Prediction of Deviations of the Vertical Using Heterogeneous Data
A method for estimating deviations of the vertical from a combination of topographic-isostatic deviations of the vertical and dynamic information in the form of geopotential coefficients is presented. The method is especially well suited for large areas, either continental or oceanic, where no geodetic measurements, such as gravity anomalies or deviations of the vertical, are available. It is ideally applicable in mountainous areas and along coastlines where the deviations depend greatly on the topography. Numerical results using topographic-isostatic data calculated in Canada, Switzerland and West Germany are presented. Furthermore, if geodetic data such as observed deviations of the vertical and gravity anomalies are available in the area considered, they can be combined with existing estimated deviations by using least squares collocation to achieve a greater accuracy.