The geophysical application of gravity field information is studied in close collaboration with external partners. Two main questions are to be answered:
- In what way does high-resolution gravity field information contribute to geophysical modeling?
- Are time-variable changes in the Earth's gravity field visible in the GOCE gravity gradients?
Based on the results achieved with regional gravity field modeling (RegGrav), especially those obtained with GOCE data, regional gravity field data are to be combined with geophysical data (e.g. seismics, magnetics) and models. The goal is to improve lithospheric and asthenospheric modeling, and to analyze in a common approach all data and models for geophysical exploration purposes. The added value of gravity field information in general and of GOCE data in particular is to be investigated and quantified. In the context of ESA's STSE - GOCE+ the study "Heterogeneous gravity data combination for Earth interior and geophysical exploration research" is performed. The project page is here.
The Earth's local gravity field may change after large earthquakes. In the context of the STSE GOCE+ study "The Earth's time variable gravity field observed by GOCE" it is to be studied whether gravity field changes due to the Chile 2010 earthquake are visible in the GOCE gravity gradients. These analysis will be compared with geophysical models. Potentially the 3D-gradient information may enhance the geophysical understanding and improve earthquake modeling. In addition, it is to be investigated whether the Greenland ice mass variations are detectable with GOCE. The GOCE data will also be combined with GRACE KBR data. The project page is here.
