Geodesy

"Geodetic" redirects here. For the mathematical concept, see Geodesic.
A modern instrument for geodetic measurements using satellites
Geodesy
Fundamentals
Concepts
Technologies
Standards (history)
NGVD 29 Sea Level Datum 1929
OSGB36 Ordnance Survey Great Britain 1936
SK-42 Systema Koordinat 1942 goda
ED50 European Datum 1950
SAD69 South American Datum 1969
GRS 80 Geodetic Reference System 1980
ISO 6709 Geographic point coord. 1983
NAD 83 North American Datum 1983
WGS 84 World Geodetic System 1984
NAVD 88 N. American Vertical Datum 1988
ETRS89 European Terrestrial Ref. Sys. 1989
GCJ-02 Chinese obfuscated datum 2002
Geo URI Internet link to a point 2010

Geodesy or geodetics[1] is the science of measuring and representing the geometry, gravity, and spatial orientation of the Earth in temporally varying 3D. It is called planetary geodesy when studying other astronomical bodies, such as planets or circumplanetary systems.[2] Geodesy is an earth science and many consider the study of Earth's shape and gravity to be central to that science.[3][4] It is also a discipline of applied mathematics.[5][6]

Geodynamical phenomena, including crustal motion, tides, and polar motion, can be studied by designing global and national control networks, applying space geodesy and terrestrial geodetic techniques, and relying on datums and coordinate systems. Geodetic job titles include geodesist and geodetic surveyor.[7]

  1. ^ "geodetics". Cambridge English Dictionary. Retrieved 2024-06-08.
  2. ^ Vaníček, Petr; Krakiwsky, Edward J., eds. (November 1, 1986). "Structure of Geodesy". Geodesy: The Concepts (Second ed.). Elsevier. pp. 45–51. doi:10.1016/B978-0-444-87775-8.50009-5. ISBN 978-0-444-87775-8. ... geodesy was thought to occupy the space delimited by the following definition ... "the science of measuring and portraying the earth's surface." ... the new definition of geodesy ... "the discipline that deals with the measurement and representation of the earth, including its gravity field, in a three-dimensional time varying space." ... a virtually identical definition ... the inclusion of other celestial bodies and their respective gravity fields.
  3. ^ What is Geodesy? (PDF). International Association of Geodesy.
  4. ^ US Department of Commerce, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "What is geodesy?". oceanservice.noaa.gov. Retrieved 2024-06-09.
  5. ^ "Geodesy". LSU Center for GeoInformatics. Retrieved 2024-06-08.
  6. ^ "Geodesy Definition, Characteristics & Branches". Study.com. Retrieved 2024-06-08. The definition of geodesy can be explained as the academic field of earth science that is involved with measuring and comprehending the Earth's orientation in space, the Earth's gravity field, and the Earth's shape geometrically. ... Geodesy is an applied mathematics discipline used to understand various aspects of the Earth.
  7. ^ "Geodetic Surveyors". Occupational Information Network. 2020-11-26. Retrieved 2022-01-28.