On monitoring a vertical datum with satellite altimetry and water-level gauge data on large lakes

Using TOPEX satellite altimetry, water-level-gauge data, and a geoid model, the geopotential, W ₀, of the International Great Lakes Datum of 1985 (IGLD85) is determined. This is compared to an analogous determination using GPS and leveling data in the region. The two sets of data yield generally consistent results at the few-decimeter level and both indicate a tilt of about 33 cm in the computed datum across the region. On the basis of this and other studies, it is conjectured that the source of the tilt is a regional error in G99SSS. Further analysis of the altimetry and water-level data indicate that the geoid model, G99SSS, is in error by up to 20 cm at scales of about 100–150 km. In addition, the analysis of 8 years of altimeter and water-level data shows varying trends (up to 2 mm/yr) in crustal uplift throughout the region, generally consistent with an independent post-glacial rebound (PGR) model, ICE-4G. AcknowledgmentThis research was supported in part by the Ohio Sea Grant Program, grant no. NA86RG0053 (R/CE-5). A. Mainville kindly provided data and information for Canadian stations. The authors are grateful to M. Bursa, M. Poutanen, D. Zilkoski, and an anonymous reviewer for contributing significantly to the improvement of the paper.