On the combined gravity gradient modeling for applied geophysics

TL;DR

This paper discusses methods for modeling gravity gradient data in applied geophysics, emphasizing the combined use of specific components to improve subsurface density contrast detection.

Contribution

It demonstrates how combining gravity gradient components Txz and Tyz enhances subsurface imaging over using Tzz alone.

Findings

Combining Txz and Tyz provides more detailed subsurface information.

Gravity gradient modeling techniques are effective for resource exploration.

The approach remains relevant despite being based on a decade-old content.

Abstract

Gravity gradiometry research and development has intensified in recent years to the extent that technologies providing a resolution of about 1 Eotvos per 1 sec average shall likely soon be available for multiple critical applications such as natural resources exploration, oil reservoir monitoring and defence establishment. Much of the content of this paper was composed a decade ago, and only minor modifications were required for the conclusions to be just as applicable today. In this paper we demonstrate how gravity gradient data can be modeled, and show some examples of how gravity gradient data can be combined in order to extract valuable information. In particular, this study demonstrates the importance of two gravity gradient components, Txz and Tyz which, when processed together, can provide more information on subsurface density contrasts than that derived solely from the vertical gravity gradient (Tzz).