The atom-interferometry-based gravity gradiometer (AGG) is a highly promising quantum instrument. However, to demonstrate its advantages in practical applications, issues such as portability and a range of measurement challenges need to be addressed. Here we present an AGG featuring a high sensitivity up to $77\mathrm{E}/{\mathrm{Hz}}^{1/2}(1\mathrm{E}=1\times {10}^{-9}/{\mathrm{s}}^2)$ and an ultracompact sensor head volume of only 94 L. We studied the relation between the measurement results and the instrument’s orientation, addressing the Coriolis effect, which has been identified as the dominant error source affecting the measurement repeatability in field surveys. We integrated the gradiometer into a minivan and performed measurements over a set of subsurface structures in a small wooded area. The results not only resolved their dual structural signatures, previously undetected by conventional gravimeters, but also quantified the water depth in the reservoir with an accuracy of $\pm 0.23\mathrm{m}$. This work demonstrates AGGs’ superior spatial resolution over conventional gravimetry and paves the way for its practical field applications in geological research and underground engineering.

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• Atom interferometry
• Imaging & optical processing
• Quantum sensing
• Atomic ensemble
• Cooling & trapping
• Fluorescence spectroscopy
• Mach-Zehnder atom interferometry
• Rabi model