CSIRO Publishing blank image blank image blank image blank imageBooksblank image blank image blank image blank imageJournalsblank image blank image blank image blank imageAbout Usblank image blank image blank image blank imageShopping Cartblank image blank image blank image You are here: Journals > Exploration Geophysics   
Exploration Geophysics
http://www.aseg.org.au
  The Bulletin of the Australian Society of Exploration Geophysicists
 
blank image Search
 
blank image blank image
blank image
 
  Advanced Search
   

Journal Home
About the Journal
Editorial Committee
Contacts
For Advertisers
Content
Online Early
Current Issue
Just Accepted
All Issues
Sample Issue
Call for Papers
For Authors
General Information
Instructions to Authors
Submit Article
Open Access
For Referees
Referee Guidelines
Review Article
Annual Referee Index
For Subscribers
Subscription Prices
Customer Service
Print Publication Dates

blue arrow e-Alerts
blank image
Subscribe to our Email Alert or RSS feeds for the latest journal papers.

red arrow Connect with us
blank image
facebook   youtube

red arrow Submit Article
blank image
Use the online submission system to send us your paper.

red arrow Call for Papers
blank image
We are preparing a themed issue. More...

red arrow Preview
blank image
Preview, the Magazine of the Australian Society of Exploration Geophysicists, is also available online.

red arrow ASEG Extended Abstracts
blank image
ASEG Extended Abstracts, drawn from the ASEG´s conferencces, is also available online.

 

Article << Previous     |     Next >>   Contents Vol 42(1)

Rapid gravity and gravity gradiometry terrain corrections via an adaptive quadtree mesh discretization

Kristofer Davis 1 2 M. Andy Kass 1 Yaoguo Li 1

1 Center for Gravity, Electrical, and Magnetic Studies, Department of Geophysics, Colorado School of Mines, 1500 Illinois Street, Golden, CO 80401, USA.
2 Corresponding author. Email: kdavis@eos.ubc.ca

Exploration Geophysics 42(1) 88-97 http://dx.doi.org/10.1071/EG10016
Submitted: 7 July 2010  Accepted: 19 December 2010   Published: 25 February 2011


 
PDF (2 MB) $25
 Export Citation
 Print
  
Abstract

We present a method for modelling the terrain response of gravity gradiometry surveys utilising an adaptive quadtree mesh discretization. The data- and terrain-dependent method is tailored to provide rapid and accurate terrain corrections for draped and barometric airborne surveys. The surface used in the modelling of the terrain effect for each datum is discretized automatically to the largest cell size that will yield the desired accuracy, resulting in much faster modelling than full-resolution calculations. The largest cell sizes within the model occur in areas of minimal terrain variation and at large distances away from the datum location. We show synthetic and field examples for proof of concept. In the presented field example, the adaptive quadtree method reduces the computational cost by performing 351 times fewer calculations than the full model would require while retaining an accuracy of one Eötvös for the gradient data. The method is also used for the terrain correction of the gravity field and performed 310 times faster compared with a calculation of the full digital elevation model.

Key words:gravity, gravity gradiometry, processing, quadtree, terrain correction.


References

Ascher, U. M., and Haber, E., 2001, Grid refinement and scaling for distributed parameter estimation problems: Inverse Problems, 17, 571–590
CrossRef |

Chen, J., and Macnae, J., 1997, Terrain corrections are critical for airborne gravity gradiometer data: Exploration Geophysics, 28, 21–25
CrossRef |

Eso, R., and Oldenburg, D. W., 2007, Efficient 2.5D resistivity modeling using a quadtree discretization: Conference Proceedings, 381–385, Symposium of Applied Geophysics on Engineering and Environmental Problems.

Frey, P. J., and Marechal, L., 1998, Fast adaptive quadtree mesh generation, 7th International Meshing Roundtable: Sandia National Laboratories, 37, 211–224

Gerstner, T., 1999, Adaptive hierarchical methods for landscape representation and analysis: Lecture Notes in Earth Sciences, 78, 75–92
CrossRef |

Hammer, S., 1939, Terrain corrections for gravimeter stations: Geophysics, 4, 184–194
CrossRef |

Hammer, S., 1974, Topographic and terrain correction for airborne gravity: Geophysics, 39, 537–542
CrossRef |

Harrington, J. L., 2000, Object-oriented database design: Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, Inc.

Kass, M., and Li, Y., 2008, Practical aspects of terrain correction in airborne gravity gradiometry surveys: Exploration Geophysics, 39, 198–203
CrossRef |

Li, Y., 2001, 3D inversion of gravity gradiometer data: Expanded Abstracts, 1470–1474, 71st Annual International Meeting, Society of Exploration Geophysicists.

Reid, A. B., 1980, Aeromagnetic survey design: Geophysics, 45, 973–976
CrossRef |

Sharma, P. V., 1966, Rapid computation of magnetic anomalies and demagnetization effects caused by bodies of arbitrary shape: Pure and Applied Geophysics, 64, 89–109
CrossRef |

Zhang, C., Mushayandebvu, M. F., Reid, A. B., Fairhead, J. D., and Odegard, M. E., 2000, Euler deconvolution of gravity tensor gradient data: Geophysics, 65, 512–520
CrossRef |


   
Subscriber Login
Username:
Password:  

 
    
Legal & Privacy | Contact Us | Help

CSIRO

© CSIRO 1996-2013