Hydrological Sciences-Journal-des Sciences Hydrologiques, 44(3) June 1999 407 Gravity and the hydrosphere: new frontier

Abstract Satellite gravity measurements expected in the next few years will provide unprecedented views of the Earth's gravity field and, given sufficient duration, its changes with time. Gravity changes directly reflect changes in the masses of the ocean (thus allowing the separation of steric...

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Main Authors: Jean O. Dickey, Charles R. Bentley, Roger Bilham, James A. Carton, Richard J. Eanes, Thomas A. Herring, William M. Kaula, Gary S. E. Lagerloef, Stuart Rojstaczer, Walter H. F. Smith, Hugo M. Van Den Dool, John M. Wahr, Maria T. Zuber
Other Authors: The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives
Format: Text
Language:English
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Online Access:http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.399.7449
http://itia.ntua.gr/hsj/44/hysj_44_03_0407.pdf
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Summary:Abstract Satellite gravity measurements expected in the next few years will provide unprecedented views of the Earth's gravity field and, given sufficient duration, its changes with time. Gravity changes directly reflect changes in the masses of the ocean (thus allowing the separation of steric (heat induced) and non-steric contributions to sea-level rise), the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets, and the water stored in the continents. Not only can measurements of those changes provide a truly global integrated view of the Earth, they have, at the same time, sufficient spatial resolution to aid in the study of individual regions of the Earth. These data should yield information on water cycling previously unobtainable and be useful to both fundamental studies of the hydrologie cycle and practical assessments of water availability and distribution. Together with complementary geophysical data, satellite gravity data represent a new frontier in studies of the Earth and its fluid envelope. La gravimétrie et l'hydrosphère: de nouvelles perspectives Résumé Les mesures gravimétriques satellitaires que l'on peut espérer obtenir dans quelques années fourniront un vision sans précédent du champ de gravité de la Terre