Definition
Magnetometer. Instrument with a single sensor that measures magnetic flux density.
Magnetic gradiometer. Pairs of magnetometers with sensors separated by a fixed distance.
The earth’s magnetic field at any point on or near the earth’s surface is the vector sum of the contributions from the primary field due to the dynamo in the earth’s liquid core and the crustal field from the magnetic mineral content of local rocks. This vector has both an orientation and an amplitude. Slight changes in any direction influence the orientation and amplitude. Introduce a highly magnetic rock formation into an otherwise homogenous host, and the local magnetic vector will change. In a three-dimensional world, there are nine (3 × 3) spatial gradients forming a tensor which defines the anomalous field.
On the conceptual design of gradiometers
A gradiometer is a special measuring instrument that consists of more than one (usually two, rarely three or four) magnetometers. The differences between...
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von der Osten-Woldenburg, H. (2011). Magnetic Gradiometry. In: Gupta, H.K. (eds) Encyclopedia of Solid Earth Geophysics. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-8702-7_114
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-8702-7_114
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