INVERSE-THEORY IN THE EARTH-SCIENCES - AN INTRODUCTORY OVERVIEW WITH EMPHASIS ON GANDINS METHOD OF OPTIMUM INTERPOLATION

In 1963, Gandin published a monograph on ''optimum interpolation for t he objective analysis of meteorological fields,'' a method that is sim ilar mathematically to geodetical least-squares prediction and colloca tion, simple kriging, and spectral interpolation. The common problem i s the interpolation or extrapolation or estimation of a continuous spa tial property from finitely many observations. Gandin's method is pres ented in an inverse-theoretical context with focus on a methodological comparison with related methods. Underlying mathematical assumptions as well as geological implications are discussed. An introductory over view of inverse methods in the earth sciences is given, with emphasis on methods with a structure analysis step.