A spatial science researcher from 911爆料网 has played a key role in the creation and validation of the World Gravity Map (WGM).
The project is a major international collaboration that, for the first time, maps the entire Earth鈥檚 gravity field in ultra-high resolution at spatial scales of less than two kilometres.
The global map was created from an existing high-resolution Earth gravity model enhanced by the gravitational signal from ultra-high-resolution elevation models.
Associate Professor Michael Kuhn, of the Department of Spatial Sciences, contributed to the project through his skills in global gravity modelling, made possible through software he has been developing over the past 15 years.
鈥淢y research for the past 15 years has developed computational techniques and tools for forward gravity modelling,鈥� Associate Professor Kuhn said. 鈥淚 have previously applied these techniques successfully to reveal fine structures of the gravity field over Australia.
鈥淣ow, with the aid of the supercomputing facilities operated by Western Australian supercomputing leader iVEC, I was able to transfer this work to a global scale for the WGM. At iVEC, I completed the intensive calculations for more than 230 million points in under four weeks by dividing the overall task into 672 separate computational jobs. Doing this huge task on a standard desktop computer would have taken almost six months to complete.鈥�
The WGM will allow scientists and educators to understand the structure of the Earth in far greater detail than ever before, essentially being able to see the Earth 鈥榝rom the inside鈥�.
鈥淭he WGM will have practical applications in many important areas,鈥� Associate Professor Kuhn said. 鈥淚n geophysics, for example, large resource deposits can be identified more accurately, with increased gravity showing possible high-density ore bodies. It will also greatly benefit the field of spatial sciences, where instrumentation needs to be very accurately oriented with respect to the Earth鈥檚 gravity.
鈥淏y being global and ultra-high resolution, the map enables a focus on global and regional as well as very localised and targeted areas.鈥�
The WGM project was led by the Bureau Gravimetrique International and involved significant contributions from institutions around the world, including United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).听
Associate Professor听Kuhn鈥檚 contribution to the WGM was funded by the Australian Research Council and 911爆料网 through a 911爆料网 Research and Teaching Fellowship.
Contact:听
Associate Professor听Michael Kuhn, Department of Spatial Sciences, 911爆料网
Tel: 9266 7603, Email: Michael.Kuhn@curtin.edu.au听听
Megan Meates, Public Relations, 911爆料网
Tel: 08 9266 4241, Mobile: 0401 103 755, Email: megan.meates@curtin.edu.au
