Latest Geoid Stories

ESA For decades, scientists have disagreed about whether the sea is higher or lower heading north along the east coast of North America. Thanks to precision gravity data from ESA’s GOCE satellite, this controversial issue has now been settled. The answer? It’s lower. Many might assume that the height of the sea is the same everywhere – but this is not true because winds, currents, tides and different temperatures cause seawater to pile up in some regions and dip in others....

ESA ESA’s GOCE gravity satellite has already delivered the most accurate gravity map of Earth, but its orbit is now being lowered in order to obtain even better results. The Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer (GOCE) has been orbiting Earth since March 2009, reaching its ambitious objective to map our planet’s gravity with unrivalled precision. Although the planned mission has been completed, the fuel consumption was much lower than anticipated because of...

Lee Rannals for redOrbit.com - Your Universe Online Scientists say they are planning to use portable atomic clocks to help identify mineral deposits and concealed water resources inside the Earth. An international team believes that atomic clocks could already have reached the necessary degree of precision to be useful for geophysical surveying. They said that these clocks will provide the most direct measurement of the geoid, which is the Earth's true physical form. The Earth's...

How much ice is Greenland is really losing? - Movement in the Earth's mantle? - Enough water for all? For the first time, the melting of glaciers in Greenland could now be measured with high accuracy from space. Just in time for the tenth anniversary of the twin satellites GRACE (Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment) a sharp image has surface, which also renders the spatial distribution of the glacial melt more precisely. The Greenland ice shield had to cope with up to 240 gigatons of...

A team working with Europe's GOCE satellite has shed light on the way the Earth looks from a gravitational point of view. Scientists use the data gathered by the space probe to show how gravity varies across the Earth. The data has revealed how the oceans are moving and how they redistribute the heat from the Sun around the world. GOCE has also helped scientists understand that the earthquakes that struck Japan last month and Chile last year occurred because of huge masses of rock that...

ESA's GOCE satellite has reached its ambitious goal of mapping Earth's gravity with unprecedented precision. In two short years, the sophisticated satellite has collected the measurements needed to record the 'geoid' reference shape of our planet. "GOCE is one of ESA's most innovative missions. The number of 'firsts' it embodies led to many challenges for our scientists, engineers and more than 40 companies involved in building the satellite," said Volker Liebig, Director of...

Scientists from around the world have been hearing about the latest results from ESA's new GOCE, SMOS and CryoSat Earth observation missions at the biggest scientific gathering of the year. Attracting around 18 000 scientists, researchers, teachers, students and consultants to review developments in Earth and space science, the annual American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting is an unparalleled opportunity for participants from around the world to share and discuss their findings.This...

Following recovery from a glitch that prevented ESA's GOCE gravity mission from sending any scientific data to the ground, the satellite has been gently brought back down to its operational altitude and resumed normal service "“ delivering the most detailed gravity data to date. Data from GOCE will result in a unique model of the "˜geoid', which is the surface of an ideal global ocean at rest. It is a crucial reference for accurately measuring ocean circulation, sea-level change and ice...

Europe's GOCE satellite has produced one of the most unique views of the Earth that we have ever seen. The colorful new map produced by the satellite depicts the influence the pull of gravity has around the world. Known as a geoid -- a mathematical figure of the Earth through gravitational calculations -- it essentially defines where the level surface is on our planet. It shows us which way is "up" and which way is "down". The GOCE satellite flies so low in orbit that it comes very close to...

TUM researchers present initial data from successful ESA missionESA's GOCE satellite has been orbiting the Earth for more than a year and surveying its gravitational field more accurately than any instrument previously. The goal of the researchers "“ including scientists at the Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM) "“ is to determine the gravitational force in precise detail even in pathless places like the Himalayas. Evaluations of the first data from the satellite indicate that current...