Geod quiz 1 - Sheet1 Flashcards
definition of geodesy
the science of the measurement and mapping of earth’s surface
global geodesy includes:
the determination fo the shape and size of earth, its orientation in space, its gravity field
what is a geodetic survey
the determiniation of the earth’s surface and gravity field over a region (usually a country/ group of countries)
what needs to be considered in geodetic surveys?
the earth’s curvature and gravity field
what is plane surveying
when the details of the earth’s surface are determined on a local level (ignoring curvature and gravity effects)
geodesy applications
agriculture, aviation, space, public safety, survey and mapping, roads and highways
wht does tectonic geodesy include?
crustal deformation, plate boundaries, microplates, earthquakes, post seismic relaxation, volcanoes
hazards applications of geodesy
real time gnss/gps data, real time algorithims for seismic and volcanic hazards, sea level rise calculations, ice mass variations, land water storage
what do reference frames describe
orientation of the earth in space, earth’s surface geomoetry, the gravity field
what was the first idea about earth’s shape
a disk encircled by oceans (homer in the illiad, 800BC)
what shape did pythagoras propose?
spherical earth (580-500BC)
when was the spherical model accepted and why
around aristotle’s time (382-322BC), because of 1) the round shadow of earth in lunar eclipses and 2) the apparent rising of an aproaching ship on the horizon
who is the founder of geodesy and what did he do?
eratosthenes of alexandria, deduced the earth’s radius from measurements, developed arc measurement method. found that raus of sun descended vertically into a well in syene at summer solstice, then comapred to alexandria. estiamted 6366km (actual= 6367 km)
who suggested ellipsoidal earth
newton (ssuggested flattening of earth)
what are the WGS84 and ITRF?
really similar global ellipsoidal models. both are geocentric (relative to the center of earth’s mass), WGS= world geodetic service, ITRF = international terrestrial ref. frame
what is the NAD84
north americal ellipsoidal model (north american datum = NAD). NON geocentric
how do we take present day geodetic surveys?
1) control points (might be in shallow concrete) 2) geodetic benchmarks (installed in very stable bedrock or on a deep steel rod)
who is gladys west?
mathmatician that layed groundwork for gps. she made a model of the earth accounting for gravitational, tidal, and other forces
who were laplace, gauss, and bessel
dudes who determined that the ellipsoid was NOT accurate
how did laplace, gauss, and bessel figure our that the elliposoid wasn’t accurate?
they used the deflection of vertical (aka the deviation of a plumbline from the ellipsoidal normal)
what is the geoid and who defined it
the mathmatical surface of the earth. all points on a geoid have the same effective potential. gauss and bessel defined it
how is the geoid currently measured?
recent satellite missions (Gravity FIeld and Steady STate Ocean Circulation (GOCE) and GRACE)
what is a terrestrial refernce system
a spatial refernece system co-rotating with the Earth
what’s special about a TRS
positions of points attached to the solid earth have coords. which undergo only small variations with time (due to geophysical effects - tectonic or tidal deformations)
what are reference systems good for?
describing the positions and motions of the earth, other celestial bodies, artificial satellites, the surface fo the earth, the stationary and time variable parts of earth’s gravity field
what are refrence systems represented by?
coordiante systems
how does time play into reference systems?
the mutual motion of the earth and other celest. bodies, temporal variations of the earth’s shape, gravity field, and orientation
how are reference systems and frames related?
refernce systems are realized through reference frames. ref. systems are theoretical, ref. frames are REAL and ppl have access to them
what do reference frames consist of
a set of well determined, fixed points or objectss (given by their coords and -if necessary- their velocities)
what are time systems based on
processes of quantum physics, motions in the solar system, daily rotation of earth
what is the equation for flattening?
F = (a-b)/a
why are time systems important
need uniform time scale to: model motion of artificial satellites, describe motion of earth w/ respect to inertial space, date all measurements and results
what is the difference between control points and benchmarks
benchmarks are in bedrock (representative of tectonic motion), control points are in shallow conrete (measure shallow surface processes)
how does sea level factor into the geoid defintion?
Mean sea level is used ( without tides/ waves)
what is the difference between ref. systems and frames?
ref system = theoretical, frames = application (you tie measurements to reference frames)
what defined mass?
plank’s constant expressed in Joules
how is the realtization of the meter possible?
atomic clocks and GPS satellites
what is sexagesimal graduation
system of measurement using degrees, minutes, and seconds to measure angles and time
what are some key equations in sexagesimal graduation
1 degree = 60 arcmin, 1 arcmin= 60 arcsec, 2pie = 360, angle in degrees = (180/pie) angle in radians
what are other important constants in geodesy
speed of light, gravitational constant (henry cavendish figured out G)
what do most geodetic measurements use for positioning
time or frequency measurements of electromagnetic waves
what are forier’s theroem and equations
he said that any wave form in the time domain can be represented by the weighted sum of sins and cosines. F(v) = integral of neg infinity to infinity of f(t) times e^(-2pi times i times vt)