• Atmosphere
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• v.28 no.2
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• pp.187-200
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• 2018

The heavy snowfall phenomenon with thunder and lightning occurred in Yeongdong coastal region on 20 January 2017. Amount of snow on that day was a maximum of 47 cm and was concentrated in a short time (2 hours) at the Yeongdong coastal area. The mechanism of thundersnow was investigated to describe in detail using observational data and numerical simulation (Weather Research and Forecast, WRF) applied lightning option. The results show that a convective cloud occurred at the Yeongdong coastal area. The east wind flow was generated and the pressure gradient force was maximized by the rapidly developed cyclone. The cold and dry air in the upper atmosphere has descended (so called tropopause folding) atmospheric lower layer at precipitation peak time (1200 LST). In addition, latent heat in the lower atmosphere layer and warm sea surface temperature caused thermal instability. The convective cloud caused by the strong thermal instability was developed up to 6 km at that time. And the backdoor cold front was determined by the change characteristics of meteorological elements and shear line in the east sea. Instability indexes such as Total totals Index (TT) and Lightning Potential Index (LPI) are also confirmed as one of good predictability indicates for the explosive precipitation of convective rainfall.

• Atmosphere
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.321-336
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• 2016

Damages caused by torrential rain occur every year in Korea and summer time convection can cause strong thunderstorms to develop which bring dangerous weather such as torrential rain, gusts, and flash flooding. On 6 August 2013 a sudden torrential rain concentrated over the inland of Southern Korean Peninsula occurred. This was an event characterized as a mesoscale multicellular convection. The purpose of this study is to analyze the conditions of the multicellular convection and the synoptic and mesoscale nature of the system development. To this end, dynamical and thermodynamic analyses of surface and upper-level weather charts, satellite images, soundings, reanalysis data and WRF model simulations are performed. At the beginning stage there was a cool, dry air intrusion in the upper-level of the Korean Peninsula, and a warm humid air flow from the southwest in the lower-level creating atmospheric instability. This produced a single cell cumulonimbus cloud in the vicinity of Baengnyeongdo, and due to baroclinic instability, shear and cyclonic vorticity the cloud further developed into a multicellular convection. The cloud system moved southeast towards Seoul metropolitan area accompanied by lightning, heavy precipitation and strong wind gusts. In addition, atmospheric instability due to daytime insolation caused new convective cells to develop in the upstream part of the Sobaek Mountain which merged with existing multicellular convection creating a larger system. This case was unusual because the system was affected little by the upper-level jet stream which is typical in Korea. The development and propagation of the multicellular convection showed strong mesoscale characteristics and was not governed by large synoptic-scale dynamics. In particular, the system moved southeast crossing the Peninsula diagonally from northwest to southeast and did not follow the upper-level westerly pattern. The analysis result shows that the movement of the system can be determined by the vertical wind shear.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.55-64
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• 2000

The Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission(TRMM) Satellite was launched in November 1997, carving into orbit the first space-borne Precipitation Radar(PR). The main objective of the TRMM is to obtain and study multi-year science data sets of tropical and subtropical rainfall measurements. In the present investigation, the characteristics of heavy rainfall cases over Korea in 1998 and 1999 are analyzed using the TRMM/PR dat3. We compare the rainrate measured from TRMM/PR with the accumulated rainfall data for 10 minutes tv Automatic Weather System(AWS). Especially, horizontal cross-section of rainrate with height and longitude in the precipitating clouds are investigated. As a result of the comparison with GMS-5 IR1, the TRMM/PR data delineate well the rain type( i.e. convective, stratiform cloud and others), height of storm top and instantaneous rainrate in the precipitating clouds. The vertical structure with height and horizontal cross-section of rainrate along the longitude show the orographic effect on the rainfall. TRMM/PR instrument measures the rainrate below 6 ㎜/hr more than AWS rainguages and inclined to underestimate the rainrate than rainguages for the whole area.

• Journal of Environmental Science International
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• v.30 no.12
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• pp.1053-1065
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• 2021

In this study, the prediction technology of Hydrological Quantitative Precipitation Forecast (HQPF) was improved by optimizing the weather predictors used as input data for machine learning. Results comparison was conducted using bias and Root Mean Square Error (RMSE), which are predictive accuracy verification indicators, based on the heavy rain case on August 21, 2021. By comparing the rainfall simulated using the improved HQPF and the observed accumulated rainfall, it was revealed that all HQPFs (conventional HQPF and improved HQPF 1 and HQPF 2) showed a decrease in rainfall as the lead time increased for the entire grid region. Hence, the difference from the observed rainfall increased. In the accumulated rainfall evaluation due to the reduction of input factors, compared to the existing HQPF, improved HQPF 1 and 2 predicted a larger accumulated rainfall. Furthermore, HQPF 2 used the lowest number of input factors and simulated more accumulated rainfall than that projected by conventional HQPF and HQPF 1. By improving the performance of conventional machine learning despite using lesser variables, the preprocessing period and model execution time can be reduced, thereby contributing to model optimization. As an additional advanced method of HQPF 1 and 2 mentioned above, a simulated analysis of the Local ENsemble prediction System (LENS) ensemble member and low pressure, one of the observed meteorological factors, was analyzed. Based on the results of this study, if we select for the positively performing ensemble members based on the heavy rain characteristics of Korea or apply additional weights differently for each ensemble member, the prediction accuracy is expected to increase.

• Geomechanics and Engineering
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.283-298
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• 2022

Landslides triggered by the combination of heavy precipitation and anthropological disturbance in hilly areas cause severe damage to human lives, properties, and infrastructure constructions. A comprehensive investigation of the influencing factors and failure mechanisms of landslides are significant for disaster mitigation and prevention. This paper utilized the combination of detailed geological investigation, physical experimental testing as well as numerical modelling to determine the failure mechanism, and proposed a countermeasures of the Lantian landslide occurred on 2, July 2017. The results reveal that the Lantian landslide is a catastrophic reactivated slide which occurred in an active tectonic region in Southwest China. Because of the unique geological settings, the fully to highly weathered basalts in the study area with well-developed fractures favored the rainwater infiltration, which is the beneficial to slide reactivation. Engineering excavation and heavy precipitation are the main triggering factors to activate the slide motion. Two failure stages have been identified in the landslide. The first phase involves a shallow mass collapse originated at the upper slopes, which extends from the road to platform at rear part, which is triggered by excavation in the landslide region. Subjected to the following prolonged rainfall from 19 June to 2 July, 2017, the pore water pressure of the slope continually increased, and the groundwater table successively rise, resulting in a significant decrease of soil strength which leads to successive large-scale deep slide. Thereinto, the shallow collapse played a significant role in the formation of the deep slide. Based on the formation mechanisms of the landslide, detailed engineering mitigation measures, involving slope cutting, anchor cable frame, shotcrete and anchorage, retaining wall and intercepting ditch were suggested to reduce the future failure risk of the landslide.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.40 no.6
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• pp.572-583
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• 2019

In this study, the atmospheric vertical structure (AVS) associated with summertime (June, July, and August) heavy rainfall in Seoul was classified into three patterns (Loaded Gun: L, Inverted V: IV, and Thin Tube: TT) using rawinsonde soundings launched at Osan from 2009 to 2018. The characteristics of classified AVS and precipitation property were analyzed. Occurrence frequencies in each type were 34.7% (TT-type), 20.4% (IV-type), 20.4% (LG-type), and 24.5% (Other-type), respectively. The mean value of Convective Available Potential Energy (1131.1 J kg^-1) for LG-types and Storm Relative Helicity (357.6 ㎡s^-2) for TT-types was about 2 times higher than that of other types, which seems to be the difference in the mechanism of convection at the low level atmosphere. The composited synoptic fields in all cases showed a pattern that warm and humid southwesterly wind flows into the Korean Peninsula. In the cases of TT-type, the low pressure center (at 850 hPa) was followed by the trough in upper-level (at 500 hPa) as the typical pattern of a low pressure deepening. The TT-type was strongly influenced by the low level jet (at 850 hPa), showing a pattern of connecting the upper- and low-level jets. The result of analysis indicated that precipitation was intensified in the first half of all types. IV-type precipitation induced by thermal instability tended to last for a short term period with strong precipitation intensity, while TT-type by mechanical instability showed weak precipitation over a long term period.

• Korean Journal of Environmental Agriculture
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• v.26 no.2
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• pp.116-123
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• 2007

This experiment was conducted to investigate the distribution and burden characteristics of heavy metals in the rainwater sampled at Suwon area, in the middle part of Korea, from April 2002 to October 2003. The relationship between concentration of heavy metal and other chemical properties in the rainwater was also evaluated. Chemical properties in the rainwater were various differences with raining periods and years. It appeared that a weighted average pH of rainwater was ranged from 4.7 to 5.5. Heavy metal concentrations in the rainwater were ranked as Zn>Pb>Cu>Ni>Cr>As>Cd. As compared with heavy metal concentrations of rainwater in 2002, Cd, Cu and As were higher than other element in 2003. There were positive correlation between major ionic components, such as Ca, Mg, and K, and heavy metal concentrations of rainwater, and As, CU, Cu, Zn and Ni were relatively higher relationship than Pb and Cr in respective to correlation coefficient. For heavy metal distribution of rainwater, the order of average enrichment factors was Cd>Pb>AS>Cu>Zn>Ni>Cr, and these were relatively higher than the natural component such as Fe, Mg and Ca. The monthly enrichment factors were relatively high in the spring (from April to May) at Suwon. The monthly amount of heavy metal precipitation was high in the rainy season from June to August because of great influence of rainfall.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.32 no.7
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• pp.750-760
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• 2011

In this study, the reproducibility of the simulated current climate by using two regional climate models, such as Seoul National University Regional Climate Model (SNURCM) and Weather Resuearch and Forecasting (WRF), is evaluated in advance to produce the standard regional climate scenario of future climate. Within the evaluation framework of a COordinated Regional climate Downscaling EXperiment (CORDEX), 28-year-long (1978-2005) regional climate simulation was conducted by using the Hadley Centre Global Environmental Model (HadGEM2-AO) global simulation data of the National Institute of Meteorological Research (NIMR) as a lateral boundary forcing. The simulated annual surface temperatures were in good agreement with the observation; the spatial correlation coefficients between each model and observation were over 0.98. The cold bias, however, were shown over the northern boundary in the both simulated results. In evaluation of the simulated precipitation, the skill was reasonable and good. The spatial correlation coefficients for the precipitation over the land area were 0.85 and 0.79 in SNURCM and WRF, respectively. It is noted that two regional climate models (RCMs) have different characteristics for the distribution of precipitation over equatorial and midlatitude areas. SNURCM shows better distribution of the simulated precipitation associated with the East Asia summer monsoon in the mid-latitude areas, but WRF shows better in the equatorial areas in comparison to each other. The simulated precipitation is overestimated in summer season (JJA) rather than in spring season (MAM), whereas the spatial distribution of the precipitation in spring season corresponds to the observation better than in summer season. Also the RCMs were capable of reproducing the annual variability of the maximum amount and its timing in July, in which the skills over the inland area were in better agreement with the observation than over the maritime area. The simulated regional climates, however, have the limitation to represent the number of days for extremely hot temperature and heavy rainfall over South Korea.

• Journal of Soil and Groundwater Environment
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• v.18 no.7
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• pp.63-72
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• 2013

This study estimated stabilization efficiency of As and heavy metal contaminated agricultural soil in abandoned mine through pot experiment. Also contaminants uptake of plant (lettuce) was compared as function of amendment (limestone, steelmaking slag and the mixture of these) addition. In soil solution analysis, concentration of contaminants in soil solutions which added limestone or steelmaking slag were lower than that of the mixture. Especially in As analysis, concentration with 5% (wt) addition of steelmaking slag showed the lowest value among those with other amendments. This seems that As stabilization happens through Fe adsorption during precipitation of Fe by pH increasing. Leachability of As in stabilized soil by TCLP was represented similar result with soil solution analysis. However leachability of heavy metals in stabilized soil was similar with that of non-stabilized soil due to dissolution of alkali precipitant by weak acid. Contaminants uptake rate by plant was also lower when limestone or steelmaking slag was used. However this study revealed that concentration of contaminants in soil solution didn't affect to the uptake rate of plant directly. Because lower $R^2$ (coefficient of determination) was represented in linear regression analysis between soil solution and plant.

• Journal of the Korean GEO-environmental Society
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• v.3 no.1
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• pp.37-45
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• 2002

EDTA-enhanced electrokinetic removal of copper and zinc from contaminated sandy soil was carried out. In desorption equilibrium tests, the required mass ratio of EDTA to metal was 10:1 to obtain over 90% of desorption from soil. The removal of heavy metals with chelating agent EDTA below pH 3 was limited because of EDTA precipitation. In electrokinetic experiments, the pH control at anode chamber was essential and 38% Cu and 56% Zn were removed under 30 mA for 1.5 days. Heavy metal removal was greatly improved by controlling anode and soil pH with circulation of anolyte with NaOH solution, in which >50% heavy metal was removed for 4 days and >70% for 9 days.