Evaluation of satellite altimetry-derived gravity field models with shipborne gravity data in the Mediterranean Sea

Abstract

Marine gravity field models can be used in a wide range of applications such as improving
marine geoid and the height system, monitoring ocean circulation, tides, the greenhouse effect
and climate change and can benefit various Earth sciences such as geodesy, geophysics and
oceanography. Satellite altimetry-derived gravity field models provide uniform global
coverage compared to shipborne gravity data. Studies conducted about the quality assessment
of the latest satellite altimetry-derived gravity field models in Turkish seas are deficient.
Therefore, in this study, selected satellite altimetry-derived gravity field models (SSv29.1,
DTU21, DTU17, DTU15, DTU13 and DTU10) were validated with shipborne gravity data in the
Mediterranean Sea. In comparison with shipborne free-air gravity anomalies, SSV29.1 model
has the lowest standard deviation with 24.096 mGal followed by DTU21, DTU17, DTU15,
DTU13 and DTU10 models with standard deviations of 24.169, 24.371, 24.396, 24.416 and
24.444 mGal, respectively. It is concluded that there are no statistically significant differences
between the models for the study area.