Artificial magnetic disturbance from the mass rapid transit system in Taiwan

An obvious magnetic disturbance has been repeatedly observed by magnetometers located outside of urban areas in Yangmingshan National Park and has affected the monitoring of volcanic activity in the northern region of Taiwan. The disturbance has amplitudes of approximately 3–5 nanoteslas, and regula...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inTerra nova (Oxford, England) Vol. 29; no. 5; pp. 306 - 311
Main Authors Chen, Chieh‐Hung, Lin, Cheng‐Horng, Yen, Horng‐Yuan, Chen, Chun‐Rong, Jan, Jyh Cherng, Wang, Chung‐Ho, Liu, Jann‐Yenq
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Oxford Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.10.2017
Subjects
Disturbance
Electric power
Electric power generation
Electric power sources
Electricity distribution
Leakage
Leaks
Magnetometers
Mass transit
National parks
Noise levels
Urban areas
Taiwan
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Summary:An obvious magnetic disturbance has been repeatedly observed by magnetometers located outside of urban areas in Yangmingshan National Park and has affected the monitoring of volcanic activity in the northern region of Taiwan. The disturbance has amplitudes of approximately 3–5 nanoteslas, and regularly appears for approximately 21 hours per day, except during the New Year period, when it is observed continuously for 45 hours. This change coincides with the annual extended operation of the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) system. A 750‐volt direct current drives the MRT trains and leaks to the ground, with a maximum value of approximately 1000 amperes measured along the routes. The disturbance is dominated by the unbalanced supply and return currents resulting from the leakage. The daily changes in the magnetic noise levels are correlated with the electricity consumption of the MRT system because the leakage is proportional to the use of electric power.
ISSN:0954-4879
1365-3121
DOI:10.1111/ter.12277