System Earth via Geodetic-Geophysical Space Techniques

The Earth’s gravity and magnetic gravity fields play an important role in global and regional geodynamics. Research satellites such as CHAMP, GRACE, and GOCE apply new measurement techniques to recover gravity and magnetic fields with unprecedented accuracy and resolution in space and time. Combined with terrestrial observations and numerical models, this data will significantly improve a detailed understanding of the Earth as a coupled system of atmosphere, hydrosphere and solid Earth.

In Germany, many of the processing, modelling and interpreting methodologies for these new observation techniques have been developed under the umbrella of the R&D-programme GEOTECHNOLOGIEN. The research projects focus on a better understanding of the spatial and temporal variations in the magnetic and gravity field and their relationship to the dynmaics of the Earth's interior and global change processes close to its surface.

This volume presents the results of all multidisciplinary studies covered by this programme for the period 2005-2008, including the following topics:

- Static and time variable gravity field models from CHAMP, GRACE and GOCE
- Applications of GRACE , altimetry, GPS and other data for geophysical analyses
- Contributions to the Global Geodetic Observing System (GGOS)
- Atmospheric sounding by GPS radio occultation technique with CHAMP
  and GRACE
- Observation of the Earth's magnetic field with CHAMP

Thus, it offers an up-to-date overview for a broad scientific community working in gravity field and Earth rotation research.