1,2,3,4,5,- 1GFZ Helmholtz Centre for Geosciences, Hydrology, Potsdam, Germany (mreich@gfz.de)
- 2Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione di Catania – Osservatorio Etneo, Catania, Italy
- 3Institute of Geodesy and Cartography, Centre of Geodesy and Geodynamics, Warsaw, Poland
- 4Department of Space Research and Space Technology, Technical University of Denmark, Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark
- 5LNE-OP/Laboratoire Temps Espace, Observatoire de Paris, Université PSL, Sorbonne Université, Université de Lille, CNRS, Paris, France
- *A full list of authors appears at the end of the abstract
EQUIP-G aims at demonstrating the possibilities of quantum gravimeters through the execution of continuous and repeated observation in Europe, under different geological and geodynamical settings.
To showcase the possibilities enabled by quantum gravimeters when used to address geophysical challenges and the advantages they may offer with respect to devices based on other technologies (spring and superconducting relative gravimeters, free fall corner cube absolute gravimeters), several use cases (UCs) will be carried out during the course of the project. When defining the set of project UCs, the EQUIP-G consortium took into account different perspectives, including the need to tackle urgent and relevant societal topics (e.g., management of natural risks and resources) and the time scale of the gravity changes produced by the phenomena in the target of the different UCs, which must be compatible with the duration of the project.
In the frame of EQUIP-G’s terrestrial use cases (TUCs), quantum gravimetry will be applied to hydrology, volcanology, climatology, geothermic, and geodesy. In particular, among the eight TUCs that will be implemented, two deal with hydrological processes, two focus on time gravity changes developing at active volcanoes, one involves activities framed within the safety analysis of geological repositories for nuclear waste, one focuses on climate monitoring, one is devoted to demonstrating the applicability of quantum gravimetry to geothermal reservoir monitoring, one will be undertaken to assess the feasibility and advantages of using quantum devices for the execution of gravity surveys over extended areas.
Furthermore, two onboard use cases (OBUCs) will be carried out. OBUC1 aims to demonstrate mobile gravity mapping onboard a fixed-wing aircraft, using a commercial quantum sensor in combination with high-quality GNSS observations. OBUC2 will be implemented using an innovative airship platform, instead of the fixed-wing aircraft. Since measurements must be averaged in time, a slow-moving platform will result in higher resolution of the spatial mapping.
Here we provide a description of the EQUIP-G’s UCs, including how each of them will contribute to the assessment of the project’s goals.
Daniel Rasche, Mohamed Azaroual, Thomas Jacob, Mohamed Boujoudar, Romain Caldani, Andreas Güntner, Filippo Greco, Alfio Messina, Danilo Contrafatto, Luca Timoteo Mirabella, Tommaso Pivetta, Stefano Carlino, Adam Ciesielski, Marta Kis, Mirjam Bilker-Koivula, Jyri Näränen, Philippe Jousset, Eveliina Nuttunen, Baptiste Battelier, Jean-Christophe Canonici, Yannick Bidel
How to cite: Reich, M., Carbone, D., Dykowski, P., Enzlberger Jensen, T., Lautier-Gaud, J., and Merlet, S. and the EQUIP-G Use Cases Team: Terrestrial and onboard use cases to demonstrate quantum gravimetry within the EQUIP-G project, EGU General Assembly 2026, Vienna, Austria, 3–8 May 2026, EGU26-18194, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu26-18194, 2026.
