GRACE-FO Level-2 Monthly Geopotential Spherical Harmonics CSR Release 6.0 (RL06)
type: Dataset
description: FOR EXPERT USE ONLY. This dataset contains estimates of the total month-by-month geopotential of the Earth, derived from the Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment Follow-On (GRACE-FO) mission measurements, produced by the Center for Space Research (CSR) at University of Texas at Austin. The data are provided in spherical harmonic coefficients, averaged over approximately a month. The primary objective of the GRACE-FO mission is to obtain accurate estimates of the mean and time-variable components of the gravity field and corresponding Earth mass change variations, such as from polar ice sheets and mountain glaciers; total water storage on land (from groundwater changes in deep aquifers to changes in soil moisture and surface water); changes in deep ocean currents; and changes within the solid Earth itself, such as postglacial rebound and the impact of major earthquakes. This objective is achieved by making continuous measurements of the change in distance between twin spacecraft, co-orbiting in about 490 km altitude, near circular, polar orbit, spaced approximately 220+/-50 km apart, using a microwave ranging system. In addition to these inter-satellite range changes, the non-gravitational forces acting on each satellite are measured using a high accuracy electrostatic accelerometer. The satellite orientation and position (and timing) are precisely measured using star cameras (with three heads per satellite) and a GPS receiver. Spatial and temporal variations in the gravity field perturb the orbits (or trajectories) of the twin spacecraft differently. These differences lead to minute changes (on the order of tens of micrometers per second) in the distance between the spacecraft as they orbit the Earth. This change in distance (or range rate) is reflected in the time-of-flight of microwave signals transmitted and received nearly simultaneously between the two spacecraft. The change in this time of fight is continuously measured by tracking the phase of the microwav…
issued: 2017-10-04
language: {en-US}
modified: 2017-10-04
spatial: Location
contact point: Organization
  fn: Wen-Hao Li
keyword: amerigeo
keyword: amerigeoss
keyword: ckan
keyword: earth-science
keyword: geo
keyword: geoss
keyword: gravity-gravitational-field
keyword: national
keyword: north-america
keyword: solid-earth
keyword: united-states
theme: {GRACE-FO
theme: geospatial}

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description: GRACE-FO JPL Level-2 Processing Standards Document
format: PDF
issued: 2020-11-12T04:26:27.601292
modified: 2025-11-20T11:35:45.282566
access URL: https://podaac-tools.jpl.nasa.gov/drive/files/allData/gracefo/docs/GRACE-FO_L2-CSR_ProcStds_v1.1.pdf
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description: GRACE-FO Project
format: HTML
issued: 2020-11-12T04:26:27.601287
modified: 2025-11-20T11:35:45.282200
access URL: https://gracefo.jpl.nasa.gov/
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issued: 2020-11-12T04:26:27.601296
modified: 2025-11-20T11:35:45.282931
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description: GRACE-FO Mission Page
format: HTML
issued: 2020-11-12T04:26:27.601273
modified: 2025-11-20T11:35:45.281071
access URL: https://podaac.jpl.nasa.gov/GRACE-FO
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description: GRACE-FO JPL Release Notes
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issued: 2020-11-12T04:26:27.601282
modified: 2025-11-20T11:35:45.281833
access URL: https://podaac-tools.jpl.nasa.gov/drive/files/allData/gracefo/docs/GRACE-FO_L2-ReleaseNotes_CSR_RL06.txt
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type: Distribution
description: Level-2 Gravity Field Product User Handbook
format: PDF
issued: 2020-11-12T04:26:27.601278
modified: 2025-11-20T11:35:45.281448
access URL: https://podaac-tools.jpl.nasa.gov/drive/files/allData/gracefo/docs/GRACE-FO_L2_UserHandbook.pdf
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issued: 2020-11-12T04:26:27.601256
modified: 2025-11-20T11:35:45.280262
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description: Data Use and Citation Policy
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issued: 2020-11-12T04:26:27.601306
modified: 2025-11-20T11:35:45.283695
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issued: 2020-11-12T04:26:27.601301
modified: 2025-11-20T11:35:45.283317
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issued: 2020-11-12T04:26:27.601267
modified: 2025-11-20T11:35:45.280680
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