Magnetotellurics (MT) is widely used for oil exploration. In MT, the time series of two telluric and three magnetic components of the magnetotelluric field are generally recorded at the ground surface in the Cartesian coordinate system. In practice, however, there are some difficult cases for setting two telluric lines orthogonally to record telluric components due to obstacles like roads, wetlands, rivers, cliffs, rice banks, buildings, etc. at a given MT site.
Kim Ji Yang, a researcher at the Faculty of Earth Science and Technology, proposed a method of converting telluric components recorded in non-orthogonal coordinate systems to those in orthogonal coordinate systems by means of mathematical coordinate transformation and verified its possibility and applicability through model and field tests.
This method makes it more convenient for MT field crews to choose site positions and set electric lines.
For more information, you can refer to his paper “Dealing with Non-orthogonally Measured Telluric Components in Magnetotellurics” in “Journal of Mathematical Methods in Engineering” (SCI).