Solar and Space Weather
Intro
The Solar and Space Weather Group conducts research in the area of solar activities and space weather with topics of interest including coronal mass ejections and solar flares,
sun-earth connections, Earth’s Magnetosphere, and Ionosphere/upper atmosphere.
History
The Solar and Space Weather Group of KASI has been conducting research toward the prevention of undesirable effects on Korean satellites,
the stability of wireless telecommunications, and the safety of polar route aviation.
In 2004, KASI initiated a solar project with the New Jersey Institute of Technology.
The two-part project involved the development of the Korean Solar Radio Burst Locator (KSRBL) at KASI and the construction of the the Korean SolarRadio Burst Locator (KSRBL)at the KASI, and the construction of 1.6 m New Solar Telescope (NST) at Big Bear Solar Observatory, which was completed in early 2009. We developed theFast Imaging Solar Spectrograph, one of the main instruments of the NST,
in collaboration with Seoul National University. In 2007, the group started a new space weather project to establishthe Korean Space Weather Prediction Center.
The scope of the project included extension of the ground observation system,
construction ofthe space weather database, and development of prediction models.
In 2010, KASI made an agreement with NASA to set up the data system to store, use, and disseminate the Solar Dynamic Observatory (SDO)data for the Asian region. Through another agreement with NASA, KASI built a 7 m parabolic antennain 2012 to receive space weather broadcast data from the Van Allen Probes (VAP) mission.
KASI uses the VAP real-time data to forecast space weather, protecting national space assets from the severe space environment.
The group currently supports the operation of NST and the NST and Nobeyama Radio Heliogram.
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Research
Research on solar physics and space weather is one of the most dynamic areas of space science.
The Solar and Space Weather Group of KASI has been working on various and wide-ranging studies,
including research on solar activity, the magnetosphere, the ionosphere, and the upper atmosphere of the Earth.
The group studies solar activity and the Sun–Earth connection using a combination of observations,
advanced analysis techniques, and numerical models for space weather forecasting. The group consists of three workgroups.
Solar physics
1. Small-scale magnetic activity
- Spectral investigation of chromospheric structures
- High-resolution observation of penumbral filaments
- Fine-scale brightening associated with magnetic cancellation
- Formation and evolution of pores
- Small-scale X-ray/extreme ultraviolet jets
2. Large-scale magnetic activity
- Initiation of solar flares and coronal mass ejections (CMEs)
- Particle acceleration associated with flares
- Coronal waves
- High-resolution observation of prominence activation
- Automated detection of filaments
- Magnetic helicity of active regions
- Radio observation of solar flares and CMEs
- Type II radio bursts
3. Interplanetary space
- CME/interplanetary CME (ICME) properties and propagation
- Geoeffectiveness of ICMEs
- Coronal waves
- ICME Structures
Magnetosphere
- 1. Study of the structure and dynamics of the Earth’s radiation belts and their relationship to substorms, ring currents, and the plasmasphere using satellite data analysis and numerical simulations
- 2. Development of a numerical and statistical forecast model aimed at prevention of undesirable effects on Korean satellites, the stability of wireless telecommunications, and the safety of polar route aviation
- 3. Design and development of space plasma payloads
Ionosphere/Upper Atmosphere
1. Study of the ionospheric/thermospheric variations with solar activity and changes in the space environment
- Variation of thermospheric density/dynamics/energetics
- Ionospheric variations due to solar activity and magnetic storms
- Summer polar mesospheric echoes associated with precipitation of high-energy electrons during high-speed solar wind streams
- Supersonic O(1S) bursts occurring in polar mesospheric cloud region
2. Study of ionospheric irregularities
- Study of mid-latitude ionospheric irregularities using VHF radar
- Study of lower thermospheric/mesospheric dynamics using meteor radar
- Magnetic signatures originating from ionospheric plasma
Instrumentation and Data Service
| Instruments | Installation | Description | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Solar physics | KASI Sunspot Telescope (KST) | 1987 | Sunspot number and white light |
| Solar Flare Telescope (SOFT) | 1995 | Hα, Hα full-disk, and white light | |
| E-CALLISTO | 2007 | Solar radio spectrograph (45–870 MHz) |
|
| Korean Solar Radio Burst Locator (KSRBL) |
2009 | Solar radio spectrograph | |
| Fast Imaging Solar Spectrograph (FISS) |
2010 | Hα (6563 Å), Ca II (8542 Å) bands | |
| New Solar Telescope (NST) |
2010 | Hα filtergram, vector magnetogram, full-disk Hα image, TiO image | |
| Korea Data Center for SDO |
2010 | HMI and AIA data | |
| Magnetospheric research |
Magnetometer | 2007 | MI sensor and Fluxgate |
| 7.0-m satellite antenna with S-band |
2012 | VAP space weather data | |
| Van Allen Probes data service |
2013 | VAP science data | |
| Ionospheric and upper atmospheric research |
All-Sky Imager (ASI) | 2007 | Photographs of upper atmospheric layer |
| Very High Frequency (VHF) coherent scatter radar |
2009 | 30-MHz VHF spectrograph with a bandwidth of 200 kHz |