PHYSICAL GEODESY

(GRAVIMETRY)
A LECTURE PREPARED BY:
ENGR. A.A.WALSIYEN, JR. MA(EHP)
SAINT LOUIS UNIVERSITY
SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING AND ARCHITECTURE
DEPARTMENT OF GEODETIC/CIVIL
ENGINEERING
 GRAVIMETRY
• GRAVIMETRY – THE SCIENCE WHICH DEALS
WITH THE EFFECTS OF GRAVITY AT
DIFFERENT POINTS ON THE EARTH’S
SURFACE.

• GRAVITY – THAT FORCE WHICH TENDS TO

PULL BODIES TOWARDS THE EARTH: I.E. TO
GIVE BODIES WEIGHT.
• GRAVITY IS THE RESULTANT OF TWO OPPOSING FORCES:
GRAVITATION AND THE CENTRIFUGAL FORCE DUE TO THE ROTATION
OF THE EARTH.
 GRAVIMETRY
• GRAVITY WOULD BE TAKEN TO MEAN THE
RESULTANT OBTAINED BY COMBINING THE
FORCE OF THE EARTH’S ATTRACTION DUE
TO GRAVITY AND THE CENTRIFUGAL FORCE
DUE TO THE ROTATION OF THE EARTH
• GRAVITATION – IN GENERAL, THE MUTUAL
ATTRACTION BETWEEN MASSES OF
MATTER.
• IN GEODESY, THE MUTUAL ATTRACTION
BETWEEN THE EARTH AND THE BODIES ON
OR NEAR ITS SURFACE.
 NEWTON’S LAW ON UNIVERSAL
GRAVITATION
• THE LAW: THE GRAVITATIONAL FORCE
BETWEEN OBJECTS DEPENDS ON THEIR
MASSES AND THEIR DISTANCE OF
SEPARATION

• FUNDAMENTAL OBSERVATIONS ON
GRAVITATION:
1. THE FORCE BETWEEN TWO
ATTRACTING BODIES IS PROPORTIONAL
TO THE INDIVIDUAL MASSES
2. THE FORCE IS INVERSELY PROPORTIOAL TO
THE SQUARE OF THE DISTANCE
3. THE FORCE IS DIRECTED ALONG THE LINE
CONNECTING THE TWO BODIES

NEWTON’S LAW ON UNIVERSAL GRAVITATION:

- --every particle attracts every other particle
in the universe with a force which is directly
proportional to the product of their masses
and inversely proportional to the square of
the distance between their centers.
 FG = GM1M2/RSQUARE
WHERE:

FG = MAGNITUDE OF THE GRAVITATIONAL FORCE

OF ATTRACTION BETWEEN THE TWO OBJECTS.
M1 = MASS OF THE FIRST OBJECT
M2 = MASS OF THE SECOND OBJECT
R = DISTANCE BETWEEN THE TWO OBJECTS
G = UNIVERSAL GRAVITATIONAL CONSTANT
= 6.674×10−11 m 3/s 2/kg
• UNIT OF GRAVITATION
1 GAL. = 10 −2 m/s2 = 1 cm/s2

1 mGal = 10 −5 m/s2

1 microGal = 10 −8 m/s2
 GRAVITY DETERMINATION

T=P = period of pendulum

L = length of string from the
pivot to the center of the bob
g= value of measured gravity
Oscillation – composed of
two consecutive vibrations.
The motion of the bob from
a to b to a.
• In the following we wish to use this equation to
determine the local acceleration due to gravity g
based on a pendulum experiment. Solving for g
we obtain:

g = 4π^2(L/T^2)
s.f. significant figures
 PENDULUM
PENDULUM - IN GENERAL, A BODY SO SUSPENDED AS TO
SWING FREELY TO AND FRO UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF
GRAVITY AND OBJECT SUSPENDED FROM A FIXED POINT
BY A FINE THREAD MOMENTUM

SIMPLE PENDULUM – A THEORETICAL CONCEPT; A HEAVY

PARTICLE OR WHICH IS INEXTENSIVE AND WITHOUT
WEIGHT.

THE PERIOD OF PENDULUM SHALL BE CORRECTED FOR:

1. TEMPERATURE – 15degrees Celsius 2. RATE
3. PRESSURE 4. ARC – 20degrees 5. FLEXURE
6. STRAIN
 KINDS OF GRAVITY DETERMINATION
1. ABSOLUTE DETERMINATION
- DETERMINATION OF GRAVITY IN WHICH BOTH
THE P AND L ARE DETERMINED BY MEASUREMENT

2. RELATIVE DETERMINATION
- DETERMINATION OF GRAVITY IN WHICH THE P
IS MEASURED AND G IS CALCULATED COMPARED IN
DIFFERENT STATION
Study says Earth’s magnetic field has shifted rapidly in
the past, and if it happens again it could be catastrophic

- One of the big reasons that life thrives on Earth is

that it’s protected from some of the more harsh
phenomenon of space by something that we can’t even
see. It’s the magnetic field that our planet generates, and
it does a whole lot more than tell your compass which
way you’re facing.
- A new study suggests that our planet’s poles could
indeed shift, and shift much more rapidly than previously
thought. In a paper published in the Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences, researchers say that they
have found evidence that Earth’s poles have shifted
quickly in the past, and if that were to happen again it
could cause global calamity.
 The study, which was conducted by scientists in
China, Australia, and Taiwan, focuses on findings
from an unexpected place: a cave. Stalagmites from
an underground cavern in China were found to hold a
rather precise record of the magnetic changes that
took place on Earth over a 16,000 year period
starting around 107,000 years in the past.

Scientists believe that the data they gathered

reveals that Earth’s magnetic field shifted over the
course of only a couple hundred years. This polarity
flip is much faster than scientists had guessed.
Previous estimates suggested that it would take
several thousands of years for the poles to change.
This is bad news for technology-dependent
species… which is pretty much just us.
 When the poles shift, the magnetic field of the
Earth weakens significantly. Scientists theorize that
the strength of the magnetic field could dip by as
much as 90 percent, which would have an incredible
impact on the electronics and power grids we
depend on every day.

Today, even with the Earth’s magnetic field at full

strength, solar weather can pose a threat to
sensitive systems. Solar flares and coronal mass
ejections can fry communication equipment and
cause costly damage. If the Earth’s protective field
were to weaken by 90%, the researchers say we
could see damage that tallies in the trillions of
dollars, not to mention a significant impact to
modern life.
• Physical geodesy utilizes measurements and
characteristics of the earth's gravity field to deduce
the shape of the geoid.
- With sufficient information regarding the earth's
gravity field, it is possible to determine geoid
undulations, gravimetric deflections, and the earth's
flattening.

Two distinctly different types of gravity

measurements are made:
1. absolute gravity : If the value of acceleration of
gravity can be determined at the point of
measurement directly

2. relative gravity : If only the differences in the

value of the acceleration of gravity are measured
between two or more points
• A simple pendulum consists of a string, cord, or wire that allows a
suspended mass to swing back and forth. The categorization of "
simple" comes from the fact that all of the mass of the pendulum is
concentrated in its "bob" - or suspended mass.
• As seen in this diagram, the length of the pendulum is measured
from the pendulum's point of suspension to the center of mass
of its bob. Its amplitude is the string's angular displacement from its
vertical or its equilibrium position. If a pendulum is pulled to the
right side and released to swing back and forth, its path traces our a
sine curve as shown below.
• The time required for one complete vibration, for example, from one
crest to the next crest, is called the pendulum's period and is
measured in seconds.

• The formula to calculate this quantity is

where
L is the length of the pendulum in meters
g is the gravitational field strength, or acceleration due to gravity
• This quantity at sea level is 9.81 m/sec2 and can be calculated as

where:
G = 6.67 x 10-11 nt m2/kg2
M Earth  is the mass of the earth (6.02 x 1024 kg)
R Earth  is the average radius of the earth (6.4 x 106 meters)
• The frequency of a pendulum represents the number of vibrations
per second. This quantity is measured in hertz (hz) and is the
reciprocal of the pendulum's period
• Let's practice a few problems with these formulas.

• What would be the period of a pendulum located at sea level if

it is 1.5 meters long?
 
• If the pendulum's length were to be shortened to one-fourth its
original value, what would be its new period?  How many
complete vibrations would this shorter pendulum trace out in
one minute if it were to be released with a small initial
amplitude?
 
• At sea level, how long would a pendulum be if it has a
frequency of 2 hz?
The timing mechanism in a grandfather's clock is based on the
principles of a simple pendulum. If your clock is gaining time,
should you shorten or lengthen its pendulum?
 
• Would a grandfather clock keep time on the moon?
A physical pendulum could be illustrated by swinging a meter stick about
one end or a baseball bat about one end. The formula to calculate the
period of a physical pendulum is

where
I is the pendulum's moment of inertia measured in kg m2
m is its mass in kilograms
g is the local gravitational field strength or acceleration due to
gravity
L is the moment arm or perpendicular distance from the pivot point to
object's center of mass measured in meters
Principles of Gravity Measurement

1. What is gravity measurement?

Gravity is the combination of earth attraction force and the earth self-
rotation centrifuge force (as shown below). In the gravity measurement
field, cm/sec2is defined as Gal, in memory of the Physicist Galilei. But,
in gravity measurement, Gal could not satisfy the precision requirement.
Therefore, the 1/1000 of gal us used as unit, that is mGal. The unit
conversion calculation is as follows:

        1Gal = 1cm / sec2

        10-3Gal ( 0.001Gal ) = 1cmGal
        10-6mGal ( 0.001mGal ) = 1µGal

• In short, the gravity measurement is the measurement of the gravity.

Generally, it is divided into absolute gravity measurement and relative
gravity measurement two surveying methods.
2. The principle of absolute gravity measurement

The so-called absolute gravity measurement is to use absolute

gravity instrument to measure the gravity value at each point.

The earlier absolute gravity measurement principle uses the

relationship between the pendulum periodic movement and the
length of the line. This is so called pendulum principle. The
general mathematic pendulum equation is as follows:
        
        T = 2π x (l/g)˄½

Where T is the swing period, l is the pendulum length, and g is

the gravity force. Or, use variable pendulum line length to
measure the swing period for different length. It may be derived
from the above equation: where, the pendulum lengths are l1 and
l2, the measured pendulum periods are T1, and T2, and g is the
gravity force. The T1 and T2 are half period, that is the time
required for the pendulum swing from the vertical position to the
one side and then return to the vertical position.
• Before the 21st century, the measurement of gravity force requires
much effort but the rate of success is not large. The main reasons are
the requirement of measurement of the line length and the period at the
same time. Especially, there are difficulties to measure the length of the
line. It is difficult to achieve the required precision. With the use of laser
and superconductivity technology to improve the instrument, the nGal
class precision absolute gravity instrument (as shown in diagram, the
SG type instrument), may achieve the high precision absolute gravity
measurement.

The so-called relative gravity measurement is to use the relative gravity

instrument to measure the differences between any testing points in
relationship to the gravity base point readings.
• In the past, the principle of relative gravity measurement is rather
simple. Use a pendulum with fixed length, swing at different positions.
Then, use the gravity value and the square root of the period as inversed
ratio to calculate the relative gravity. For example, the gravity value of
point A is known. Then the gravity ratio value of B may be determined.

        TA = PI x (1/gA)1/2 ` TB = PI x (1/gB)1/2  =>   gB = gA x T2A / T2B

• For the present, the relative gravity measurement uses the relative gravity
instrument (as shown in diagram, EG type instrument) to measure the
differences between any testing points in relationship to the gravity base
point readings. Then, the difference in reading is multiplied by the constant
marked on the instrument. The gravity difference /\g between the testing
point and the gravity force base is then calculated. From the absolute gravity
value gAof the gravity force base and use the following equation to calculate
the absolute gravity values gBfor all testing points. The equation is as
follows:
g =g
B A + λg

The gravity force at any points on the earth will change with time. The
environmental factors cause the change includes the tidal attraction
and attraction of ocean tide of each day and each month, atmospheric
pressure change, polar motion, change in underground water level, the
change in soil moisture, etc. Most of the relationship and models are
described in references, such as Torge(1989), Vanicek and Krakiwsky (1986),
Moritz and Mueller (1987), Melchoir (1983), in addition to the consideration
of the above-mentioned corrections, the system errors caused by the
relative gravity instrument, such as Calibration Function, and Drift Function,
may apply the gravity net horizontal difference, and use the extra
measurement method to calculate its parameters relationship. The absolute
gravity force may then be calculated for any points in the gravity net.