Surface-ship gravity meter measurements corrected for vertical accelerations

Abstract

Gravity measurements obtained with a surface-ship gravity meter operated over a non-linear response range are in error when vertical accelerations are substantial. Errors in measurement due to the effect of vertical accelerations were calculated for all gravity observations that Oregon State University made during the period 1963–1965. The root-mean-square (rms) corrections applicable to these measurements were determined for two different non-linear responses of LaCoste and Romberg gravity meter S-9. The rms error in free-air anomalies corrected for vertical accelerations, based on statistical analyses of differences of crossings of track lines, comparisons with values at nearby pendulum stations, and errors in anomalies over the Newport (Oregon) Gravity Range, was ±5½ mgal when navigation was determined with Loran A.