The present invention provides an automatic power restoring method capable
of reliably detecting continuity by the dissolution of a line fault, to
restore the optical power, even in a structure including an optical
amplification medium on an optical transmission path and an optical
communication system using the method. To this end, in an optical
communication system to which the automatic power restoring method of the
invention is applied, a pilot signal having a low transmission rate, a
wavelength of which is set based on loss wavelength characteristics
obtained by combining loss wavelength characteristics of an optical fiber
used for the optical transmission path and loss wavelength
characteristics of the optical amplification medium on the optical
transmission path, is transmitted and received between an optical
transmitting station and an optical receiving station when a line fault
occurs, and a detection of continuity is thus performed. According to the
result of the continuity detection, the power state at the occurrence of
line fault is automatically restored to the power state at a time of
normal operation.