Environmental Geodesy

Research in geodynamics and environmental geodesy encompasses all aspects of deformation of the solid Earth and its fluid envelope.

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Paul Tregoning

Paul.Tregoning@anu.edu.au

+61 2 6125 5510

Last Updated: 2026-08-12

About

floods in central Australia in 2024 and 2025, as measured by the SWOT satellite (Callaway et al., 2026)

Research in geodynamics and environmental geodesy encompasses all aspects of deformation of the solid Earth and its fluid envelope, including the development of models of the past ice history of the Earth, the effects of climate change on polar ice sheets, sea level variations, elastic tidal deformation of the Earth and more conventional studies of tectonic deformation through earthquakes, Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar, GPS etc.

Space-geodetic techniques such as the recent Gravity Recovery and Climate Experiment (GRACE) mission and JASON-1/2 and Cryosat-2 satellite altimetry mission provide new observations of the changing nature of our planet. We can use these tools to investigate how climate change is affecting the environment, notably changes in sea level, rates of melting of polar ice caps and even ground water storage.

Publications

2026

Callaway, M., M. Taib, P. Tregoning, C. Gouramanis and L. Dodd, SWOT reveals flood depths and environmental flows in wetlands, Communications Earth and Environment, accepted in principle 5 June 2026.

2025

Alvarez Rodriguez, G., P. Tregoning, and R. McGirr, A tool to assess the accuracy of Glacial Isostatic Adjustment predictions of present-day crustal uplift rates, Geophyscal Research Letters, https://doi.org/10.1029/2025GL116421, 2025
Maubant, L., L. Dodd and, P. Tregoning, Assessing the accuracy of SWOT measurements of water bodies in Australia, Geophyscal Research Letters, https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL114084, 2025.

2024

McGirr, R., P. Tregoning,, A.P. Purcell and H. McQueen, Significant local sea level variations caused by continental hydrology signals, Geophyscal Research Letters, https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GL108394, 2024

More information

SWOT: monitoring water surface elevation from space

The Surface Water and Ocean Topography (SWOT) satellite mission is designed specifically to measure water surface elevation. The satellite produces data over both oceans and continental water bodies, including over ice-covered regions such as Antarctica.

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AuScope Gravity Program

Explore the AuScope Gravity Program, advancing geodesy through high-precision gravity measurements and global collaboration.

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Great earthquake deformation computations

Explore our methods for computing deformations caused by great earthquakes.

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Alumni

Explore the distinguished past members of the Environmental Geodesy research group.

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Summary of research activity

Explore our research on Earth's dynamics using geodesy, modeling, and observation analysis.

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Projects

Glacial-isostatic adjustment and future sea-level change

How does Earth's viscoelastic response to ice loss alter future regional sea-level change?

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Potential

People

Groundwater models and hydrological reconstruction

How can observations reconstruct groundwater flow and its history across Australian basins?

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Potential

People

Dr Sia Ghelichkhan

Inverting ice-sheet history and Earth rheology from GIA

What do geological and geodetic observations reveal about past ice sheets and Earth's mantle?

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Potential

People

Surface-water flow and early-warning models

Can physically based surface-water models improve early warning of hydrological hazards?

Status

Potential

People

Dr Sia Ghelichkhan

Analysis of changes in Australia's water resources using space gravity data from the GRACE Follow-On mission

This project involves quantifying changes in water resources in Australia. The student will learn all aspects of processing space gravity data from the GRACE Follow-On mission and how to integrate remotely sensed observations into hydrology models. Maths/physics and programming skills are highly desired for the study.