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Gm1 m 2
Fg =
r2
The parameter G is the universal gravitational constant (or “big G” or the Newtonian
constant).
G = 6.67 x 10-11 m3 kg-1 s-2
Units are:
F Newtons (N)
m kilograms (kg)
r metres (m)
This equation shows that Fg obeys an inverse square law – as the distance between the
two masses increases, Fg decreases by 1/r2.
If you were to drop a small object (with mass m), the force of gravity will cause it to
accelerate according to Newton’s third law of motion:
Fg = ma
Fg
The acceleration (a) is therefore: a =
m
GM Em 1 GM E
a= = 2 =g
r2 m r
In this equation, g is the gravitational acceleration (units are m/s2). Note that:
• g does not depend on the mass of the small object. A small mass and a large
mass will fall with the same acceleration.
Question: What is the average gravitational acceleration at the surface of the Earth?
g = ______________ m/s2
GM E
Remember that: g = where ME is the mass of the Earth
r2
Æ the predicted gravity is 6482 mgal less at the equator (gE < gP)
It can be shown that the effect of rotation causes gravity to be gE to be 3370 mgal less at
the equator (gE < gP).
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Æ gP - gE = 5186 mgal
The variation in gravity with latitude (due to the above three factors) is given by the
Geodetic Reference System for 1967 (GRS67) equation:
where θ is the latitude in degrees and g is in mgal. This equation gives the expected
(theoretical) value of absolute gravity at latitude θ.
9.84
9.83
9.82
Gravity (m/s2)
9.81
9.8
9.79
9.78
9.77
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90
Latitude (degrees)
Question: What is the expected value of gravity at the front doors of the CEB building
(latitude 53.52589ºN)?
As you move away from the centre of the Earth (r increases), the gravitational
acceleration will decrease.
This means that topographic (elevation) variations on the Earth’s surface will cause the
surface gravity to vary because the distance from the centre of the Earth is changing.
Δg = 0.3086Δh mgal
Note that we also need to consider that elevation changes will also result in variations in
the amount of mass below a given point. For example, if you are standing on top of a
mountain, the gravity will be affected by the additional mass of the mountain below you.
We will deal with this in Section 2.4.
Question: How does gravity change as you go from the ground level to the 5th floor of
the CEB building – a change in height of 15 m? (ignore the effects of the building on the
gravity).
Δg = ____________ mgal
The mass (m) of an object is equal to its density (ρ) multiplied by its volume (V):
m=ρxV
Units for density are kg m-3 (S.I. units) or g cm-3. (to convert: 1 g cm-3 = 1000 kg m-3)
6
(2) Sedimentary rocks – have lower density because of pore space that is filled with
lower density materials (e.g., air, water, hydrocarbons). Composition has a secondary
effect on density. Densities cover a wide range owing to variations in amount of porosity
and degree of weathering. Density increases with depth and age.
(3) Pure minerals – Tend to have a high density because atoms are closely packed
together. Density reflects the composition - higher density if minerals contain a
significant fraction of heavy elements, such as Fe and Pb.
For data analysis and interpretation, it is often easier to use gravity anomalies – the
difference between the observed gravity and the background value of gravity.
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We need to figure out is how much extra gravity there is due to the extra mass of the
ore body.
⎛4 ⎞
• Total mass of the ore body = volume × density = ⎜ πr 3 ⎟ × ρ
⎝3 ⎠
• Excess mass of the sphere, ΔMS = mass of the ore body – mass of the rock
⎛4 ⎞ ⎛4 ⎞
= ⎜ πr 3 ⎟ × ρ - ⎜ πr 3 ⎟ × ρ 0
⎝3 ⎠ ⎝3 ⎠
⎛4 ⎞
= ⎜ πr 3 ⎟ × (ρ − ρ 0 )
⎝3 ⎠
The quantity ρ- ρ0 is the density contrast – the difference in density between the ore
body and the rock (background density).
It can be shown that the maximum gravity anomaly (Δg) for the sphere is the same as if
all the mass were concentrated at its centre. From the equation on page 2:
GΔMS 4Gπr 3 (ρ − ρ0 )
Δg = =
z2 3z 2
The anomaly is a very small fraction of Earth’s average surface gravity (less than
0.0001%).
Æ How does the gravity anomaly change if the ore body is deeper?
… has a larger radius?
… has a larger density?
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In Experiment 2, assume that all densities are reduced by subtracting the density of the
soil (ρ0). It can be shown that the shape of the gravity profile and the magnitude of the
gravity anomaly (the difference between the maximum gravity value and the gravity on
either side of the ore body) will be the same as in Experiment 1. The only difference in
the profiles is an offset in the absolute value g.
The shape and magnitude of the gravity anomaly depends only on the density contrast
(Δρ=ρ- ρ0) between the ore body and the soil and not on the absolute densities of the
materials.
Æ The shape and magnitude of the gravity anomaly contains all the information
that is needed to determine the geometry and depth of the ore body.