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Geopotential height differs from geometric height (as given by a tape measure) because Earth's gravity is not constant, varying markedly with altitude and latitude; thus, a 1-m geopotential height difference implies a different vertical distance in physical space: "the unit-mass must be lifted higher at the equator than at the pole, if the same ...
In geophysics and physical geodesy, a geopotential model is the theoretical analysis of measuring and calculating the effects of Earth's gravitational field (the geopotential). The Earth is not exactly spherical, mainly because of its rotation around the polar axis that makes its shape slightly oblate.
Geopotential is the potential of the Earth's gravity field. For convenience it is often defined as the negative of the potential energy per unit mass , so that the gravity vector is obtained as the gradient of the geopotential, without the negation.
Thus the standard consists of a tabulation of values at various altitudes, plus some formulas by which those values were derived. To accommodate the lowest points on Earth, the model starts at a base geopotential altitude of 610 meters (2,000 ft) below sea level, with standard temperature set at 19 °C.
Since the atmosphere at a height of approximately 5.5 kilometres (3.4 mi) is mostly divergence-free, the barotropic model best approximates the state of the atmosphere at a geopotential height corresponding to that altitude, which corresponds to the atmosphere's 500 mb (15 inHg) pressure surface. [6]
Geopotential is the potential of the Earth's gravity field. For convenience it is often defined as the negative of the potential energy per unit mass, so that the gravity vector is obtained as the gradient of the geopotential, without the negation. In addition to the actual potential (the geopotential), a theoretical normal potential and their ...
The increase in altitude necessary for P or ρ to drop to 1/e of its initial value is called the scale height: H = R T M g 0 {\displaystyle H={\frac {RT}{Mg_{0}}}} where R is the ideal gas constant, T is temperature, M is average molecular weight, and g 0 is the gravitational acceleration at the planet's surface.
Certain vertical coordinates are not based on length, for example, geopotential numbers have units of m 2 /s 2. Normalization by a constant nominal gravity value (units of m/s 2) yields units of metre, as in geopotential height (based on standard gravity) or dynamic height (based on normal gravity at 45 degrees latitude).