The 3rd International Gravity Field Service (IGFS) General Assembly

Background & Objectives

• The accurate and precise estimation of the gravity field of the Earth is nowadays required in many geodetic and geophysical investigations. The recent satellite missions devoted to the observation of the gravity field of the Earth have strongly improved the resolution and precision of the estimated global geopotential models. Global mass redistributions in the Earth environment can be observed and modeled through gravity from space and can improve the knowledge of the Earth system and climate changes. A unique height system can be estimated for the whole Earth, which is fundamental in e.g. evaluating sea level variations. The new fields also allow innovative investigations of the solid Earth giving new details of crust and mantle and variation over time. These improvements in the estimation of the global geopotential models also require updated/new methods in modeling the higher frequency of the gravity field and denser local data coverage to achieve 1-cm geoid accuracy, which is likely to be required in few years for practical applications. The 3rd IGFS General Assembly, that will take place in Shanghai, June 30th - July 6th, 2014, at the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory (SHAO), Chinese Academy of Sciences, will be devoted to these topics. The focus of the Assembly is on methods for observing, estimating and interpreting the Earth gravity field as well as its applications. The scientific sessions will be centered on:

Sessions & Topics

• Gravimetry and gravity networks (Bonvalot, Roman)
• Global geopotential models and vertical datum unification (Sideris, Li)
• Local geoid/gravity modeling (Marti, Barzaghi)
• Satellite gravimetry (Pail,Jin)
• Mass movements in the Earth system (Forsberg, Jin)
• Solid Earth Investigations (Braitenberg, Forsberg)

• The Assembly is organized by SHAO, the International Gravity Field Service (IGFS) and the Commission 2 of the International Association of Geodesy (IAG). IGFS is an official IAG Service which coordinates and harmonizes the activities of other "Level 1" gravity related Services, namely the Bureau Gravimetrique International (BGI), the International Geoid Service (IGeS), The International Center for Earth Tides (ICET), the International Center for Global Earth Models (ICGEM) and the International Digital Elevation Model Service (IDEMS). IAG Commission 2 is a scientific body of IAG that was established to promote and support investigation related to the gravity filed of the Earth and its temporal variation.