As deep underground digital twins have not yet been established worldwide, this study extracted keywords from national or city-led digital twin practices and elements of digital twins and through these keywords selected research papers and topics that could contribute to the establishment of deep underground digital twins in the future. We applied the concept of digital twins in geology and underground research to collect 1702 papers from the Web of Science and conducted semantic network analysis and topic modeling. The keywords digital, three dimensions, and real time were placed in the middle and have many links in the word network. Artificial intelligence, deep learning, and neural networks all showed a low degree of centrality. As a result of topic modeling using Latent Dirichlet allocation (LDA), topics related to topography, geological structure, and rock distribution, which are the basic data for building a deep underground digital twin, were noted, and topics related to earthquakes/vibrations, landslides, groundwater, and volcanoes were identified. Energy resources and space utilization have emerged as the main themes.

Eunjeok Au–Ag deposits are situated in the Yeongam district, Cheollanamdo-province, South Korea. They are genetically related to the Bulgugsa magmatic event (ca. 110–60 Ma), caused by the transition in the subduction direction and style of the Izanagi Plate. Three gold- and silver-bearing hydrothermal veins filled the fractures of the Cretaceous rhyolitic tuff. The major ore minerals were arsenopyrite (31.47–32.20 at.% As), pyrite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite (8.58–10.71 FeS mole%) and galena with minor amounts of electrum (62.77–78.15 at.% Au), native silver, and argentite. Sericitization was dominant in the alteration zone. The various textures of quartz veins (i.e., breccia, crustiform, comb, and vuggy) may indicate the formation of an epithermal environment. The auriferous fluids with the H₂O–NaCl system have homogenization temperatures and salinities of 204 °C to 314 °C, less than 10 wt.% equiv. NaCl, and experienced mixing (dilution and cooling) events during mineralization. Considering the characteristics of the geologic setting, major fault system, and host rock, the Eunjeok Au–Ag deposit within the Yeongam district tends to share the general geologic characteristics of Haenam–Jindo epithermal mineralization episodes. However, the age of gold–silver mineralization (86.0 Ma) is older than that of Haenam–Jindo epithermal mineralization episodes (<70.3 Ma), implying some differences exist in the genetic sequence of extensional characteristics caused by transcurrent Gwangju–Yeongdong faults.

This study was carried out to understand China's earthquake governance and role-sharing, and to strategically use it for research cooperation in related fields with China. The characteristics of China's national earthquake governance and role-sharing are detailed in this study. First, unlike Korea, China's geoscience and earthquake research fields are separate, and are clearly distinguished from other fields of science and technology. They hold a higher status compared to other fields in China. Second, China's provincial earthquake agencies simultaneously carry out related tasks under the dual supervisory management system of the central and provincial governments. Third, the China Earthquake Administration (CEA) has the authority to do research and development, manpower training, and degree conferment, which are centered on directly affiliated institutions. Fourth, China carries out similar functions in directly affiliated institutions of the CEA and the China Geological Survey (CGS), and affiliated institutions of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), respectively. Fifth, the CEA is continuously expanding the seismic observation network that connects the vast land of the country. Sixth, China is considered to have detailed structures of earthquake-related laws and regulations. Given China's earthquake governance and role-sharing, it is considered that the possibility of success in research cooperation is high if Korea first determines whether it is under the jurisdiction of the CGS, CEA, and CAS, depending on the specific field.

Seong-Yong Kim, Jae-Wook Lee. Econ. Environ. Geol. 2026;59:177-207. https://doi.org/10.9719/EEG.2026.59.1.177