Gravity field, time variations from surface measurements

Abstract

Measurements and modelling of time-varying gravity changes allow understanding of various phenomena, as discussed in the earlier sections. Isolating the individual contributions from the aggregate effect in the temporal series of gravity changes has been a major challenge over a long time. Nevertheless, as number of observations and complementary information of temporal gravity changes are increasing, different components of time series of gravity changes can be better separated. Above mentioned examples and discussion suggest that repeat or continuous surface gravity measurements can be utilized for a wide variety of geophysical processes that deform the Earth’s surface and move mass inside, on and above the Earth’s surface causing the gravity field to vary with time. Surface measurements are also vital as they could provide a test, or validation, for satellite-derived temporal gravity changes (Crossley and Hinderer, 2005).