About 40 tracking stations all over the world are currently operational for Satellite Laser Ranging (SLR), a very precise geodetic technique. Otsubo et al. (2016) ran a unique simulation to find the optimal place of a future SLR station. The answer depends on a geodetic product and one example is shown for the center of gravity of the Earth: the X and Y components are largely improved by a high-latitude station especially in the southern hemisphere, whereas the Z component is improved by a low-latitude station. Read more
Tøffner-Clausen et al. (2016) presented the in-flight scalar calibration and characterisation of the Swarm magnetometry package consisting of the absolute scalar magnetometer, the vector magnetometer, and the spacecraft structure supporting the instruments. A significant improvement in the scalar residuals between the pairs of magnetometers is demonstrated, confirming the high performance of these instruments. Read more
Using a 46-year-long dataset of the thermospheric density during 1967–2012, Liu (2016) examined the inter-annual variability in the thermosphere at 400 km and its potential connection to El-Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) and stratospheric Quasi-Biennial Oscillation (QBO). Wavelet analysis reveals two major modes of the thermosphere inter-annual oscillation, with the slower mode having an average period of ~64 months and the faster mode of ~28 months. Read more
The Marmara region located at the western extension of the North Anato… Read more
The 2016 Kumamoto earthquake sequence started with an MJMA 6.5 foresho… Read more