheric disturbances affect the positioning accuracy in rapid-static positioning mode. Therefore, it is required to collect and process sufficient data when the GPS surveying is performed in unfavorable ionospheric conditions.

• Proceedings of the KSRS Conference
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• 2008.10a
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• pp.348-357
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• 2008

The classification of the effect of ionospheric disturbances on the radio occultation signal amplitude has been introduced based on an analysis of more than 2000 seances of radio occultation measurements per formed with the help of the CHAMP German satellite. The dependence of the histograms of variations in the radio occultation signal amplitude on the IMF variation index has been revealed. It has been indicated that it is possible to introduce the radio occultation index characterizing the relation between ionospheric disturbances and solar activity. An amplitude radio occultation (RO) method is proposed to study connection between the ionospheric and solar activity on a global scale. Sporadic amplitude scintillation observed in RO experiments contain important information concerning the seasonal, geographical, and temporal distributions of the ionospheric disturbances and depend on solar activity. The probability of strong RO amplitude variations (RO $S_4$ index greater than 0.2) in the CHAMP RO signals diminishes sharply with the weakening of solar activity from 2001 to 2008. The general number of RO events with strong amplitude variations can be used as an indicator of the ionospheric activity. We found that during 2001-2008 the daily globally averaged RO $S_{4a}$ index depends essentially on solar activity. The maximum occurred in January 2002, minimum has been observed in summer 2008. Different temporal behavoir of $S_{4a}$ index has been detected for polar (with latitude greater than $60^{\circ}$) and low latitude (moderate and equatorial) regions. For polar regions $S_{4a}$ index is slowly decreasing with solar activity. In the low latitude areas $S_{4a}$ index is sharply oscillating, depending on the solar ultraviolet emission variations. The different geographical behavoir of $S_{4a}$ index indicates different origin of ionospheric plasma disturbances in polar and low latitude areas. Origin of the plasma disturbances in the polar areas may be connected with influence of solar wind, the ultraviolet emission of the Sun may be the main cause of the ionospheric irregularities in the low latitude zone. Therefore, the $S_{4a}$ index of RO signal is important radio physical indicator of solar activity.

• Publications of The Korean Astronomical Society
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• v.15 no.spc2
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• pp.1-13
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• 2000

Through the coupling between the near-earth space environment and the polar ionosphere via geomagnetic field lines, the variations occurred in the magnetosphere are transferred to the polar region. According to recent studies, however, the polar ionosphere reacts not only passively to such variations, but also plays active roles in modifying the near-earth space environment. So the study of the polar ionosphere in terms of geomagnetic disturbance becomes one of the major elements in space weather research. Although it is an indirect method, ground magnetic disturbance data can be used in estimating the ionospheric current distribution. By employing a realistic ionospheric conductivity model, it is further possible to obtain the distributions of electric potential, field-aligned current, Joule heating rate and energy injection rate associated with precipitating auroral particles and their energy spectra in a global scale with a high time resolution. Considering that the ground magnetic disturbances are recorded simultaneously over the entire polar region wherever magnetic station is located, we are able to separate temporal disturbances from spatial ones. On the other hand, satellite measurements are indispensible in the space weather research, since they provide us with in situ measurements. Unfortunately it is not easy to separate temporal variations from spatial ones specifically measured by a single satellite. To demonstrate the usefulness of ground magnetic disturbance data in space weather research, various ionospheric quantities are calculated through the KRM method, one of the magneto gram inversion methods. In particular, we attempt to show how these quantities depend on the ionospheric conductivity model employed.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.37 no.1
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• pp.61-68
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• 2020

Recent studies have suggested that detectable ionospheric disturbances precede earthquakes. In the present study, variations in the vertical total electron content (TEC) for eight earthquakes with magnitudes of M ≥ 5.5 in the western United States were investigated during the solar maximum of 2013-2015 using United States total electron content (US-TEC) data provided by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Analyses of 12 earthquakes with magnitudes of 5.0 ≤ M < 5.5 in the same region were also performed. The TEC variations were examined for 40 days, including the times when the earthquakes occurred. The results indicated a correlation between earthquakes with magnitudes of M ≥ 5.0 and ionospheric TEC anomalies. TEC anomalies occurred before 60% of the earthquakes. Additionally, they were more frequently observed for large earthquakes (75%, M ≥ 5.5) than for small earthquakes (50%, 5.5 > M ≥ 5.0). Anomalous increases in the TEC occurred 2-18 days before the earthquakes as an ionospheric precursor, whereas solar and geomagnetic activities were low or moderate.

• Journal of Advanced Navigation Technology
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• v.22 no.2
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• pp.49-56
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• 2018

As the energy generated by earthquake, tsunami, etc. propagates through the air and disturbs the electron density in the ionosphere, the perturbation can be detected by analyzing the ionospheric delay in satellite signal. The electron density in the ionosphere is affected by various factors such as solar activity, latitude, season, and local time. To distinguish from the anomaly, therefore, it is required to inspect the normal trend of the ionosphere. Also, as the perturbation magnitude diminishes by distance it is necessary to develop an appropriate algorithm to detect long-distance disturbances. In this paper, normal condition ionosphere trend is analyzed via IONEX data. We selected monitoring value that has no tendency and developed an algorithm to effectively detect the long-distance ionospheric disturbances by using the lasting characteristics of the disturbances. In the end, we concluded the $2^{nd}$ derivative of ionospheric delay would be proper monitoring value, and the false alarm with the developed algorithm turned out to be 1.4e-6 level. It was applied to 2011 Tohoku earthquake case and the ionospheric disturbance was successfully detected.

• Journal of Astronomy and Space Sciences
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• v.32 no.4
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• pp.297-304
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• 2015

In this study, we documented the midlatitude F2-layer response to five strong geomagnetic storms with minimum Dst < -150 nT that occurred in solar minimum years using hourly values of the F2-layer critical frequency (foF2) from four ionosondes located in different hemispheres. The results were very limited, but they illustrated some peculiarities in the behavior of the F2-layer storm. During equinox, the characteristic ionospheric disturbance patterns over the Japanese station Wakkanai in the Northern Hemisphere and the Australian station Mundaring in the Southern Hemisphere were consistent with the well-known scenario by $Pr{\ddot{o}}lss$ (1993); however, during a December solstice magnetic storm, both stations did not observe any noticeable positive ionospheric disturbances. Over the "near-pole" European ionosonde, clear positive ionospheric storms were not observed during the events, but the "far-from-pole" Southern Hemisphere station Port Stanley showed prominent enhancements in F2-layer peak electron density in all magnetic storms except one. No event produced noticeable nighttime enhancements in foF2 over all four ionosondes.

• Bulletin of the Korean Space Science Society
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• 2011.04a
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• pp.26.3-27
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• 2011

Formation of a steep plasma density gradient in the middle-latitude ionosphere during geomagnetic storms and the latitudinal migration of its location depending on the storm phase are suggested to be associated with the ionospheric signature of the plasmapause. We test this idea by using the satellite and ground observation data during the 11 April 2001 storm. The locations of the steep plasma density gradient identified by TOPEX/Poseidon (2001 LT) and DMSP (1800 and 2130 LT) satellites coincide with the ionospheric footprints of the plasmapause identified by the IMAGE satellite. This observation may support the dependence of the middle-latitude plasma density gradient location on the plasmapause motion, but does not explain why the steep density gradient whose morphology is largely different from the morphology of the middle-latitude ionization trough during quiet period is formed in association with the plasmapause. The ionospheric disturbances in the total electron content (TEC) maps shows that the steep TEC gradient is formed at the boundary of the positive ionospheric storm in low-middle latitudes and the negative ionospheric storm in middle-high latitudes. We interpret that the thermospheric neutral composition disturbance in the dayside is confined within the middle-high latitude ionospheric convection zone. The neutral composition latitudes and, therefore, the locations of the steep plasma density gradient coincide with the footprints of the plasmapause. The TEC maps show that the appearance of the steep plasma density gradient in the pre-midnight sector during the recovery phase is related to the co-rotation of the gradient that is created during the main phase.