IGCP 565 Workshop 3: Separating Hydrological and Tectonic Signals in Geodetic Observations Reno, Nevada, October 11-13, 2010

B4: Improving the observation system and consistency of fingerprints in surface displacements, gravity and rotation

Co-Chairs: Xiaoping Wu (JPL), Peter Clarke (University of Newcastle), Gerald Bawden (USGS)

Mass transports in the global water cycle, and related or unrelated deformation of the solid Earth, should produce "fingerprints" in Earth's gravity field, rotation and surface displacement that are consistently related to each other through the mass transported in both systems. This session will explore the consistency of predictions of fingerprints and their match with observations including Earth's rotation, gravity field, surface deformation and sea level. It will also discuss the confounding factors that in addition affect these observations on seasonal, decadal and longer timescales. We aim to identify the sources of potential inconsistencies between the various observation types and with theory, and to propose a research "roadmap" leading to their eventual resolution. We plan a mixture of invited and contributed presentations, and facilitated discussion. We will also consider the geodetic observation system and aim to identify gaps and insufficiencies that impact the separation of tectonic and hydrological signals in geodetic observations on all scales from local to global.