Aerogravity and Lidar Data Over Southwestern Florida

Aerogravity and lidar information collected along the southwestern shoreline of Florida have been processed to provide insights into the geoid, mean dynamic topography, and the ocean surface. Data were collected at about 20 km track spacing at an altitude of about 8 km at airspeeds of about 280 knots in a Cessna Citation. The gravity data have been filtered along track also at 20 km wavelength. These data were then compared with both other upward continued gravity data and that predicted by an Earth Gravity Model incorporating GRACE results. These data have served to validate terrestrial and oceanic (shipborne and airborne) gravity data, to mitigate the previous gap in data in the littoral regions, and to provide a better estimate of the geoid heights at the shoreline. These heights, in turn, were compared to leveled heights at tidal bench marks above the NAVD 88 vertical datum. The lidar data were separately processed and used to derive profiles where the mean dynamic topography has been estimated. Along some near shore profiles, the geoid and MDT models are seen to compare favorably with the actual observed ocean heights at tidal bench marks.