Evaluation of Airborne Vector Gravimetry Using GNSS and SDINS Observations

Airborne gravimetry systems provide the most economical way to improve the spatial resolution of gravity data measured by satellite missions. So the paper deals with the presentation of a modern airborne gravitymeter designed, developed and tested at the University FAF Munich. The specific forces are measured by a high precision strapdown INS and the kinematical accelerations are derived using numerous differential GNSS observations.The first part of the paper describes the system architecture and the aircraft installation. Then the data processing methods are mentioned including the filtering and derivation procedures, the computation of aircraft accelerations and different algorithms for providing the gravity profiles. Static tests in a laboratory environment approve the error budget of two sensor types on acceleration level.The main part of the article contains the description of practical test flights carried out in the middle of Germany and the corresponding results. An evaluation of the current system performance is possible. Final remarks refer to the planned improvements until the end of the project.