Self-attraction effect and correction on three absolute gravimeters

The perturbations of the gravitational field due to the mass distribution of an absolute gravimeter have been studied. The so-called self-attraction effect (SAE) is crucial for the measurement accuracy, especially for International Comparisons, and for the uncertainty budget evaluation. Three instruments have been analysed: MPG-2, FG5-238 and IMGC-02. The SAE has been calculated using a numerical method based on finite element method simulation. The modelled effect has been treated as an additional vertical gravity gradient. The self-attraction correction (SAC) to be applied to the computed g value is of the order of 1 × 10 −8 m s −2 .