Towards unification of terrestrial gravity data sets in Estonia

Abstract

Gravity data in Estonia have been collected by different institutions over many decades. This study assesses the suitability of available gravity data for ensuring a 1 cm geoid modelling accuracy over Estonia and in the Baltic Sea region in general. The main focus of this study is on the determination and elimination of discrepancies between three nationwide datasets. It was detected that one tested historic gravity dataset contained inadmissible systematic biases with respect to other tested datasets. Possible ways of gravity data improvement are discussed. More specifically, new field observation campaigns and aspects of using their outcomes in subsequent regional geoid modelling are suggested.

Keywords

• gravity
• Bouguer anomaly
• anomaly prediction
• geoid
• Estonia