EO·Atlas
Satellite gravimetry
Retrieves time-variable gravity-field and mass-change signals by tracking changes in distance between two co-orbiting satellites, as in GRACE and GRACE-FO.
Satellite gravimetry is the method used when the target is mass redistribution rather than surface appearance. A pair of satellites follows the same orbit; changes in the pull of Earth's gravity alter their separation, and precision inter-satellite ranging turns those distance changes into monthly gravity-field and equivalent-water-height maps. It resolves basin-to-global mass signals such as ice-sheet mass, groundwater and terrestrial water storage, and ocean-mass sea-level components. It is weak for local detail: spatial resolution is coarse, leakage corrections matter near coasts and small basins, and the retrieval depends on geophysical background corrections.
- [1]GRACE-FO Mission Overview, NASA/JPLagency doc2026-06-08Describes paired GRACE-FO satellites, approximately 220 km separation, precise microwave ranging, accelerometers, and monthly gravity-field maps showing mass movement.
- [2]Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE), NASA/JPLagency doc2026-06-08Mission overview: GRACE measured gravity changes with twin spacecraft and supported ice mass, sea level, groundwater, drought, and solid-Earth applications.
- [3]Applications and Challenges of GRACE and GRACE Follow-On Satellite Gravimetrypeer reviewed2026-06-08Review of GRACE/GRACE-FO satellite gravimetry applications and limitations for cryosphere, hydrology, oceans, and solid Earth.