Zmiany regionalnego pola siły ciężkości w północnej części Górnośląskiego Zagłębia Węglowego w latach 2002–2003

Abstract

Regional gravity field variations in the northern part of Upper Silesian Coal Basin in the years 2002–2003.S u m m a r y. The paper presents the results of gravimetric studies conducted in the northern part of the Upper Silesian Coal Basin (USCB, S Poland) in the year 2002 and 2003. Within a year, two series of measurements were conducted on the stabilized set of points in the subrectangular study area (26x36 km). The study aimed at detecting time variations of the regional gravity field. The gravity field influences several geological processes upon which depend rock mass stability in the upper parts of the lithosphere andthe shape of the Earth’s surface. This field is also a cause of rock mass movements in areas of underground mining activity. Thus, the main goal of the study was to determine the correlation of temporal variations of the gravitational field with the geological structure of the area and the underground hard coal exploitation (subsidence, seismic tremors). Additionally, an attempt was made to determine whether the correlation could be used to monitor current geodynamic processes in USCB.