Lunar Gravimetry: Revealing the Far-Side provides a thorough and
detailed discussion of lunar gravity field research and applications,
from the initial efforts of the pre-Apollo and Luna eras to the
dedicated gravity mapping experiments of the third millennium.
Analysis of the spatial variations of the gravity field of the Moon is a
key selenodetic element in the understanding of the physics of the
Moon's interior. Remarkably, more than forty years after the initial
steps in lunar exploration by spacecraft, the global gravity field still
remains largely unknown, due to the limitations of standard observations
techniques. As such, knowledge of the high-accuracy and high-resolution
gravity field is one of the remaining unsolved issues in lunar
science.
Lunar Gravimetry: Revealing the Far-Side addresses all users over
lunar gravity information and covers a wide range of topics, including
the scientific rationale for and history of gravimetric research; the
fundamental ill-conditioning of the gravimetric problem; the prospects
of sophisticated observation techniques, such as inter-satellite
tracking and gravity gradient gradiometry; the role of regularisation
schemes; and the crucial aspect of quality assessment of gravity field
solutions. Also described are the first-ever efforts to model the
gravity field of the Moon using European satellite tracking data sets.