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Gravimeter with 500 kilogram mass for G determination.

Chapter 5. Solid-Earth Sciences

Gravity, Earth Rotation, and Information Theory

Research on gravity, earth rotation, related sea-level changes and crustal deformation have been part of CIRES studies from the early work of Harrison and Farrell. The major contributions by Wahr are discussed above. Douglas S. Robertson, a specialist in these topics with broad interests ranging from Darwinian evolution to the impacts of computers on civilization, joined CIRES in 1994. He is a geodesist in the National Ocean Survey of NOAA, a fellow of CIRES, and an adjunct professor in geological sciences. Among his contributions is a new determination of the Newtonian universal gravitational constant, G.

His work on the applications of information theory to biological evolution has attracted favorable attention outside of the geophysical community. His studies on chaos and complexity are a link to one of the CIRES centers described next.

Next > Interdisciplinary Centers and Related Efforts Linked to the Solid-Earth Agenda