Measurement of the oceanic loading effects. Application to loading corrections in microgravimetric prospecting

Spatial and time variations of gravity are under several inner or outer influences. When considering applied microgravimetry, only inner and shallow targets are of interest. The sensitivity of modem instruments (about 5 µGal) permits to detect human-made underground cavities or karstic caves, which could not have been detected before. As a method directly sensitive to the presence of voids (or other density contrasts), microgravimetry is privileged with respect to other geophysical methods, often more indirect and/or requiring additional hypotheses for interpretation.