A Synthetic Earth Gravity Model Designed Specifically for Testing Regional Gravimetric Geoid Determination Algorithms

A synthetic [simulated] Earth gravity model (SEGM) of the geoid, gravity and topography has been constructed over Australia specifically for validating regional gravimetric geoid determination theories, techniques and computer software. This regional high-resolution (1-arc-min by 1-arc-min) Australi...

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Main Authors: Baran, Ireneusz, Kuhn, Michael, Claessens, Sten, Featherstone, Will, Holmes, S., Vanicek, P.
Format: Journal Article
Published: Springer - Verlag 2006
Subjects:
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/8154
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author Baran, Ireneusz
Kuhn, Michael
Claessens, Sten
Featherstone, Will
Holmes, S.
Vanicek, P.
author_facet Baran, Ireneusz
Kuhn, Michael
Claessens, Sten
Featherstone, Will
Holmes, S.
Vanicek, P.
author_sort Baran, Ireneusz
building Curtin Institutional Repository
collection Online Access
description A synthetic [simulated] Earth gravity model (SEGM) of the geoid, gravity and topography has been constructed over Australia specifically for validating regional gravimetric geoid determination theories, techniques and computer software. This regional high-resolution (1-arc-min by 1-arc-min) Australian SEGM (AusSEGM) is a combined source and effect model. The long-wavelength effect part (up to and including spherical harmonic degree and order 360) is taken from an assumed errorless EGM96 global geopotential model. Using forward modelling via numerical Newtonian integration, the short-wavelength source part is computed from a high-resolution (3-arc-sec by 3-arc-sec) synthetic digital elevation model (SDEM), which is a fractal surface based on the GLOBE v1 DEM. All topographic masses are modelled with a constant mass-density of 2,670 kg/m3. Based on these input data, gravity values on the synthetic topography (on a grid and at arbitrarily distributed discrete points) and consistent geoidal heights at regular 1-arc-min geographical grid nodes have been computed. The precision of the synthetic gravity and geoid data (after a first iteration) is estimated to be better than 30 μ Gal and 3 mm, respectively, which reduces to 1 μ Gal and 1 mm after a second iteration.The second iteration accounts for the changes in the geoid due to the superposed synthetic topographic mass distribution. The first iteration of AusSEGM is compared with Australian gravity and GPS-levelling data to verify that it gives a realistic representation of the Earth’s gravity field. As a by-product of this comparison, AusSEGM gives further evidence of the north–south-trending error in the Australian Height Datum. The freely available AusSEGM-derived gravity and SDEM data, included as Electronic Supplementary Material (ESM) with this paper, can be used to compute a geoid model that, if correct, will agree to in 3 mm with the AusSEGM geoidal heights, thus offering independent verification of theories and numerical techniques used for regional geoid modelling.
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institution Curtin University Malaysia
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publishDate 2006
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spelling curtin-20.500.11937-81542019-02-19T05:35:29Z A Synthetic Earth Gravity Model Designed Specifically for Testing Regional Gravimetric Geoid Determination Algorithms Baran, Ireneusz Kuhn, Michael Claessens, Sten Featherstone, Will Holmes, S. Vanicek, P. Newtonian integration topography Australia regional geoid determination forward modelling Synthetic Earth gravity model (SEGM) gravity A synthetic [simulated] Earth gravity model (SEGM) of the geoid, gravity and topography has been constructed over Australia specifically for validating regional gravimetric geoid determination theories, techniques and computer software. This regional high-resolution (1-arc-min by 1-arc-min) Australian SEGM (AusSEGM) is a combined source and effect model. The long-wavelength effect part (up to and including spherical harmonic degree and order 360) is taken from an assumed errorless EGM96 global geopotential model. Using forward modelling via numerical Newtonian integration, the short-wavelength source part is computed from a high-resolution (3-arc-sec by 3-arc-sec) synthetic digital elevation model (SDEM), which is a fractal surface based on the GLOBE v1 DEM. All topographic masses are modelled with a constant mass-density of 2,670 kg/m3. Based on these input data, gravity values on the synthetic topography (on a grid and at arbitrarily distributed discrete points) and consistent geoidal heights at regular 1-arc-min geographical grid nodes have been computed. The precision of the synthetic gravity and geoid data (after a first iteration) is estimated to be better than 30 μ Gal and 3 mm, respectively, which reduces to 1 μ Gal and 1 mm after a second iteration.The second iteration accounts for the changes in the geoid due to the superposed synthetic topographic mass distribution. The first iteration of AusSEGM is compared with Australian gravity and GPS-levelling data to verify that it gives a realistic representation of the Earth’s gravity field. As a by-product of this comparison, AusSEGM gives further evidence of the north–south-trending error in the Australian Height Datum. The freely available AusSEGM-derived gravity and SDEM data, included as Electronic Supplementary Material (ESM) with this paper, can be used to compute a geoid model that, if correct, will agree to in 3 mm with the AusSEGM geoidal heights, thus offering independent verification of theories and numerical techniques used for regional geoid modelling. 2006 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/8154 10.1007/s00190-005-0002-z Springer - Verlag fulltext
spellingShingle Newtonian integration
topography
Australia
regional geoid determination
forward modelling
Synthetic Earth gravity model (SEGM)
gravity
Baran, Ireneusz
Kuhn, Michael
Claessens, Sten
Featherstone, Will
Holmes, S.
Vanicek, P.
A Synthetic Earth Gravity Model Designed Specifically for Testing Regional Gravimetric Geoid Determination Algorithms
title A Synthetic Earth Gravity Model Designed Specifically for Testing Regional Gravimetric Geoid Determination Algorithms
title_full A Synthetic Earth Gravity Model Designed Specifically for Testing Regional Gravimetric Geoid Determination Algorithms
title_fullStr A Synthetic Earth Gravity Model Designed Specifically for Testing Regional Gravimetric Geoid Determination Algorithms
title_full_unstemmed A Synthetic Earth Gravity Model Designed Specifically for Testing Regional Gravimetric Geoid Determination Algorithms
title_short A Synthetic Earth Gravity Model Designed Specifically for Testing Regional Gravimetric Geoid Determination Algorithms
title_sort synthetic earth gravity model designed specifically for testing regional gravimetric geoid determination algorithms
topic Newtonian integration
topography
Australia
regional geoid determination
forward modelling
Synthetic Earth gravity model (SEGM)
gravity
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/8154