• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.34 no.6_4
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• pp.1503-1517
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• 2018

Mt. Baekdu is a stratovolcano located at the border between China and North Korea and is known to have formed through its differentiation stage after the Oligocene epoch in the Cenozoic era. There has been a growing interest in the magma re-activity of Mt. Baekdu volcano since 2010. Several research projects have been conducted by government such as Korea Meteorological Administration and Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources. Because, however, the Mt. Baekdu volcano is located far from South Korea, it is quite difficult to collect in-situ observations by terrestrial equipment. Remote sensing is a science to analyze and interpret information without direct physical contact with a target object. Various types of platform such as automobile, unmanned aerial vehicle, aircraft and satellite can be used for carrying a payload. In the past several decades, numerous volcanic studies have been conducted by remotely sensed observations using wide spectrum of wavelength channels in electromagnetic waves. In particular, radar remote sensing has been widely used for volcano monitoring in that microwave channel can gather surface's information without less limitation like day and night or weather condition. Radar interferometric technique which utilized phase information of radar signal enables to estimate surface displacement such as volcano, earthquake, ground subsidence or glacial movement, etc. In 2018, long-term research project for collaborative observation for Mt. Baekdu volcano between Korea and China were selected by Korea government. A volcanic specialized research center has been established by the selected project. The purpose of this paper is to introduce about remote sensing techniques for volcano monitoring and to review selected studies with remote sensing techniques to monitor Mt. Baekdu volcano. The acquisition status of the archived observations of six synthetic aperture radar satellites which are in orbit now was investigated for application of radar interferometry to monitor Mt. Baekdu volcano. We will conduct a time-series analysis using collected synthetic aperture radar images.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.30 no.4
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• pp.525-536
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• 2014

In this study, a method to assess and monitor hydrological drought using remote sensing was investigated for use in regions with limited observation data, and was applied to the Upper Namhangang basin in South Korea, which was seriously affected by the 2008-2009 drought. Drought information may be obtained more easily from meteorological data based on water balance than hydrological data that are hard to estimate. Air temperature data at 2 m above ground level (AGL) were estimated using remotely sensed data, evapotranspiration was estimated from the air temperature, and the correlations between precipitation minus evapotranspiration (P-PET) and streamflow percentiles were examined. Land Surface Temperature data with $1{\times}1km$ spatial resolution as well as Atmospheric Profile data with $5{\times}5km$ spatial resolution from MODIS sensor on board Aqua satellite were used to estimate monthly maximum and minimum air temperature in South Korea. Evapotranspiration was estimated from the maximum and minimum air temperature using the Hargreaves method and the estimates were compared to existing data of the University of Montana based on Penman-Monteith method showing smaller coefficient of determination values but smaller error values. Precipitation was obtained from TRMM monthly rainfall data, and the correlations of 1-, 3-, 6-, and 12-month P-PET percentiles with streamflow percentiles were analyzed for the Upper Namhan-gang basin in South Korea. The 1-month P-PET percentile during JJA (r = 0.89, tau = 0.71) and SON (r = 0.63, tau = 0.47) in the Upper Namhan-gang basin are highly correlated with the streamflow percentile with 95% confidence level. Since the effect of precipitation in the basin is especially high, the correlation between evapotranspiration percentile and streamflow percentile is positive. These results indicate that remote sensing-based P-PET estimates can be used for the assessment and monitoring of hydrological drought. The high spatial resolution estimates can be used in the decision-making process to minimize the adverse impacts of hydrological drought and to establish differentiated measures coping with drought.

• Korean Journal of Remote Sensing
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• v.39 no.5_3
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• pp.933-948
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• 2023

Atmospheric aerosols not only have adverse effects on human health but also exert direct and indirect impacts on the climate system. Consequently, it is imperative to comprehend the characteristics and spatiotemporal distribution of aerosols. Numerous research endeavors have been undertaken to monitor aerosols, predominantly through the retrieval of aerosol optical depth (AOD) via satellite-based observations. Nonetheless, this approach primarily relies on a look-up table-based inversion algorithm, characterized by computationally intensive operations and associated uncertainties. In this study, a novel high-resolution AOD direct retrieval algorithm, leveraging machine learning, was developed using top-of-atmosphere reflectance data derived from the Geostationary Ocean Color Imager-II (GOCI-II), in conjunction with their differences from the past 30-day minimum reflectance, and meteorological variables from numerical models. The Light Gradient Boosting Machine (LGBM) technique was harnessed, and the resultant estimates underwent rigorous validation encompassing random, temporal, and spatial N-fold cross-validation (CV) using ground-based observation data from Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) AOD. The three CV results consistently demonstrated robust performance, yielding R²=0.70-0.80, RMSE=0.08-0.09, and within the expected error (EE) of 75.2-85.1%. The Shapley Additive exPlanations(SHAP) analysis confirmed the substantial influence of reflectance-related variables on AOD estimation. A comprehensive examination of the spatiotemporal distribution of AOD in Seoul and Ulsan revealed that the developed LGBM model yielded results that are in close concordance with AERONET AOD over time, thereby confirming its suitability for AOD retrieval at high spatiotemporal resolution (i.e., hourly, 250 m). Furthermore, upon comparing data coverage, it was ascertained that the LGBM model enhanced data retrieval frequency by approximately 8.8% in comparison to the GOCI-II L2 AOD products, ameliorating issues associated with excessive masking over very illuminated surfaces that are often encountered in physics-based AOD retrieval processes.

• Journal of the Korean earth science society
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.196-209
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• 2009

Occurrences of sandstorms in the deserts and loess of Mongolia and northern China and associated dustfall episodes in the Korean Peninsula were monitored during the period January through December, 2005. False colour images were made by directly receiving the NOAA Advanced Very High Resolution Radiometer (AVHRR) data, and the distribution and transport of sandstorms were analyzed. The ground concentrations for PM10, PM2.5 and visibility of the dustfall episodes (PM10 concentration over $190{\mu}g\;m^{-3}$) were analyzed at Cheongwon, located midway in South Korea, and in the leeward direction of the place of origin of the sandstorms. Variations in the concentrations of $O_3,\;NO_2$, CO and $SO_2$ were also compared with dust concentrations in the dustfall episodes. Fewer occurrences of strong sandstorms in the place of origin were observed in 2005, due largely to the accumulation of snow and mild fluctuations of high and low pressure systems in the place of origin, thereby accounting for a low frequency of dustfall episodes in Korea, compared with those during the period 1997-2005. A total of 7 dustfall episodes were monitored in Korea in 2005 that lasted 11 days. In summer, sandstorms occurred less frequently in the source region in 2005 due to high humidity and milder winds, thereby causing no dustfall episodes in Korea. In case the sandstorms occurring at the place of source head directly to Korea without passing through large cities and industrial areas of China, the PM2.5 concentrations were measured at 20% or lower than the PM10 concentrations. However, when the sandstorms headed to Korea via the industrial areas of eastern China, where they pick up anthropogenic air pollutants, the PM2.5 concentrations were at least 25% higher of the PM10 concentrations. On the other hand, over 5 cases were observed and analyzed in 2005 where the PM10 concentrations of sand dust originating from the deserts were measured at $190{\mu}g\;m^{-3}$ or lower, falling short of the level of a dustfall episode.