After two years of low-flying orbit the GOCE satellite has returned images that give scientists access to the most accurate model of the geoid ever produced. Gravity is strongest in yellow areas and is weakest in blue areas.
According to the ESA the geoid represents the surface of “an ideal global ocean in the absence of tides and currents, shaped only by gravity.” It is a crucial reference for measuring ocean circulation, sea-level change and ice dynamics – all affected by climate change.
Gravity does so much more than simply keep our feet on the ground. It is fundamental to how the oceans distribute the heat from the sun around the globe and it plays an important role in the tectonic movements of the Earth’s crust. The GOCE images can help us better understand what’s going on deep within the Earth when huge earthquakes – like the one that hit Japan last month – strike by giving us a 3D view of the forces at work beneath our feet.
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