Assessments of recent Global Geopotential Models based on GPS/levelling and gravity data along coastal zones of Egypt

Abstract

Abstract The orthometric height has an essential role in a variety of civil engineering projects and it is defined as the length of the curved plumbline from a point (on the earth surface) to its intersection with the geoid surface. Leveling process is considered as the most accurate technique for obtaining these heights. However, regardless of its potentials, it is tedious, costly, and time consuming. Recently many organizations and research centers have developed multi Global Geopotential Models (GGMs) depending on several types of available gravity and height datasets to estimate orthometric heights from GNSS measurements. In this study, we present an evaluation and assessment of the accuracy of five of recent and popular GGMS: XGM2016, XGM2019e, EIGEN-6C4, GO_CONS_GCF_2_TIM_R6e, and EGM2008 using actual 145 GNSS/leveling points and 96 terrestrial gravity points. The goal of this research is to find the best fit model along the study area located along the coastal zones of Egypt with distances of about 1,970 km for further determination of geoid modeling at regional scale. The selection of these areas basically was due to their developmental, urban, and economical importance and their continuous need for protection works to fight against the coastal erosion caused by climate change and global warming. The results indicated that for geoid undulation, GO_CONS_GCF_2_TIM_R6e model is the best fit GGM for the estimation of geoid model along Mediterranean Sea coastal line, while XGM2019e_2159 model is the best suitable for coastal line of the Red Sea. And regarding the gravity anomalies, the most reliable GGMs for this study area are XGM2019e_2159 and EIGEN-6C4 for Bouguer and free-air gravity anomaly, respectively.