CINXE.COM
World Geodetic System - Wikipedia
<!DOCTYPE html> <html class="client-nojs vector-feature-language-in-header-enabled vector-feature-language-in-main-page-header-disabled vector-feature-sticky-header-disabled vector-feature-page-tools-pinned-disabled vector-feature-toc-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-main-menu-pinned-disabled vector-feature-limited-width-clientpref-1 vector-feature-limited-width-content-enabled vector-feature-custom-font-size-clientpref-1 vector-feature-appearance-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-night-mode-enabled skin-theme-clientpref-day vector-toc-available" lang="en" dir="ltr"> <head> <meta charset="UTF-8"> <title>World Geodetic System - Wikipedia</title> <script>(function(){var className="client-js vector-feature-language-in-header-enabled vector-feature-language-in-main-page-header-disabled vector-feature-sticky-header-disabled vector-feature-page-tools-pinned-disabled vector-feature-toc-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-main-menu-pinned-disabled vector-feature-limited-width-clientpref-1 vector-feature-limited-width-content-enabled vector-feature-custom-font-size-clientpref-1 vector-feature-appearance-pinned-clientpref-1 vector-feature-night-mode-enabled skin-theme-clientpref-day vector-toc-available";var cookie=document.cookie.match(/(?:^|; )enwikimwclientpreferences=([^;]+)/);if(cookie){cookie[1].split('%2C').forEach(function(pref){className=className.replace(new RegExp('(^| )'+pref.replace(/-clientpref-\w+$|[^\w-]+/g,'')+'-clientpref-\\w+( |$)'),'$1'+pref+'$2');});}document.documentElement.className=className;}());RLCONF={"wgBreakFrames":false,"wgSeparatorTransformTable":["",""],"wgDigitTransformTable":["",""],"wgDefaultDateFormat":"dmy", "wgMonthNames":["","January","February","March","April","May","June","July","August","September","October","November","December"],"wgRequestId":"38336950-e953-4dd2-9708-c290f15b4a92","wgCanonicalNamespace":"","wgCanonicalSpecialPageName":false,"wgNamespaceNumber":0,"wgPageName":"World_Geodetic_System","wgTitle":"World Geodetic System","wgCurRevisionId":1260751509,"wgRevisionId":1260751509,"wgArticleId":233654,"wgIsArticle":true,"wgIsRedirect":false,"wgAction":"view","wgUserName":null,"wgUserGroups":["*"],"wgCategories":["Articles with short description","Short description matches Wikidata","Use dmy dates from January 2024","Articles containing German-language text","Pages using div col with small parameter","Coordinate systems","Geodesy","Global Positioning System","Military globalization","Navigation"],"wgPageViewLanguage":"en","wgPageContentLanguage":"en","wgPageContentModel":"wikitext","wgRelevantPageName":"World_Geodetic_System","wgRelevantArticleId":233654,"wgIsProbablyEditable": true,"wgRelevantPageIsProbablyEditable":true,"wgRestrictionEdit":[],"wgRestrictionMove":[],"wgNoticeProject":"wikipedia","wgCiteReferencePreviewsActive":false,"wgFlaggedRevsParams":{"tags":{"status":{"levels":1}}},"wgMediaViewerOnClick":true,"wgMediaViewerEnabledByDefault":true,"wgPopupsFlags":0,"wgVisualEditor":{"pageLanguageCode":"en","pageLanguageDir":"ltr","pageVariantFallbacks":"en"},"wgMFDisplayWikibaseDescriptions":{"search":true,"watchlist":true,"tagline":false,"nearby":true},"wgWMESchemaEditAttemptStepOversample":false,"wgWMEPageLength":30000,"wgRelatedArticlesCompat":[],"wgEditSubmitButtonLabelPublish":true,"wgULSPosition":"interlanguage","wgULSisCompactLinksEnabled":false,"wgVector2022LanguageInHeader":true,"wgULSisLanguageSelectorEmpty":false,"wgWikibaseItemId":"Q215848","wgCheckUserClientHintsHeadersJsApi":["brands","architecture","bitness","fullVersionList","mobile","model","platform","platformVersion"],"GEHomepageSuggestedEditsEnableTopics":true, "wgGETopicsMatchModeEnabled":false,"wgGEStructuredTaskRejectionReasonTextInputEnabled":false,"wgGELevelingUpEnabledForUser":false};RLSTATE={"ext.globalCssJs.user.styles":"ready","site.styles":"ready","user.styles":"ready","ext.globalCssJs.user":"ready","user":"ready","user.options":"loading","ext.cite.styles":"ready","skins.vector.search.codex.styles":"ready","skins.vector.styles":"ready","skins.vector.icons":"ready","jquery.makeCollapsible.styles":"ready","ext.wikimediamessages.styles":"ready","ext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.noscript":"ready","ext.uls.interlanguage":"ready","wikibase.client.init":"ready","ext.wikimediaBadges":"ready"};RLPAGEMODULES=["ext.cite.ux-enhancements","mediawiki.page.media","ext.scribunto.logs","site","mediawiki.page.ready","jquery.makeCollapsible","mediawiki.toc","skins.vector.js","ext.centralNotice.geoIP","ext.centralNotice.startUp","ext.gadget.ReferenceTooltips","ext.gadget.switcher","ext.urlShortener.toolbar","ext.centralauth.centralautologin", "mmv.bootstrap","ext.popups","ext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.init","ext.visualEditor.targetLoader","ext.echo.centralauth","ext.eventLogging","ext.wikimediaEvents","ext.navigationTiming","ext.uls.interface","ext.cx.eventlogging.campaigns","ext.cx.uls.quick.actions","wikibase.client.vector-2022","ext.checkUser.clientHints","ext.quicksurveys.init","ext.growthExperiments.SuggestedEditSession"];</script> <script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.loader.impl(function(){return["user.options@12s5i",function($,jQuery,require,module){mw.user.tokens.set({"patrolToken":"+\\","watchToken":"+\\","csrfToken":"+\\"}); }];});});</script> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=ext.cite.styles%7Cext.uls.interlanguage%7Cext.visualEditor.desktopArticleTarget.noscript%7Cext.wikimediaBadges%7Cext.wikimediamessages.styles%7Cjquery.makeCollapsible.styles%7Cskins.vector.icons%2Cstyles%7Cskins.vector.search.codex.styles%7Cwikibase.client.init&only=styles&skin=vector-2022"> <script async="" src="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=startup&only=scripts&raw=1&skin=vector-2022"></script> <meta name="ResourceLoaderDynamicStyles" content=""> <link rel="stylesheet" href="/w/load.php?lang=en&modules=site.styles&only=styles&skin=vector-2022"> <meta name="generator" content="MediaWiki 1.44.0-wmf.6"> <meta name="referrer" content="origin"> <meta name="referrer" content="origin-when-cross-origin"> <meta name="robots" content="max-image-preview:standard"> <meta name="format-detection" content="telephone=no"> <meta property="og:image" content="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Globe_Atlantic.svg/1200px-Globe_Atlantic.svg.png"> <meta property="og:image:width" content="1200"> <meta property="og:image:height" content="1207"> <meta property="og:image" content="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Globe_Atlantic.svg/800px-Globe_Atlantic.svg.png"> <meta property="og:image:width" content="800"> <meta property="og:image:height" content="804"> <meta property="og:image" content="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Globe_Atlantic.svg/640px-Globe_Atlantic.svg.png"> <meta property="og:image:width" content="640"> <meta property="og:image:height" content="644"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=1120"> <meta property="og:title" content="World Geodetic System - Wikipedia"> <meta property="og:type" content="website"> <link rel="preconnect" href="//upload.wikimedia.org"> <link rel="alternate" media="only screen and (max-width: 640px)" href="//en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Geodetic_System"> <link rel="alternate" type="application/x-wiki" title="Edit this page" href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" href="/static/apple-touch/wikipedia.png"> <link rel="icon" href="/static/favicon/wikipedia.ico"> <link rel="search" type="application/opensearchdescription+xml" href="/w/rest.php/v1/search" title="Wikipedia (en)"> <link rel="EditURI" type="application/rsd+xml" href="//en.wikipedia.org/w/api.php?action=rsd"> <link rel="canonical" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Geodetic_System"> <link rel="license" href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en"> <link rel="alternate" type="application/atom+xml" title="Wikipedia Atom feed" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:RecentChanges&feed=atom"> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="//meta.wikimedia.org" /> <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="login.wikimedia.org"> </head> <body class="skin--responsive skin-vector skin-vector-search-vue mediawiki ltr sitedir-ltr mw-hide-empty-elt ns-0 ns-subject mw-editable page-World_Geodetic_System rootpage-World_Geodetic_System skin-vector-2022 action-view"><a class="mw-jump-link" href="#bodyContent">Jump to content</a> <div class="vector-header-container"> <header class="vector-header mw-header"> <div class="vector-header-start"> <nav class="vector-main-menu-landmark" aria-label="Site"> <div id="vector-main-menu-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-main-menu-dropdown vector-button-flush-left vector-button-flush-right" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-main-menu-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-main-menu-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Main menu" > <label id="vector-main-menu-dropdown-label" for="vector-main-menu-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-menu mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-menu"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Main menu</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-main-menu-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> <div id="vector-main-menu" class="vector-main-menu vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-main-menu-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-unpinned" data-feature-name="main-menu-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-main-menu" data-pinned-container-id="vector-main-menu-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-main-menu-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Main menu</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-main-menu.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-main-menu.unpin">hide</button> </div> <div id="p-navigation" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-navigation" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Navigation </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="n-mainpage-description" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Main_Page" title="Visit the main page [z]" accesskey="z"><span>Main page</span></a></li><li id="n-contents" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Contents" title="Guides to browsing Wikipedia"><span>Contents</span></a></li><li id="n-currentevents" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Portal:Current_events" title="Articles related to current events"><span>Current events</span></a></li><li id="n-randompage" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:Random" title="Visit a randomly selected article [x]" accesskey="x"><span>Random article</span></a></li><li id="n-aboutsite" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:About" title="Learn about Wikipedia and how it works"><span>About Wikipedia</span></a></li><li id="n-contactpage" class="mw-list-item"><a href="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contact_us" title="How to contact Wikipedia"><span>Contact us</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-interaction" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-interaction" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Contribute </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="n-help" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Help:Contents" title="Guidance on how to use and edit Wikipedia"><span>Help</span></a></li><li id="n-introduction" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Help:Introduction" title="Learn how to edit Wikipedia"><span>Learn to edit</span></a></li><li id="n-portal" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Community_portal" title="The hub for editors"><span>Community portal</span></a></li><li id="n-recentchanges" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChanges" title="A list of recent changes to Wikipedia [r]" accesskey="r"><span>Recent changes</span></a></li><li id="n-upload" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:File_upload_wizard" title="Add images or other media for use on Wikipedia"><span>Upload file</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <a href="/wiki/Main_Page" class="mw-logo"> <img class="mw-logo-icon" src="/static/images/icons/wikipedia.png" alt="" aria-hidden="true" height="50" width="50"> <span class="mw-logo-container skin-invert"> <img class="mw-logo-wordmark" alt="Wikipedia" src="/static/images/mobile/copyright/wikipedia-wordmark-en.svg" style="width: 7.5em; height: 1.125em;"> <img class="mw-logo-tagline" alt="The Free Encyclopedia" src="/static/images/mobile/copyright/wikipedia-tagline-en.svg" width="117" height="13" style="width: 7.3125em; height: 0.8125em;"> </span> </a> </div> <div class="vector-header-end"> <div id="p-search" role="search" class="vector-search-box-vue vector-search-box-collapses vector-search-box-show-thumbnail vector-search-box-auto-expand-width vector-search-box"> <a href="/wiki/Special:Search" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only search-toggle" title="Search Wikipedia [f]" accesskey="f"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-search mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-search"></span> <span>Search</span> </a> <div class="vector-typeahead-search-container"> <div class="cdx-typeahead-search cdx-typeahead-search--show-thumbnail cdx-typeahead-search--auto-expand-width"> <form action="/w/index.php" id="searchform" class="cdx-search-input cdx-search-input--has-end-button"> <div id="simpleSearch" class="cdx-search-input__input-wrapper" data-search-loc="header-moved"> <div class="cdx-text-input cdx-text-input--has-start-icon"> <input class="cdx-text-input__input" type="search" name="search" placeholder="Search Wikipedia" aria-label="Search Wikipedia" autocapitalize="sentences" title="Search Wikipedia [f]" accesskey="f" id="searchInput" > <span class="cdx-text-input__icon cdx-text-input__start-icon"></span> </div> <input type="hidden" name="title" value="Special:Search"> </div> <button class="cdx-button cdx-search-input__end-button">Search</button> </form> </div> </div> </div> <nav class="vector-user-links vector-user-links-wide" aria-label="Personal tools"> <div class="vector-user-links-main"> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-preferences" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-userpage" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <nav class="vector-appearance-landmark" aria-label="Appearance"> <div id="vector-appearance-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown " title="Change the appearance of the page's font size, width, and color" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-appearance-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-appearance-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Appearance" > <label id="vector-appearance-dropdown-label" for="vector-appearance-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-appearance mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-appearance"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Appearance</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-appearance-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-notifications" class="vector-menu mw-portlet emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-vector-user-menu-overflow" class="vector-menu mw-portlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-sitesupport-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="https://donate.wikimedia.org/?wmf_source=donate&wmf_medium=sidebar&wmf_campaign=en.wikipedia.org&uselang=en" class=""><span>Donate</span></a> </li> <li id="pt-createaccount-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=World+Geodetic+System" title="You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory" class=""><span>Create account</span></a> </li> <li id="pt-login-2" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item user-links-collapsible-item"><a data-mw="interface" href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&returnto=World+Geodetic+System" title="You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [o]" accesskey="o" class=""><span>Log in</span></a> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> <div id="vector-user-links-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-user-menu vector-button-flush-right vector-user-menu-logged-out" title="Log in and more options" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-user-links-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-user-links-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Personal tools" > <label id="vector-user-links-dropdown-label" for="vector-user-links-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-ellipsis mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-ellipsis"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Personal tools</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="p-personal" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-personal user-links-collapsible-item" title="User menu" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-sitesupport" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="https://donate.wikimedia.org/?wmf_source=donate&wmf_medium=sidebar&wmf_campaign=en.wikipedia.org&uselang=en"><span>Donate</span></a></li><li id="pt-createaccount" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CreateAccount&returnto=World+Geodetic+System" title="You are encouraged to create an account and log in; however, it is not mandatory"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-userAdd mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-userAdd"></span> <span>Create account</span></a></li><li id="pt-login" class="user-links-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UserLogin&returnto=World+Geodetic+System" title="You're encouraged to log in; however, it's not mandatory. [o]" accesskey="o"><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-logIn mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-logIn"></span> <span>Log in</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-user-menu-anon-editor" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-user-menu-anon-editor" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Pages for logged out editors <a href="/wiki/Help:Introduction" aria-label="Learn more about editing"><span>learn more</span></a> </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="pt-anoncontribs" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyContributions" title="A list of edits made from this IP address [y]" accesskey="y"><span>Contributions</span></a></li><li id="pt-anontalk" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:MyTalk" title="Discussion about edits from this IP address [n]" accesskey="n"><span>Talk</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </header> </div> <div class="mw-page-container"> <div class="mw-page-container-inner"> <div class="vector-sitenotice-container"> <div id="siteNotice"><!-- CentralNotice --></div> </div> <div class="vector-column-start"> <div class="vector-main-menu-container"> <div id="mw-navigation"> <nav id="mw-panel" class="vector-main-menu-landmark" aria-label="Site"> <div id="vector-main-menu-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div class="vector-sticky-pinned-container"> <nav id="mw-panel-toc" aria-label="Contents" data-event-name="ui.sidebar-toc" class="mw-table-of-contents-container vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-toc-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> <div id="vector-toc" class="vector-toc vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-toc-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-pinned" data-feature-name="toc-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-toc" > <h2 class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Contents</h2> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-toc.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-toc.unpin">hide</button> </div> <ul class="vector-toc-contents" id="mw-panel-toc-list"> <li id="toc-mw-content-text" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1"> <a href="#" class="vector-toc-link"> <div class="vector-toc-text">(Top)</div> </a> </li> <li id="toc-History" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#History"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1</span> <span>History</span> </div> </a> <button aria-controls="toc-History-sublist" class="cdx-button cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only vector-toc-toggle"> <span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-expand"></span> <span>Toggle History subsection</span> </button> <ul id="toc-History-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> <li id="toc-WGS_60" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#WGS_60"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.1</span> <span>WGS 60</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-WGS_60-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-WGS_66" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#WGS_66"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.2</span> <span>WGS 66</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-WGS_66-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-WGS_72" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#WGS_72"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.3</span> <span>WGS 72</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-WGS_72-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-WGS_84" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-2"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#WGS_84"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">1.4</span> <span>WGS 84</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-WGS_84-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Definition" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Definition"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">2</span> <span>Definition</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Definition-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Updates_and_new_standards" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Updates_and_new_standards"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">3</span> <span>Updates and new standards</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Updates_and_new_standards-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-Identifiers" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#Identifiers"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">4</span> <span>Identifiers</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-Identifiers-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-See_also" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#See_also"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">5</span> <span>See also</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-See_also-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-References" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#References"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">6</span> <span>References</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-References-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> <li id="toc-External_links" class="vector-toc-list-item vector-toc-level-1 vector-toc-list-item-expanded"> <a class="vector-toc-link" href="#External_links"> <div class="vector-toc-text"> <span class="vector-toc-numb">7</span> <span>External links</span> </div> </a> <ul id="toc-External_links-sublist" class="vector-toc-list"> </ul> </li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div class="mw-content-container"> <main id="content" class="mw-body"> <header class="mw-body-header vector-page-titlebar"> <nav aria-label="Contents" class="vector-toc-landmark"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-titlebar-toc vector-button-flush-left" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-titlebar-toc" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Toggle the table of contents" > <label id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-label" for="vector-page-titlebar-toc-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--icon-only " aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-listBullet mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-listBullet"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Toggle the table of contents</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-page-titlebar-toc-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> </div> </div> </div> </nav> <h1 id="firstHeading" class="firstHeading mw-first-heading"><span class="mw-page-title-main">World Geodetic System</span></h1> <div id="p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown mw-portlet mw-portlet-lang" > <input type="checkbox" id="p-lang-btn-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-p-lang-btn" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox mw-interlanguage-selector" aria-label="Go to an article in another language. Available in 19 languages" > <label id="p-lang-btn-label" for="p-lang-btn-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet cdx-button--action-progressive mw-portlet-lang-heading-19" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-icon mw-ui-icon-language-progressive mw-ui-icon-wikimedia-language-progressive"></span> <span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">19 languages</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ar mw-list-item"><a href="https://ar.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%86%D8%B8%D8%A7%D9%85_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D9%8A%D9%88%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%B3%D9%8A_%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D9%8A" title="النظام الجيوديسي العالمي – Arabic" lang="ar" hreflang="ar" data-title="النظام الجيوديسي العالمي" data-language-autonym="العربية" data-language-local-name="Arabic" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>العربية</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-cs mw-list-item"><a href="https://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Geodetic_System" title="World Geodetic System – Czech" lang="cs" hreflang="cs" data-title="World Geodetic System" data-language-autonym="Čeština" data-language-local-name="Czech" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Čeština</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-de mw-list-item"><a href="https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Geodetic_System" title="World Geodetic System – German" lang="de" hreflang="de" data-title="World Geodetic System" data-language-autonym="Deutsch" data-language-local-name="German" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Deutsch</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-et mw-list-item"><a href="https://et.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rahvusvaheline_geodeetiliste_koordinaatide_s%C3%BCsteem" title="Rahvusvaheline geodeetiliste koordinaatide süsteem – Estonian" lang="et" hreflang="et" data-title="Rahvusvaheline geodeetiliste koordinaatide süsteem" data-language-autonym="Eesti" data-language-local-name="Estonian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Eesti</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-es mw-list-item"><a href="https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistema_Geod%C3%A9sico_Mundial" title="Sistema Geodésico Mundial – Spanish" lang="es" hreflang="es" data-title="Sistema Geodésico Mundial" data-language-autonym="Español" data-language-local-name="Spanish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Español</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fa mw-list-item"><a href="https://fa.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D8%B3%D8%A7%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%87_%DA%98%D8%A6%D9%88%D8%AF%D8%AA%DB%8C%DA%A9_%D8%AC%D9%87%D8%A7%D9%86%DB%8C" title="سامانه ژئودتیک جهانی – Persian" lang="fa" hreflang="fa" data-title="سامانه ژئودتیک جهانی" data-language-autonym="فارسی" data-language-local-name="Persian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>فارسی</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ko mw-list-item"><a href="https://ko.wikipedia.org/wiki/%EC%84%B8%EA%B3%84_%EC%A7%80%EA%B5%AC_%EC%A2%8C%ED%91%9C_%EC%8B%9C%EC%8A%A4%ED%85%9C" title="세계 지구 좌표 시스템 – Korean" lang="ko" hreflang="ko" data-title="세계 지구 좌표 시스템" data-language-autonym="한국어" data-language-local-name="Korean" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>한국어</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ilo mw-list-item"><a href="https://ilo.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Geodetic_System" title="World Geodetic System – Iloko" lang="ilo" hreflang="ilo" data-title="World Geodetic System" data-language-autonym="Ilokano" data-language-local-name="Iloko" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Ilokano</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-id mw-list-item"><a href="https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistem_Geodesi_Dunia" title="Sistem Geodesi Dunia – Indonesian" lang="id" hreflang="id" data-title="Sistem Geodesi Dunia" data-language-autonym="Bahasa Indonesia" data-language-local-name="Indonesian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Bahasa Indonesia</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-he mw-list-item"><a href="https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/WGS" title="WGS – Hebrew" lang="he" hreflang="he" data-title="WGS" data-language-autonym="עברית" data-language-local-name="Hebrew" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>עברית</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-nds-nl mw-list-item"><a href="https://nds-nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Geodetic_System" title="World Geodetic System – Low Saxon" lang="nds-NL" hreflang="nds-NL" data-title="World Geodetic System" data-language-autonym="Nedersaksies" data-language-local-name="Low Saxon" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Nedersaksies</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-ja badge-Q70894304 mw-list-item" title=""><a href="https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%B8%96%E7%95%8C%E6%B8%AC%E5%9C%B0%E7%B3%BB" title="世界測地系 – Japanese" lang="ja" hreflang="ja" data-title="世界測地系" data-language-autonym="日本語" data-language-local-name="Japanese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>日本語</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-no mw-list-item"><a href="https://no.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Geodetic_System" title="World Geodetic System – Norwegian Bokmål" lang="nb" hreflang="nb" data-title="World Geodetic System" data-language-autonym="Norsk bokmål" data-language-local-name="Norwegian Bokmål" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Norsk bokmål</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-simple mw-list-item"><a href="https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Geodetic_System" title="World Geodetic System – Simple English" lang="en-simple" hreflang="en-simple" data-title="World Geodetic System" data-language-autonym="Simple English" data-language-local-name="Simple English" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Simple English</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-su mw-list-item"><a href="https://su.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sistem_Geodesi_Dunya" title="Sistem Geodesi Dunya – Sundanese" lang="su" hreflang="su" data-title="Sistem Geodesi Dunya" data-language-autonym="Sunda" data-language-local-name="Sundanese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Sunda</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-fi mw-list-item"><a href="https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Geodetic_System" title="World Geodetic System – Finnish" lang="fi" hreflang="fi" data-title="World Geodetic System" data-language-autonym="Suomi" data-language-local-name="Finnish" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Suomi</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-uk mw-list-item"><a href="https://uk.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%A1%D0%B2%D1%96%D1%82%D0%BE%D0%B2%D0%B0_%D0%B3%D0%B5%D0%BE%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%B7%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%BD%D0%B0_%D1%81%D0%B8%D1%81%D1%82%D0%B5%D0%BC%D0%B0" title="Світова геодезична система – Ukrainian" lang="uk" hreflang="uk" data-title="Світова геодезична система" data-language-autonym="Українська" data-language-local-name="Ukrainian" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Українська</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-vi mw-list-item"><a href="https://vi.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%E1%BB%87_th%E1%BB%91ng_tr%E1%BA%AFc_%C4%91%E1%BB%8Ba_th%E1%BA%BF_gi%E1%BB%9Bi" title="Hệ thống trắc địa thế giới – Vietnamese" lang="vi" hreflang="vi" data-title="Hệ thống trắc địa thế giới" data-language-autonym="Tiếng Việt" data-language-local-name="Vietnamese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>Tiếng Việt</span></a></li><li class="interlanguage-link interwiki-zh mw-list-item"><a href="https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%B8%96%E7%95%8C%E5%A4%A7%E5%9C%B0%E6%B5%8B%E9%87%8F%E7%B3%BB%E7%BB%9F" title="世界大地测量系统 – Chinese" lang="zh" hreflang="zh" data-title="世界大地测量系统" data-language-autonym="中文" data-language-local-name="Chinese" class="interlanguage-link-target"><span>中文</span></a></li> </ul> <div class="after-portlet after-portlet-lang"><span class="wb-langlinks-edit wb-langlinks-link"><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Special:EntityPage/Q215848#sitelinks-wikipedia" title="Edit interlanguage links" class="wbc-editpage">Edit links</a></span></div> </div> </div> </div> </header> <div class="vector-page-toolbar"> <div class="vector-page-toolbar-container"> <div id="left-navigation"> <nav aria-label="Namespaces"> <div id="p-associated-pages" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs mw-portlet mw-portlet-associated-pages" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-nstab-main" class="selected vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/World_Geodetic_System" title="View the content page [c]" accesskey="c"><span>Article</span></a></li><li id="ca-talk" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Talk:World_Geodetic_System" rel="discussion" title="Discuss improvements to the content page [t]" accesskey="t"><span>Talk</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="vector-variants-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown emptyPortlet" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-variants-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-variants-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Change language variant" > <label id="vector-variants-dropdown-label" for="vector-variants-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">English</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="p-variants" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-variants emptyPortlet" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> <div id="right-navigation" class="vector-collapsible"> <nav aria-label="Views"> <div id="p-views" class="vector-menu vector-menu-tabs mw-portlet mw-portlet-views" > <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-view" class="selected vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/World_Geodetic_System"><span>Read</span></a></li><li id="ca-edit" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit" title="Edit this page [e]" accesskey="e"><span>Edit</span></a></li><li id="ca-history" class="vector-tab-noicon mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=history" title="Past revisions of this page [h]" accesskey="h"><span>View history</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </nav> <nav class="vector-page-tools-landmark" aria-label="Page tools"> <div id="vector-page-tools-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown vector-page-tools-dropdown" > <input type="checkbox" id="vector-page-tools-dropdown-checkbox" role="button" aria-haspopup="true" data-event-name="ui.dropdown-vector-page-tools-dropdown" class="vector-dropdown-checkbox " aria-label="Tools" > <label id="vector-page-tools-dropdown-label" for="vector-page-tools-dropdown-checkbox" class="vector-dropdown-label cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--fake-button--enabled cdx-button--weight-quiet" aria-hidden="true" ><span class="vector-dropdown-label-text">Tools</span> </label> <div class="vector-dropdown-content"> <div id="vector-page-tools-unpinned-container" class="vector-unpinned-container"> <div id="vector-page-tools" class="vector-page-tools vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-page-tools-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-unpinned" data-feature-name="page-tools-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-page-tools" data-pinned-container-id="vector-page-tools-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-page-tools-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Tools</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-page-tools.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-page-tools.unpin">hide</button> </div> <div id="p-cactions" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-cactions emptyPortlet vector-has-collapsible-items" title="More options" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Actions </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="ca-more-view" class="selected vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/World_Geodetic_System"><span>Read</span></a></li><li id="ca-more-edit" class="vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit" title="Edit this page [e]" accesskey="e"><span>Edit</span></a></li><li id="ca-more-history" class="vector-more-collapsible-item mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=history"><span>View history</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-tb" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-tb" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> General </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="t-whatlinkshere" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:WhatLinksHere/World_Geodetic_System" title="List of all English Wikipedia pages containing links to this page [j]" accesskey="j"><span>What links here</span></a></li><li id="t-recentchangeslinked" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:RecentChangesLinked/World_Geodetic_System" rel="nofollow" title="Recent changes in pages linked from this page [k]" accesskey="k"><span>Related changes</span></a></li><li id="t-upload" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:File_Upload_Wizard" title="Upload files [u]" accesskey="u"><span>Upload file</span></a></li><li id="t-specialpages" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/wiki/Special:SpecialPages" title="A list of all special pages [q]" accesskey="q"><span>Special pages</span></a></li><li id="t-permalink" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&oldid=1260751509" title="Permanent link to this revision of this page"><span>Permanent link</span></a></li><li id="t-info" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=info" title="More information about this page"><span>Page information</span></a></li><li id="t-cite" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:CiteThisPage&page=World_Geodetic_System&id=1260751509&wpFormIdentifier=titleform" title="Information on how to cite this page"><span>Cite this page</span></a></li><li id="t-urlshortener" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:UrlQ%C4%B1sald%C4%B1c%C4%B1s%C4%B1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FWorld_Geodetic_System"><span>Get shortened URL</span></a></li><li id="t-urlshortener-qrcode" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:QrKodu&url=https%3A%2F%2Fen.wikipedia.org%2Fwiki%2FWorld_Geodetic_System"><span>Download QR code</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-coll-print_export" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-coll-print_export" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> Print/export </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="coll-download-as-rl" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=Special:DownloadAsPdf&page=World_Geodetic_System&action=show-download-screen" title="Download this page as a PDF file"><span>Download as PDF</span></a></li><li id="t-print" class="mw-list-item"><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&printable=yes" title="Printable version of this page [p]" accesskey="p"><span>Printable version</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> <div id="p-wikibase-otherprojects" class="vector-menu mw-portlet mw-portlet-wikibase-otherprojects" > <div class="vector-menu-heading"> In other projects </div> <div class="vector-menu-content"> <ul class="vector-menu-content-list"> <li id="t-wikibase" class="wb-otherproject-link wb-otherproject-wikibase-dataitem mw-list-item"><a href="https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Special:EntityPage/Q215848" title="Structured data on this page hosted by Wikidata [g]" accesskey="g"><span>Wikidata item</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-column-end"> <div class="vector-sticky-pinned-container"> <nav class="vector-page-tools-landmark" aria-label="Page tools"> <div id="vector-page-tools-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> </div> </nav> <nav class="vector-appearance-landmark" aria-label="Appearance"> <div id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" class="vector-pinned-container"> <div id="vector-appearance" class="vector-appearance vector-pinnable-element"> <div class="vector-pinnable-header vector-appearance-pinnable-header vector-pinnable-header-pinned" data-feature-name="appearance-pinned" data-pinnable-element-id="vector-appearance" data-pinned-container-id="vector-appearance-pinned-container" data-unpinned-container-id="vector-appearance-unpinned-container" > <div class="vector-pinnable-header-label">Appearance</div> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-pin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.pin">move to sidebar</button> <button class="vector-pinnable-header-toggle-button vector-pinnable-header-unpin-button" data-event-name="pinnable-header.vector-appearance.unpin">hide</button> </div> </div> </div> </nav> </div> </div> <div id="bodyContent" class="vector-body" aria-labelledby="firstHeading" data-mw-ve-target-container> <div class="vector-body-before-content"> <div class="mw-indicators"> </div> <div id="siteSub" class="noprint">From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia</div> </div> <div id="contentSub"><div id="mw-content-subtitle"></div></div> <div id="mw-content-text" class="mw-body-content"><div class="mw-content-ltr mw-parser-output" lang="en" dir="ltr"><div class="shortdescription nomobile noexcerpt noprint searchaux" style="display:none">Geodetic reference system</div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1129693374">.mw-parser-output .hlist dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul{margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt,.mw-parser-output .hlist li{margin:0;display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul ul{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist .mw-empty-li{display:none}.mw-parser-output .hlist dt::after{content:": "}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li::after{content:" · ";font-weight:bold}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li:last-child::after{content:none}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li li:first-child::before{content:" (";font-weight:normal}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd li:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt li:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li li:last-child::after{content:")";font-weight:normal}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol{counter-reset:listitem}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol>li{counter-increment:listitem}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol>li::before{content:" "counter(listitem)"\a0 "}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd ol>li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt ol>li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li ol>li:first-child::before{content:" ("counter(listitem)"\a0 "}</style><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1126788409">.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul{line-height:inherit;list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol li,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul li{margin-bottom:0}</style><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1246091330">.mw-parser-output .sidebar{width:22em;float:right;clear:right;margin:0.5em 0 1em 1em;background:var(--background-color-neutral-subtle,#f8f9fa);border:1px solid var(--border-color-base,#a2a9b1);padding:0.2em;text-align:center;line-height:1.4em;font-size:88%;border-collapse:collapse;display:table}body.skin-minerva .mw-parser-output .sidebar{display:table!important;float:right!important;margin:0.5em 0 1em 1em!important}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-subgroup{width:100%;margin:0;border-spacing:0}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-left{float:left;clear:left;margin:0.5em 1em 1em 0}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-none{float:none;clear:both;margin:0.5em 1em 1em 0}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-outer-title{padding:0 0.4em 0.2em;font-size:125%;line-height:1.2em;font-weight:bold}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-top-image{padding:0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-top-caption,.mw-parser-output .sidebar-pretitle-with-top-image,.mw-parser-output .sidebar-caption{padding:0.2em 0.4em 0;line-height:1.2em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-pretitle{padding:0.4em 0.4em 0;line-height:1.2em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-title,.mw-parser-output .sidebar-title-with-pretitle{padding:0.2em 0.8em;font-size:145%;line-height:1.2em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-title-with-pretitle{padding:0.1em 0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-image{padding:0.2em 0.4em 0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-heading{padding:0.1em 0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-content{padding:0 0.5em 0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-content-with-subgroup{padding:0.1em 0.4em 0.2em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-above,.mw-parser-output .sidebar-below{padding:0.3em 0.8em;font-weight:bold}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-collapse .sidebar-above,.mw-parser-output .sidebar-collapse .sidebar-below{border-top:1px solid #aaa;border-bottom:1px solid #aaa}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-navbar{text-align:right;font-size:115%;padding:0 0.4em 0.4em}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-list-title{padding:0 0.4em;text-align:left;font-weight:bold;line-height:1.6em;font-size:105%}.mw-parser-output .sidebar-list-title-c{padding:0 0.4em;text-align:center;margin:0 3.3em}@media(max-width:640px){body.mediawiki .mw-parser-output .sidebar{width:100%!important;clear:both;float:none!important;margin-left:0!important;margin-right:0!important}}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .sidebar a>img{max-width:none!important}@media screen{html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-list-title,html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-title-with-pretitle{background:transparent!important}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-title-with-pretitle a{color:var(--color-progressive)!important}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-list-title,html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-title-with-pretitle{background:transparent!important}html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .sidebar:not(.notheme) .sidebar-title-with-pretitle a{color:var(--color-progressive)!important}}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .sidebar{display:none!important}}</style><table class="sidebar sidebar-collapse nomobile nowraplinks"><tbody><tr><th class="sidebar-title" style="padding-bottom:0.4em;"><a href="/wiki/Geodesy" title="Geodesy">Geodesy</a></th></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-image"><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Globe_Atlantic.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Globe_Atlantic.svg/120px-Globe_Atlantic.svg.png" decoding="async" width="120" height="121" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Globe_Atlantic.svg/180px-Globe_Atlantic.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b1/Globe_Atlantic.svg/240px-Globe_Atlantic.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="717" data-file-height="721" /></a></span></td></tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="color: var(--color-base)">Fundamentals</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Geodesy" title="Geodesy">Geodesy</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geodynamics" title="Geodynamics">Geodynamics</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geomatics" title="Geomatics">Geomatics</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/History_of_geodesy" title="History of geodesy">History</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="color: var(--color-base)">Concepts</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Geographical_distance" title="Geographical distance">Geographical distance</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geoid" title="Geoid">Geoid</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Figure_of_the_Earth" title="Figure of the Earth">Figure of the Earth</a> <small>(<a href="/wiki/Earth_radius" title="Earth radius">radius</a> and <a href="/wiki/Earth%27s_circumference" title="Earth's circumference">circumference</a>)</small></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geodetic_coordinates" title="Geodetic coordinates">Geodetic coordinates</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geodetic_datum" title="Geodetic datum">Geodetic datum</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geodesic" title="Geodesic">Geodesic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Horizontal_position_representation" title="Horizontal position representation">Horizontal position representation</a></li> <li><span class="nowrap"><a href="/wiki/Latitude" title="Latitude">Latitude</a> / <a href="/wiki/Longitude" title="Longitude">Longitude</a></span></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Map_projection" title="Map projection">Map projection</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Reference_ellipsoid" class="mw-redirect" title="Reference ellipsoid">Reference ellipsoid</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Satellite_geodesy" title="Satellite geodesy">Satellite geodesy</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Spatial_reference_system" title="Spatial reference system">Spatial reference system</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Spatial_relation" title="Spatial relation">Spatial relations</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vertical_position" title="Vertical position">Vertical positions</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="color: var(--color-base)">Technologies</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Satellite_navigation" title="Satellite navigation">Global Nav. Sat. Systems (GNSSs)</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Global_Positioning_System" title="Global Positioning System">Global Pos. System (GPS)</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/GLONASS" title="GLONASS">GLONASS <span style="font-size:85%;">(Russia)</span></a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/BeiDou" title="BeiDou">BeiDou (BDS) <span style="font-size:85%;">(China)</span></a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Galileo_(satellite_navigation)" title="Galileo (satellite navigation)">Galileo <span style="font-size:85%;">(Europe)</span></a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Indian_Regional_Navigation_Satellite_System" title="Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System">NAVIC <span style="font-size:85%;">(India)</span></a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Quasi-Zenith_Satellite_System" title="Quasi-Zenith Satellite System">Quasi-Zenith Sat. Sys. (QZSS) <span style="font-size:85%;">(Japan)</span></a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Discrete_Global_Grid" class="mw-redirect" title="Discrete Global Grid">Discrete Global Grid and Geocoding</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-content"> <div class="sidebar-list mw-collapsible mw-collapsed plainlist"><div class="sidebar-list-title" style="color: var(--color-base)">Standards (history)</div><div class="sidebar-list-content mw-collapsible-content hlist"><table class="nowrap" style="width:100%;border-collapse:collapse;border-spacing:0px 0px;border:none;line-height:1.2em;"><tbody><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/Sea_Level_Datum_of_1929" class="mw-redirect" title="Sea Level Datum of 1929">NGVD 29</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> Sea Level Datum 1929</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/OSGB36" class="mw-redirect" title="OSGB36">OSGB36</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> Ordnance Survey Great Britain 1936</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/SK-42_reference_system" title="SK-42 reference system">SK-42</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> Systema Koordinat 1942 goda</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/ED50" title="ED50">ED50</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> European Datum 1950</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/South_American_Datum#SAD69" title="South American Datum">SAD69</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> South American Datum 1969</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/GRS_80" class="mw-redirect" title="GRS 80">GRS 80</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> Geodetic Reference System 1980</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/ISO_6709" title="ISO 6709">ISO 6709</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> Geographic point coord. 1983</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/North_American_Datum#North_American_Datum_of_1983" title="North American Datum">NAD 83</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> North American Datum 1983</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a class="mw-selflink selflink">WGS 84</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> World Geodetic System 1984</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/North_American_Vertical_Datum_of_1988" title="North American Vertical Datum of 1988">NAVD 88</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> N. American Vertical Datum 1988</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/European_Terrestrial_Reference_System_1989" title="European Terrestrial Reference System 1989">ETRS89</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> European Terrestrial Ref. Sys. 1989</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/Restrictions_on_geographic_data_in_China" title="Restrictions on geographic data in China">GCJ-02</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> Chinese obfuscated datum 2002</td></tr><tr style="vertical-align:top"><td style="text-align:left;padding-left:0.5em;"> <a href="/wiki/Geo_URI_scheme" title="Geo URI scheme">Geo URI</a></td><td style="text-align:right;font-size:90%;padding-right:0.55em;"> Internet link to a point 2010</td></tr></tbody></table> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/International_Terrestrial_Reference_System" class="mw-redirect" title="International Terrestrial Reference System">International Terrestrial Reference System</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/SRID" class="mw-redirect" title="SRID">Spatial Reference System Identifier (SRID)</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Universal_Transverse_Mercator_coordinate_system" title="Universal Transverse Mercator coordinate system">Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM)</a></li></ul></div></div></td> </tr><tr><td class="sidebar-navbar"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239400231">.mw-parser-output .navbar{display:inline;font-size:88%;font-weight:normal}.mw-parser-output .navbar-collapse{float:left;text-align:left}.mw-parser-output .navbar-boxtext{word-spacing:0}.mw-parser-output .navbar ul{display:inline-block;white-space:nowrap;line-height:inherit}.mw-parser-output .navbar-brackets::before{margin-right:-0.125em;content:"[ "}.mw-parser-output .navbar-brackets::after{margin-left:-0.125em;content:" ]"}.mw-parser-output .navbar li{word-spacing:-0.125em}.mw-parser-output .navbar a>span,.mw-parser-output .navbar a>abbr{text-decoration:inherit}.mw-parser-output .navbar-mini abbr{font-variant:small-caps;border-bottom:none;text-decoration:none;cursor:inherit}.mw-parser-output .navbar-ct-full{font-size:114%;margin:0 7em}.mw-parser-output .navbar-ct-mini{font-size:114%;margin:0 4em}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .navbar li a abbr{color:var(--color-base)!important}@media(prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .navbar li a abbr{color:var(--color-base)!important}}@media print{.mw-parser-output .navbar{display:none!important}}</style><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Geodesy" title="Template:Geodesy"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Geodesy" title="Template talk:Geodesy"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Geodesy" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Geodesy"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div></td></tr></tbody></table> <p class="mw-empty-elt"> </p><p>The <b>World Geodetic System</b> (<b>WGS</b>) is a standard used in <a href="/wiki/Cartography" title="Cartography">cartography</a>, <a href="/wiki/Geodesy" title="Geodesy">geodesy</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Satellite_navigation" title="Satellite navigation">satellite navigation</a> including <a href="/wiki/GPS" class="mw-redirect" title="GPS">GPS</a>. The current version, <b>WGS 84</b>, defines an <a href="/wiki/Earth-centered,_Earth-fixed_coordinate_system" title="Earth-centered, Earth-fixed coordinate system">Earth-centered, Earth-fixed coordinate system</a> and a <a href="/wiki/Geodetic_datum" title="Geodetic datum">geodetic datum</a>, and also describes the associated <a href="/wiki/Earth_Gravitational_Model" title="Earth Gravitational Model">Earth Gravitational Model</a> (EGM) and <a href="/wiki/World_Magnetic_Model" title="World Magnetic Model">World Magnetic Model</a> (WMM). The standard is published and maintained by the United States <a href="/wiki/National_Geospatial-Intelligence_Agency" title="National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency">National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-homepage_1-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-homepage-1"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>1<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <meta property="mw:PageProp/toc" /> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="History">History</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit&section=1" title="Edit section: History"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Efforts to supplement the various national <a href="/wiki/Surveying" title="Surveying">surveying</a> systems began in the 19th century with <a href="/wiki/Friedrich_Robert_Helmert" title="Friedrich Robert Helmert">F.R. Helmert's</a> book <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Mathematische und Physikalische Theorien der Physikalischen Geodäsie</i></span> (<i>Mathematical and Physical Theories of Physical Geodesy</i>). <a href="/wiki/Austria" title="Austria">Austria</a> and <a href="/wiki/Germany" title="Germany">Germany</a> founded the <span title="German-language text"><i lang="de">Zentralbüro für die Internationale Erdmessung</i></span> (Central Bureau of International <a href="/wiki/Geodesy" title="Geodesy">Geodesy</a>), and a series of global <a href="/wiki/Ellipsoid" title="Ellipsoid">ellipsoids</a> of the Earth were derived (e.g., Helmert 1906, <a href="/wiki/John_Fillmore_Hayford" title="John Fillmore Hayford">Hayford</a> 1910 and 1924). </p><p>A unified geodetic system for the whole world became essential in the 1950s for several reasons: </p> <ul><li>International <a href="/wiki/Space_science" class="mw-redirect" title="Space science">space science</a> and the beginning of <a href="/wiki/Astronautics" title="Astronautics">astronautics</a>.</li> <li>The lack of inter-continental geodetic information.</li> <li>The inability of the large <a href="/wiki/Geodetic_system" class="mw-redirect" title="Geodetic system">geodetic systems</a>, such as European Datum (<a href="/wiki/ED50" title="ED50">ED50</a>), <a href="/wiki/North_American_Datum" title="North American Datum">North American Datum</a> (NAD), and <a href="/w/index.php?title=Tokyo_Datum&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Tokyo Datum (page does not exist)">Tokyo Datum</a> (TD), to provide a worldwide geo-data basis</li> <li>Need for global maps for <a href="/wiki/Navigation" title="Navigation">navigation</a>, aviation, and <a href="/wiki/Geography" title="Geography">geography</a>.</li> <li>Western <a href="/wiki/Cold_War" title="Cold War">Cold War</a> preparedness necessitated a standardised, <a href="/wiki/NATO" title="NATO">NATO</a>-wide geospatial reference system, in accordance with the NATO <a href="/wiki/STANAG" class="mw-redirect" title="STANAG">Standardisation Agreement</a></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="WGS_60"><span class="anchor" id="WGS60"></span> WGS 60</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit&section=2" title="Edit section: WGS 60"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>In the late 1950s, the <a href="/wiki/United_States_Department_of_Defense" title="United States Department of Defense">United States Department of Defense</a>, together with <a href="/wiki/Scientist" title="Scientist">scientists</a> of other institutions and countries, began to develop the needed world system to which geodetic data could be referred and compatibility established between the coordinates of widely separated sites of interest. Efforts of the U.S. Army, Navy and Air Force were combined leading to the DoD World Geodetic System 1960 (WGS 60). The term <i>datum</i> as used here refers to a smooth surface somewhat arbitrarily defined as zero elevation, consistent with a set of surveyor's measures of distances between various stations, and differences in elevation, all reduced to a grid of <a href="/wiki/Latitude" title="Latitude">latitudes</a>, <a href="/wiki/Longitude" title="Longitude">longitudes</a>, and <a href="/wiki/Elevation" title="Elevation">elevations</a>. Heritage surveying methods found elevation differences from a local horizontal determined by the <a href="/wiki/Spirit_level" title="Spirit level">spirit level</a>, <a href="/wiki/Plumb-bob" class="mw-redirect" title="Plumb-bob">plumb line</a>, or an equivalent device that depends on the local gravity field (see <a href="/wiki/Physical_geodesy" title="Physical geodesy">physical geodesy</a>). As a result, the elevations in the data are referenced to the <a href="/wiki/Geoid" title="Geoid">geoid</a>, a surface that is not readily found using <a href="/wiki/Satellite_geodesy" title="Satellite geodesy">satellite geodesy</a>. The latter observational method is more suitable for global mapping. Therefore, a motivation, and a substantial problem in the WGS and similar work is to patch together data that were not only made separately, for different regions, but to re-reference the elevations to an ellipsoid model rather than to the <a href="/wiki/Geoid" title="Geoid">geoid</a>. </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:GRAVIMETRIC_DATUM_ORIENTATION.SVG" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/GRAVIMETRIC_DATUM_ORIENTATION.SVG/390px-GRAVIMETRIC_DATUM_ORIENTATION.SVG.png" decoding="async" width="390" height="360" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/GRAVIMETRIC_DATUM_ORIENTATION.SVG/585px-GRAVIMETRIC_DATUM_ORIENTATION.SVG.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/GRAVIMETRIC_DATUM_ORIENTATION.SVG/780px-GRAVIMETRIC_DATUM_ORIENTATION.SVG.png 2x" data-file-width="813" data-file-height="750" /></a><figcaption>Gravimetric datum orientation. <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r981673959">.mw-parser-output .legend{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .legend-color{display:inline-block;min-width:1.25em;height:1.25em;line-height:1.25;margin:1px 0;text-align:center;border:1px solid black;background-color:transparent;color:black}.mw-parser-output .legend-text{}</style><div class="legend"><span class="legend-line mw-no-invert" style="display: inline-block; vertical-align: middle; width: 1.67em; height: 0; border-style: none; border-top: 2px dotted black;border-top:solid cyan;"> </span> Ellipsoid of <a href="/wiki/Geodetic_astronomy" title="Geodetic astronomy">astro-geodetically</a> oriented datum</div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r981673959"><div class="legend"><span class="legend-line mw-no-invert" style="display: inline-block; vertical-align: middle; width: 1.67em; height: 0; border-style: none; border-top: 2px dotted black;border-top:solid lime;"> </span> <a href="/wiki/Geoid" title="Geoid">Geoid</a></div> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r981673959"><div class="legend"><span class="legend-line mw-no-invert" style="display: inline-block; vertical-align: middle; width: 1.67em; height: 0; border-style: none; border-top: 2px dotted black;border-top:solid red;"> </span> <a href="/wiki/Gravimetry" title="Gravimetry">Gravimetrically</a>-oriented ellipsoid</div></figcaption></figure> <p>In accomplishing WGS 60, a combination of available surface <a href="/wiki/Gravity" title="Gravity">gravity</a> data, <a href="/wiki/Astro-geodetic" class="mw-redirect" title="Astro-geodetic">astro-geodetic</a> data and results from HIRAN<sup id="cite_ref-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-2"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>2<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> and Canadian <a href="/wiki/SHORAN" title="SHORAN">SHORAN</a> surveys were used to define a best-fitting <a href="/wiki/Ellipsoid" title="Ellipsoid">ellipsoid</a> and an earth-centered orientation for each initially selected datum. (Every datum is relatively oriented with respect to different portions of the geoid by the astro-geodetic methods already described.) The sole contribution of <a href="/wiki/Satellite" title="Satellite">satellite</a> data to the development of WGS 60 was a value for the <a href="/wiki/Ellipsoid" title="Ellipsoid">ellipsoid</a> flattening which was obtained from the nodal motion of a satellite. </p><p>Prior to WGS 60, the U.S. Army and <a href="/wiki/U.S._Air_Force" class="mw-redirect" title="U.S. Air Force">U.S. Air Force</a> had each developed a world system by using different approaches to the gravimetric datum orientation method. To determine their gravimetric orientation parameters, the Air Force used the mean of the differences between the gravimetric and astro-geodetic <a href="/wiki/Vertical_deflection" title="Vertical deflection">deflections</a> and geoid heights (undulations) at specifically selected stations in the areas of the major datums. The Army performed an adjustment to minimize the difference between astro-geodetic and <a href="/wiki/Gravimetric" class="mw-redirect" title="Gravimetric">gravimetric</a> <a href="/wiki/Geoid" title="Geoid">geoids</a>. By matching the relative astro-geodetic geoids of the selected datums with an earth-centered gravimetric geoid, the selected datums were reduced to an earth-centered orientation. Since the Army and Air Force systems agreed remarkably well for the NAD, ED and TD areas, they were consolidated and became WGS 60. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="WGS_66"><span class="anchor" id="WGS66"></span>WGS 66</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit&section=3" title="Edit section: WGS 66"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Improvements to the global system included the Astrogeoid of <a href="/wiki/Irene_Fischer" title="Irene Fischer">Irene Fischer</a> and the astronautic Mercury datum. In January 1966, a World Geodetic System Committee composed of representatives from the United States Army, Navy and Air Force was charged with developing an improved WGS, needed to satisfy <a href="/wiki/Map" title="Map">mapping</a>, charting and geodetic requirements. Additional surface <a href="/wiki/Gravity" title="Gravity">gravity</a> observations, results from the extension of <a href="/wiki/Triangulation" title="Triangulation">triangulation</a> and <a href="/wiki/Trilateration" title="Trilateration">trilateration</a> networks, and large amounts of <a href="/wiki/Doppler_radar" title="Doppler radar">Doppler</a> and <a href="/wiki/Optical" class="mw-redirect" title="Optical">optical</a> satellite data had become available since the development of WGS 60. Using the additional data and improved techniques, WGS 66 was produced which served DoD needs for about five years after its implementation in 1967. The defining parameters of the WGS 66 Ellipsoid were the flattening (<style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1154941027">.mw-parser-output .frac{white-space:nowrap}.mw-parser-output .frac .num,.mw-parser-output .frac .den{font-size:80%;line-height:0;vertical-align:super}.mw-parser-output .frac .den{vertical-align:sub}.mw-parser-output .sr-only{border:0;clip:rect(0,0,0,0);clip-path:polygon(0px 0px,0px 0px,0px 0px);height:1px;margin:-1px;overflow:hidden;padding:0;position:absolute;width:1px}</style><span class="frac"><span class="num">1</span>⁄<span class="den">298.25</span></span> determined from satellite data) and the semimajor axis (<span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7006637814500000000♠"></span>6<span style="margin-left:.25em;">378</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">145</span> m</span> determined from a combination of Doppler satellite and astro-geodetic data). A worldwide 5° × 5° mean free air <a href="/wiki/Gravity_anomaly" title="Gravity anomaly">gravity anomaly</a> field provided the basic data for producing the WGS 66 gravimetric geoid. Also, a geoid referenced to the WGS 66 Ellipsoid was derived from available astrogeodetic data to provide a detailed representation of limited land areas. </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="WGS_72"><span class="anchor" id="WGS72"></span> WGS 72</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit&section=4" title="Edit section: WGS 72"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>After an extensive effort over a period of approximately three years, the Department of Defense World Geodetic System 1972 was completed. Selected satellite, surface gravity and astrogeodetic data available through 1972 from both DoD and non-DoD sources were used in a Unified WGS Solution (a large scale <a href="/wiki/Least_squares" title="Least squares">least squares</a> adjustment). The results of the adjustment consisted of corrections to initial station coordinates and coefficients of the gravitational field.<sup id="cite_ref-:0_3-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:0-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The largest collection of data ever used for WGS purposes was assembled, processed and applied in the development of WGS 72. Both optical and electronic satellite data were used. The electronic satellite data consisted, in part, of Doppler data provided by the U.S. Navy and cooperating non-DoD satellite tracking stations established in support of the Navy's Navigational Satellite System (NNSS). Doppler data was also available from the numerous sites established by GEOCEIVERS during 1971 and 1972. Doppler data was the primary data source for WGS 72 (see image). Additional electronic satellite data was provided by the SECOR (Sequential Collation of Range) Equatorial Network completed by the U.S. Army in 1970. Optical satellite data from the Worldwide Geometric Satellite Triangulation Program was provided by the BC-4 camera system (see image). Data from the <a href="/wiki/Smithsonian_Astrophysical_Observatory" title="Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory">Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory</a> was also used which included camera (<a href="/wiki/Schmidt_camera#Baker–Nunn" title="Schmidt camera">Baker–Nunn</a>) and some laser ranging.<sup id="cite_ref-:0_3-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:0-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:DOPPLER_SATELLITE_GROUND_STATIONS_PROVIDING_DATA_FOR_WGS_72_DEVELOPMENT.GIF" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/DOPPLER_SATELLITE_GROUND_STATIONS_PROVIDING_DATA_FOR_WGS_72_DEVELOPMENT.GIF/330px-DOPPLER_SATELLITE_GROUND_STATIONS_PROVIDING_DATA_FOR_WGS_72_DEVELOPMENT.GIF" decoding="async" width="330" height="239" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/DOPPLER_SATELLITE_GROUND_STATIONS_PROVIDING_DATA_FOR_WGS_72_DEVELOPMENT.GIF/495px-DOPPLER_SATELLITE_GROUND_STATIONS_PROVIDING_DATA_FOR_WGS_72_DEVELOPMENT.GIF 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/af/DOPPLER_SATELLITE_GROUND_STATIONS_PROVIDING_DATA_FOR_WGS_72_DEVELOPMENT.GIF/660px-DOPPLER_SATELLITE_GROUND_STATIONS_PROVIDING_DATA_FOR_WGS_72_DEVELOPMENT.GIF 2x" data-file-width="1355" data-file-height="980" /></a><figcaption>Doppler satellite ground stations providing data for WGS 72 development</figcaption></figure> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:WORLDWIDE_GEOMETRIC_SATELLITE_TRIANGULATION_NETWORK,_BC-4_CAMERAS.GIF" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/60/WORLDWIDE_GEOMETRIC_SATELLITE_TRIANGULATION_NETWORK%2C_BC-4_CAMERAS.GIF/330px-WORLDWIDE_GEOMETRIC_SATELLITE_TRIANGULATION_NETWORK%2C_BC-4_CAMERAS.GIF" decoding="async" width="330" height="218" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/60/WORLDWIDE_GEOMETRIC_SATELLITE_TRIANGULATION_NETWORK%2C_BC-4_CAMERAS.GIF/495px-WORLDWIDE_GEOMETRIC_SATELLITE_TRIANGULATION_NETWORK%2C_BC-4_CAMERAS.GIF 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/60/WORLDWIDE_GEOMETRIC_SATELLITE_TRIANGULATION_NETWORK%2C_BC-4_CAMERAS.GIF/660px-WORLDWIDE_GEOMETRIC_SATELLITE_TRIANGULATION_NETWORK%2C_BC-4_CAMERAS.GIF 2x" data-file-width="1322" data-file-height="875" /></a><figcaption>Worldwide geometric satellite triangulation network, BC-4 cameras</figcaption></figure> <p>The surface gravity field used in the Unified WGS Solution consisted of a set of 410 10° × 10° equal area mean free air gravity anomalies determined solely from terrestrial data. This gravity field includes mean anomaly values compiled directly from observed gravity data wherever the latter was available in sufficient quantity. The value for areas of sparse or no observational data were developed from geophysically compatible gravity approximations using gravity-geophysical correlation techniques. Approximately 45 percent of the 410 mean free air gravity anomaly values were determined directly from observed gravity data.<sup id="cite_ref-:0_3-2" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:0-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The astrogeodetic data in its basic form consists of deflection of the vertical components referred to the various national geodetic datums. These deflection values were integrated into astrogeodetic geoid charts referred to these national datums. The geoid heights contributed to the Unified WGS Solution by providing additional and more detailed data for land areas. Conventional ground survey data was included in the solution to enforce a consistent adjustment of the coordinates of neighboring observation sites of the BC-4, SECOR, Doppler and Baker–Nunn systems. Also, eight <a href="/wiki/Geodimeter" title="Geodimeter">geodimeter</a> long line precise traverses were included for the purpose of controlling the scale of the solution.<sup id="cite_ref-:0_3-3" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:0-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The Unified WGS Solution, as stated above, was a solution for geodetic positions and associated parameters of the gravitational field based on an optimum combination of available data. The WGS 72 ellipsoid parameters, datum shifts and other associated constants were derived separately. For the unified solution, a normal equation matrix was formed based on each of the mentioned data sets. Then, the individual normal equation matrices were combined and the resultant matrix solved to obtain the positions and the parameters.<sup id="cite_ref-:0_3-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:0-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>The value for the semimajor axis (<span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">a</span>) of the WGS 72 Ellipsoid is <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7006637813500000000♠"></span>6<span style="margin-left:.25em;">378</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">135</span> m</span>. The adoption of an <span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">a</span>-value 10 meters smaller than that for the WGS 66 Ellipsoid was based on several calculations and indicators including a combination of satellite and surface gravity data for position and gravitational field determinations. Sets of satellite derived station coordinates and gravimetric deflection of the vertical and geoid height data were used to determine local-to-geocentric datum shifts, datum rotation parameters, a datum scale parameter and a value for the semimajor axis of the WGS Ellipsoid. Eight solutions were made with the various sets of input data, both from an investigative point of view and also because of the limited number of unknowns which could be solved for in any individual solution due to computer limitations. Selected Doppler satellite tracking and astro-geodetic datum orientation stations were included in the various solutions. Based on these results and other related studies accomplished by the committee, an <span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">a</span>-value of <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7006637813500000000♠"></span>6<span style="margin-left:.25em;">378</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">135</span> m</span> and a flattening of 1/298.26 were adopted.<sup id="cite_ref-:0_3-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:0-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>In the development of local-to WGS 72 datum shifts, results from different geodetic disciplines were investigated, analyzed and compared. Those shifts adopted were based primarily on a large number of Doppler TRANET and GEOCEIVER station coordinates which were available worldwide. These coordinates had been determined using the Doppler point positioning method.<sup id="cite_ref-:0_3-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-:0-3"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>3<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading3"><h3 id="WGS_84"><span class="anchor" id="WGS84"></span>WGS 84</h3><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit&section=5" title="Edit section: WGS 84"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:WGS84_mean_Earth_radius.svg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/WGS84_mean_Earth_radius.svg/250px-WGS84_mean_Earth_radius.svg.png" decoding="async" width="250" height="250" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/WGS84_mean_Earth_radius.svg/375px-WGS84_mean_Earth_radius.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/3e/WGS84_mean_Earth_radius.svg/500px-WGS84_mean_Earth_radius.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="512" data-file-height="512" /></a><figcaption>Equatorial (<span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">a</span>), polar (<span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">b</span>) and mean Earth radii as defined in the 1984 World Geodetic System revision (not to scale)</figcaption></figure> <p>In the early 1980s, the need for a new world geodetic system was generally recognized by the geodetic community as well as within the US Department of Defense. WGS 72 no longer provided sufficient data, information, geographic coverage, or product accuracy for all then-current and anticipated applications. The means for producing a new WGS were available in the form of improved data, increased data coverage, new data types and improved techniques. Observations from Doppler, satellite laser ranging and <a href="/wiki/Very-long-baseline_interferometry" title="Very-long-baseline interferometry">very-long-baseline interferometry</a> (VLBI) constituted significant new information. An outstanding new source of data had become available from satellite radar altimetry. Also available was an advanced <a href="/wiki/Least_squares" title="Least squares">least squares</a> method called <a href="/wiki/Collocation_method" title="Collocation method">collocation</a> that allowed for a consistent combination solution from different types of measurements all relative to the Earth's gravity field, measurements such as the geoid, gravity anomalies, deflections, and dynamic Doppler. </p><p>The new world geodetic system was called WGS 84. It is the reference system used by the <a href="/wiki/Global_Positioning_System" title="Global Positioning System">Global Positioning System</a>. It is geocentric and globally consistent within <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7000100000000000000♠"></span>1 <a href="/wiki/Metre" title="Metre">m</a></span>. Current geodetic realizations of the geocentric reference system family <a href="/wiki/International_Terrestrial_Reference_System" class="mw-redirect" title="International Terrestrial Reference System">International Terrestrial Reference System</a> (ITRS) maintained by the <a href="/wiki/IERS" class="mw-redirect" title="IERS">IERS</a> are geocentric, and internally consistent, at the few-cm level, while still being metre-level consistent with WGS 84. </p><p>The WGS 84 <a href="/wiki/Reference_ellipsoid" class="mw-redirect" title="Reference ellipsoid">reference ellipsoid</a> was based on <a href="/wiki/GRS_80" class="mw-redirect" title="GRS 80">GRS 80</a>, but it contains a very slight variation in the inverse flattening, as it was derived independently and the result was rounded to a different number of significant digits.<sup id="cite_ref-4" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-4"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>4<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> This resulted in a tiny difference of <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="6996105000000000000♠"></span>0.105 mm</span> in the semi-minor axis.<sup id="cite_ref-5" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-5"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>5<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The following table compares the primary ellipsoid parameters. </p> <table class="wikitable"> <tbody><tr> <th>Ellipsoid reference </th> <th><a href="/wiki/Semi-major_axis" class="mw-redirect" title="Semi-major axis">Semi-major axis</a> <span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">a</span> </th> <th><a href="/wiki/Semi-minor_axis" class="mw-redirect" title="Semi-minor axis">Semi-minor axis</a> <span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">b</span> </th> <th>Inverse <a href="/wiki/Flattening" title="Flattening">flattening</a> <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1154941027"><span class="frac"><span class="num">1</span>⁄<span class="den"><span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">f</span></span></span> </th></tr> <tr> <th>GRS 80 </th> <td><span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7006637813700000000♠"></span>6<span style="margin-left:.25em;">378</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">137</span>.0 m</span> </td> <td>≈ <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7006635675231414000♠"></span>6<span style="margin-left:.25em;">356</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">752</span>.314<span style="margin-left:.25em;">140</span> m</span> </td> <td><span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7002298257222100882♠"></span>298.257<span style="margin-left:.25em;">222</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">100</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">882</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">711</span></span>... </td></tr> <tr> <th>WGS 84<sup id="cite_ref-6" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-6"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>6<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </th> <td><span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7006637813700000000♠"></span>6<span style="margin-left:.25em;">378</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">137</span>.0 m</span> </td> <td>≈ <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7006635675231424500♠"></span>6<span style="margin-left:.25em;">356</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">752</span>.314<span style="margin-left:.25em;">245</span> m</span> </td> <td><span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7002298257223563000♠"></span>298.257<span style="margin-left:.25em;">223</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">563</span></span> </td></tr></tbody></table> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Definition">Definition</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit&section=6" title="Edit section: Definition"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <figure class="mw-default-size mw-halign-left" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:WGS_84_reference_frame_(vector_graphic).svg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/56/WGS_84_reference_frame_%28vector_graphic%29.svg/280px-WGS_84_reference_frame_%28vector_graphic%29.svg.png" decoding="async" width="280" height="255" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/56/WGS_84_reference_frame_%28vector_graphic%29.svg/420px-WGS_84_reference_frame_%28vector_graphic%29.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/56/WGS_84_reference_frame_%28vector_graphic%29.svg/560px-WGS_84_reference_frame_%28vector_graphic%29.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="562" data-file-height="512" /></a><figcaption>WGS 84 reference frame. The oblateness of the ellipsoid is exaggerated in this image.</figcaption></figure> <p>The coordinate origin of WGS 84 is meant to be located at the Earth's <a href="/wiki/Center_of_mass" title="Center of mass">center of mass</a>; the uncertainty is believed to be less than <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="6998200000000000000♠"></span>2 cm</span>.<sup id="cite_ref-7" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-7"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>7<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <figure class="mw-default-size" typeof="mw:File/Thumb"><a href="/wiki/File:Garmin_GPS_at_Greenwich_Observatory.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/Garmin_GPS_at_Greenwich_Observatory.jpg/260px-Garmin_GPS_at_Greenwich_Observatory.jpg" decoding="async" width="260" height="347" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/Garmin_GPS_at_Greenwich_Observatory.jpg/390px-Garmin_GPS_at_Greenwich_Observatory.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a1/Garmin_GPS_at_Greenwich_Observatory.jpg/520px-Garmin_GPS_at_Greenwich_Observatory.jpg 2x" data-file-width="2448" data-file-height="3264" /></a><figcaption>Handheld GPS receiver at the <a href="/wiki/Royal_Observatory,_Greenwich" title="Royal Observatory, Greenwich">Royal Observatory, Greenwich</a>, indicating that the <a href="/wiki/Prime_meridian_(Greenwich)" title="Prime meridian (Greenwich)">Greenwich meridian</a> is 0.089 <a href="/wiki/Arcminute" class="mw-redirect" title="Arcminute">arcminutes</a> (or 5.34 <a href="/wiki/Arcsecond" class="mw-redirect" title="Arcsecond">arcseconds</a>) west of the WGS 84 datum (the <a href="/wiki/IERS_Reference_Meridian" title="IERS Reference Meridian">IERS Reference Meridian</a>)</figcaption></figure> <p>The WGS 84 meridian of zero longitude is the <a href="/wiki/IERS_Reference_Meridian" title="IERS Reference Meridian">IERS Reference Meridian</a>,<sup id="cite_ref-Manual_8-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Manual-8"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>8<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> 5.3 <a href="/wiki/Minute_of_arc" class="mw-redirect" title="Minute of arc">arc seconds</a> or 102 metres (335 ft) east of the <a href="/wiki/Greenwich_meridian" class="mw-redirect" title="Greenwich meridian">Greenwich meridian</a> at the latitude of the <a href="/wiki/Royal_Observatory,_Greenwich" title="Royal Observatory, Greenwich">Royal Observatory</a>.<sup id="cite_ref-9" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-9"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>9<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-Malys_et_al._2015_10-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Malys_et_al._2015-10"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>10<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> (This is related to the fact that the local gravity field at Greenwich <a href="/wiki/Vertical_deflection" title="Vertical deflection">does not point exactly</a> through the Earth's center of mass, but rather "misses west" of the center of mass by about 102 meters.) The longitude positions on WGS 84 agree with those on the older <a href="/wiki/North_American_Datum" title="North American Datum">North American Datum 1927</a> at roughly <a href="/wiki/85th_meridian_west" title="85th meridian west">85° longitude west</a>, in the east-central United States. </p><p>The WGS 84 datum surface is an <a href="/wiki/Oblate_spheroid" class="mw-redirect" title="Oblate spheroid">oblate spheroid</a> with equatorial radius <span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">a</span> = <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7006637813700000000♠"></span>6<span style="margin-left:.25em;">378</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">137</span> m</span> at the <a href="/wiki/Equator" title="Equator">equator</a> and <a href="/wiki/Flattening" title="Flattening">flattening</a> <span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">f</span> = <link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1154941027"><span class="frac"><span class="num">1</span>⁄<span class="den"><span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7002298257223563000♠"></span>298.257<span style="margin-left:.25em;">223</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">563</span></span></span></span>. The refined value of the WGS 84 <a href="/wiki/Standard_gravitational_parameter" title="Standard gravitational parameter">gravitational constant</a> (mass of Earth's atmosphere included) is <span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">GM</span> = <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7014398600441800000♠"></span>3.986<span style="margin-left:.25em;">004</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">418</span><span style="margin-left:0.25em;margin-right:0.15em;">×</span>10<sup>14</sup> m<sup>3</sup>/s<sup>2</sup></span>. The angular velocity of the Earth is defined to be <span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">ω</span> = <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="6993729211500000000♠"></span>72.921<span style="margin-left:.25em;">15</span><span style="margin-left:0.25em;margin-right:0.15em;">×</span>10<sup>−6</sup> rad/s</span>.<sup id="cite_ref-Second_Edition_11-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Second_Edition-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>This leads to several computed parameters such as the polar semi-minor axis <span class="texhtml mvar" style="font-style:italic;">b</span> which equals <span class="texhtml"><i>a</i> × (1 − <i>f</i>)</span> = <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="7006635675231420000♠"></span>6<span style="margin-left:.25em;">356</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">752</span>.3142 m</span>, and the first eccentricity squared, <span class="texhtml"><i>e</i><sup>2</sup></span> = <span class="nowrap"><span data-sort-value="6997669437999014000♠"></span>6.694<span style="margin-left:.25em;">379</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">990</span><span style="margin-left:.25em;">14</span><span style="margin-left:0.25em;margin-right:0.15em;">×</span>10<sup>−3</sup></span>.<sup id="cite_ref-Second_Edition_11-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Second_Edition-11"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>11<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Updates_and_new_standards">Updates and new standards</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit&section=7" title="Edit section: Updates and new standards"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>The original standardization document for WGS 84 was Technical Report 8350.2, published in September 1987 by the Defense Mapping Agency (which later became the National Imagery and Mapping Agency). New editions were published in September 1991 and July 1997; the latter edition was amended twice, in January 2000 and June 2004.<sup id="cite_ref-12" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-12"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>12<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> The standardization document was revised again and published in July 2014 by the <a href="/wiki/National_Geospatial-Intelligence_Agency" title="National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency">National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency</a> as NGA.STND.0036.<sup id="cite_ref-13" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-13"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>13<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> These updates provide refined descriptions of the Earth and realizations of the system for higher precision. </p><p>The original WGS84 model had an absolute accuracy of 1–2 meters. WGS84 (G730) first incorporated GPS observations, taking the accuracy down to 10 cm/component rms.<sup id="cite_ref-Standard_0036_14-0" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Standard_0036-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> All following revisions including WGS84 (G873) and WGS84 (G1150) also used GPS.<sup id="cite_ref-15" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-15"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>15<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>WGS 84 (G1762) is the sixth update to the WGS reference frame.<sup id="cite_ref-Standard_0036_14-1" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-Standard_0036-14"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>14<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>WGS 84 has most recently been updated to use the reference frame <b>G2296</b>, which was released on 7 January 2024 as an update to G2139, now aligned to both the ITRF2020, the most recent ITRF realization, and the IGS20, the frame used by the International GNSS Service (IGS).<sup id="cite_ref-16" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-16"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>16<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> G2139 was aligned with the IGb14 realization of the <a href="/wiki/International_Terrestrial_Reference_Frame" class="mw-redirect" title="International Terrestrial Reference Frame">International Terrestrial Reference Frame</a> (ITRF) 2014 and uses the new <a href="/wiki/International_GNSS_Service" class="mw-redirect" title="International GNSS Service">IGS</a> Antex standard.<sup id="cite_ref-17" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-17"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>17<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Updates to the original <a href="/wiki/Geoid" title="Geoid">geoid</a> for WGS 84 are now published as a separate <a href="/wiki/Earth_Gravitational_Model" title="Earth Gravitational Model">Earth Gravitational Model</a> (EGM), with improved resolution and accuracy. Likewise, the <a href="/wiki/World_Magnetic_Model" title="World Magnetic Model">World Magnetic Model</a> (WMM) is updated separately. The current version of WGS 84 uses EGM2008 and WMM2020.<sup id="cite_ref-18" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-18"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>18<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup><sup id="cite_ref-19" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-19"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>19<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p><p>Solution for Earth orientation parameters consistent with ITRF2014 is also needed (IERS EOP 14C04).<sup id="cite_ref-20" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-20"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>20<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="Identifiers">Identifiers</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit&section=8" title="Edit section: Identifiers"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <p>Components of WGS 84 are identified by codes in the <a href="/wiki/EPSG_Geodetic_Parameter_Dataset" title="EPSG Geodetic Parameter Dataset">EPSG Geodetic Parameter Dataset</a>:<sup id="cite_ref-21" class="reference"><a href="#cite_note-21"><span class="cite-bracket">[</span>21<span class="cite-bracket">]</span></a></sup> </p> <ul><li>EPSG:4326 – 2D <a href="/wiki/Coordinate_reference_system" class="mw-redirect" title="Coordinate reference system">coordinate reference system</a> (CRS)</li> <li>EPSG:4979 – 3D CRS</li> <li>EPSG:4978 – <a href="/wiki/Earth-centered,_Earth-fixed_coordinate_system" title="Earth-centered, Earth-fixed coordinate system">geocentric</a> 3D CRS</li> <li>EPSG:7030 – <a href="/wiki/Reference_ellipsoid" class="mw-redirect" title="Reference ellipsoid">reference ellipsoid</a></li> <li>EPSG:6326 – <a href="/wiki/Geodetic_datum#Horizontal_datum" title="Geodetic datum">horizontal datum</a></li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="See_also">See also</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit&section=9" title="Edit section: See also"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1184024115">.mw-parser-output .div-col{margin-top:0.3em;column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .div-col-small{font-size:90%}.mw-parser-output .div-col-rules{column-rule:1px solid #aaa}.mw-parser-output .div-col dl,.mw-parser-output .div-col ol,.mw-parser-output .div-col ul{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .div-col li,.mw-parser-output .div-col dd{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}</style><div class="div-col div-col-small"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Degree_Confluence_Project" title="Degree Confluence Project">Degree Confluence Project</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Earth_Gravitational_Model" title="Earth Gravitational Model">Earth Gravitational Model</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/European_Terrestrial_Reference_System_1989" title="European Terrestrial Reference System 1989">European Terrestrial Reference System 1989</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geo_(microformat)" title="Geo (microformat)">Geo (microformat)</a> – for marking up WGS 84 coordinates in (X)HTML</li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geo_URI_scheme" title="Geo URI scheme">geo URI scheme</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geographic_information_system" title="Geographic information system">Geographic information system</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geotagging" title="Geotagging">Geotagging</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/File_format_(GIS)" class="mw-redirect" title="File format (GIS)">GIS file formats</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/North_American_Datum" title="North American Datum">North American Datum</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Point_of_interest" title="Point of interest">Point of interest</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Transit_(satellite)" title="Transit (satellite)">TRANSIT system</a></li></ul></div> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="References">References</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit&section=10" title="Edit section: References"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1239543626">.mw-parser-output .reflist{margin-bottom:0.5em;list-style-type:decimal}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .reflist{font-size:90%}}.mw-parser-output .reflist .references{font-size:100%;margin-bottom:0;list-style-type:inherit}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-2{column-width:30em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns-3{column-width:25em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns{margin-top:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns ol{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .reflist-columns li{page-break-inside:avoid;break-inside:avoid-column}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-alpha{list-style-type:upper-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-upper-roman{list-style-type:upper-roman}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-alpha{list-style-type:lower-alpha}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-greek{list-style-type:lower-greek}.mw-parser-output .reflist-lower-roman{list-style-type:lower-roman}</style><div class="reflist"> <div class="mw-references-wrap mw-references-columns"><ol class="references"> <li id="cite_note-homepage-1"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-homepage_1-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1238218222">.mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit;word-wrap:break-word}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"\"""\"""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation:target{background-color:rgba(0,127,255,0.133)}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-free.id-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Lock-green.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited.id-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration.id-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription.id-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg")right 0.1em center/9px no-repeat}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg")right 0.1em center/12px no-repeat}body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-free a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-limited a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-registration a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .id-lock-subscription a,body:not(.skin-timeless):not(.skin-minerva) .mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background-size:contain;padding:0 1em 0 0}.mw-parser-output .cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:none;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{color:var(--color-error,#d33)}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#085;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right{padding-right:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .citation .mw-selflink{font-weight:inherit}@media screen{.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}html.skin-theme-clientpref-night .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}@media screen and (prefers-color-scheme:dark){html.skin-theme-clientpref-os .mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{color:#18911f}}</style><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://earth-info.nga.mil/?dir=wgs84&action=wgs84">"World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS 84)"</a>. <i>Office of Geomatics, National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">21 December</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Office+of+Geomatics%2C+National+Geospatial-Intelligence+Agency&rft.atitle=World+Geodetic+System+1984+%28WGS+84%29&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fearth-info.nga.mil%2F%3Fdir%3Dwgs84%26action%3Dwgs84&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-2"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-2">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.history.noaa.gov/stories_tales/ak7.html">"NOAA History - Stories and Tales of the Coast & Geodetic Survey - Personal Tales/Earth Measurer/Aslakson Bio"</a>. <i>History.noaa.gov</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">24 May</span> 2017</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=History.noaa.gov&rft.atitle=NOAA+History+-+Stories+and+Tales+of+the+Coast+%26+Geodetic+Survey+-+Personal+Tales%2FEarth+Measurer%2FAslakson+Bio&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.history.noaa.gov%2Fstories_tales%2Fak7.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-:0-3"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-:0_3-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:0_3-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:0_3-2"><sup><i><b>c</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:0_3-3"><sup><i><b>d</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:0_3-4"><sup><i><b>e</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:0_3-5"><sup><i><b>f</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-:0_3-6"><sup><i><b>g</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation book cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.ngs.noaa.gov/PUBS_LIB/Geodesy4Layman/TR80003E.HTM#ZZ11">"THE WORLD GEODETIC SYSTEM"</a>. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.ngs.noaa.gov/PUBS_LIB/Geodesy4Layman/toc.htm"><i>Geodesy for the Layman</i></a>. United States Air Force. 1984.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=bookitem&rft.atitle=THE+WORLD+GEODETIC+SYSTEM&rft.btitle=Geodesy+for+the+Layman&rft.pub=United+States+Air+Force&rft.date=1984&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ngs.noaa.gov%2FPUBS_LIB%2FGeodesy4Layman%2FTR80003E.HTM%23ZZ11&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-4"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-4">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFHooijberg2007" class="citation book cs1">Hooijberg, Maarten (18 December 2007). <i>Geometrical Geodesy: Using Information and Computer Technology</i>. Germany: Springer Berlin Heidelberg. p. 20. <a href="/wiki/ISBN_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="ISBN (identifier)">ISBN</a> <a href="/wiki/Special:BookSources/9783540682257" title="Special:BookSources/9783540682257"><bdi>9783540682257</bdi></a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=book&rft.btitle=Geometrical+Geodesy%3A+Using+Information+and+Computer+Technology&rft.place=Germany&rft.pages=20&rft.pub=Springer+Berlin+Heidelberg&rft.date=2007-12-18&rft.isbn=9783540682257&rft.aulast=Hooijberg&rft.aufirst=Maarten&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-5"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-5">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://geodesy.noaa.gov/PC_PROD/Inv_Fwd/readme.htm">"USER DOCUMENTATION Programs: INVERSE, FORWARD, INVERS3D, FORWRD3D Versions 2.0"</a>. <i>geodesy.noaa.gov</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">23 May</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=geodesy.noaa.gov&rft.atitle=USER+DOCUMENTATION+Programs%3A+INVERSE%2C+FORWARD%2C+INVERS3D%2C+FORWRD3D+Versions+2.0&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fgeodesy.noaa.gov%2FPC_PROD%2FInv_Fwd%2Freadme.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-6"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-6">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://epsg.org/ellipsoid_7030/WGS-84.html">"WGS 84: Ellipsoid Details"</a>. <i>EPSG Geodetic Parameter Dataset</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">21 December</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=EPSG+Geodetic+Parameter+Dataset&rft.atitle=WGS+84%3A+Ellipsoid+Details&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fepsg.org%2Fellipsoid_7030%2FWGS-84.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-7"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-7">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://cddis.nasa.gov/926/egm96/doc/S11.HTML">"The EGM96 Geoid Undulation with Respect to the WGS84 Ellipsoid"</a>. <a href="/wiki/NASA" title="NASA">NASA</a>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=The+EGM96+Geoid+Undulation+with+Respect+to+the+WGS84+Ellipsoid&rft.pub=NASA&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fcddis.nasa.gov%2F926%2Fegm96%2Fdoc%2FS11.HTML&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Manual-8"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Manual_8-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><a href="/wiki/EUROCONTROL" class="mw-redirect" title="EUROCONTROL">European Organisation for the Safety of Air Navigation</a> and <a href="/w/index.php?title=Institute_of_Geodesy_and_Navigation&action=edit&redlink=1" class="new" title="Institute of Geodesy and Navigation (page does not exist)">IfEN</a>: WGS 84 Implementation Manual, p. 13. 1998</span> </li> <li id="cite_note-9"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-9">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://gpsinformation.net/main/greenwich.htm">"Greenwich Meridan, Tracing its History"</a>. <i>Gpsinformation.net</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">24 May</span> 2017</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Gpsinformation.net&rft.atitle=Greenwich+Meridan%2C+Tracing+its+History&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fgpsinformation.net%2Fmain%2Fgreenwich.htm&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Malys_et_al._2015-10"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-Malys_et_al._2015_10-0">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFMalysSeagoPalvisSeidelmann2015" class="citation journal cs1">Malys, Stephen; Seago, John H.; Palvis, Nikolaos K.; Seidelmann, P. Kenneth; Kaplan, George H. (1 August 2015). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://doi.org/10.1007%2Fs00190-015-0844-y">"Why the Greenwich meridian moved"</a>. <i>Journal of Geodesy</i>. <b>89</b> (12): 1263–1272. <a href="/wiki/Bibcode_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="Bibcode (identifier)">Bibcode</a>:<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2015JGeod..89.1263M">2015JGeod..89.1263M</a>. <a href="/wiki/Doi_(identifier)" class="mw-redirect" title="Doi (identifier)">doi</a>:<span class="id-lock-free" title="Freely accessible"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://doi.org/10.1007%2Fs00190-015-0844-y">10.1007/s00190-015-0844-y</a></span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=article&rft.jtitle=Journal+of+Geodesy&rft.atitle=Why+the+Greenwich+meridian+moved&rft.volume=89&rft.issue=12&rft.pages=1263-1272&rft.date=2015-08-01&rft_id=info%3Adoi%2F10.1007%2Fs00190-015-0844-y&rft_id=info%3Abibcode%2F2015JGeod..89.1263M&rft.aulast=Malys&rft.aufirst=Stephen&rft.au=Seago%2C+John+H.&rft.au=Palvis%2C+Nikolaos+K.&rft.au=Seidelmann%2C+P.+Kenneth&rft.au=Kaplan%2C+George+H.&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fdoi.org%2F10.1007%252Fs00190-015-0844-y&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Second_Edition-11"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Second_Edition_11-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Second_Edition_11-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA280358.pdf">"Department of Defense World Geodetic System 1984"</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span> (2nd ed.). Defense Mapping Agency. 1 September 1991. <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210803171602/https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA280358.pdf">Archived</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span> from the original on 3 August 2021.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Department+of+Defense+World+Geodetic+System+1984&rft.edition=2nd&rft.pub=Defense+Mapping+Agency&rft.date=1991-09-01&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fapps.dtic.mil%2Fsti%2Fpdfs%2FADA280358.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-12"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-12">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://global.ihs.com/doc_detail.cfm?&item_s_key=00135849#doc-detail-history-anchor">"DMA TR 8350.2 WGS"</a>. <i>IHS Markit Standards Store</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">26 December</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=IHS+Markit+Standards+Store&rft.atitle=DMA+TR+8350.2+WGS&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fglobal.ihs.com%2Fdoc_detail.cfm%3F%26item_s_key%3D00135849%23doc-detail-history-anchor&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-13"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-13">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.gpsworld.com/data-collection-of-wgs-84-information-or-is-it/">"Data collection of WGS 84 information — or is it?"</a>. <i>GPS World</i>. 2 November 2016.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=GPS+World&rft.atitle=Data+collection+of+WGS+84+information+%E2%80%94+or+is+it%3F&rft.date=2016-11-02&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.gpsworld.com%2Fdata-collection-of-wgs-84-information-or-is-it%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-Standard_0036-14"><span class="mw-cite-backlink">^ <a href="#cite_ref-Standard_0036_14-0"><sup><i><b>a</b></i></sup></a> <a href="#cite_ref-Standard_0036_14-1"><sup><i><b>b</b></i></sup></a></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation report cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://earth-info.nga.mil/php/download.php?file=coord-wgs84">Department of Defense World Geodetic System 1984 - NGA.STND.0036_1.0.0_WGS84</a> (Report).</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=report&rft.btitle=Department+of+Defense+World+Geodetic+System+1984+-+NGA.STND.0036_1.0.0_WGS84&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fearth-info.nga.mil%2Fphp%2Fdownload.php%3Ffile%3Dcoord-wgs84&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-15"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-15">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.e-education.psu.edu/geog862/node/1801">"Modern Geocentric Datum | GEOG 862: GPS and GNSS for Geospatial Professionals"</a>. <i>www.e-education.psu.edu</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">31 December</span> 2023</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=www.e-education.psu.edu&rft.atitle=Modern+Geocentric+Datum+%7C+GEOG+862%3A+GPS+and+GNSS+for+Geospatial+Professionals&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.e-education.psu.edu%2Fgeog862%2Fnode%2F1801&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-16"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-16">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://earth-info.nga.mil/index.php?dir=gnss&action=gnss">"Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS)"</a>. <i>Office of Geomantics</i>. January 2024<span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">20 January</span> 2024</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=Office+of+Geomantics&rft.atitle=Global+Navigation+Satellite+System+%28GNSS%29&rft.date=2024-01&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fearth-info.nga.mil%2Findex.php%3Fdir%3Dgnss%26action%3Dgnss&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-17"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-17">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite id="CITEREFAustralian_Government_-_Geoscience_Australia2017" class="citation web cs1">Australian Government - Geoscience Australia (20 March 2017). <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.ga.gov.au/scientific-topics/positioning-navigation/wgs84">"What are the limitations of using World Geodetic System 1984 in Australia?"</a>. <i>www.ga.gov.au</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">16 May</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=www.ga.gov.au&rft.atitle=What+are+the+limitations+of+using+World+Geodetic+System+1984+in+Australia%3F&rft.date=2017-03-20&rft.au=Australian+Government+-+Geoscience+Australia&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ga.gov.au%2Fscientific-topics%2Fpositioning-navigation%2Fwgs84&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-18"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-18">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://earth-info.nga.mil/GandG/update/index.php?dir=wgs84&action=wgs84#tab_egm2008">"NGA Geomatics - WGS 84"</a>. <i>earth-info.nga.mil</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">19 March</span> 2019</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=earth-info.nga.mil&rft.atitle=NGA+Geomatics+-+WGS+84&rft_id=http%3A%2F%2Fearth-info.nga.mil%2FGandG%2Fupdate%2Findex.php%3Fdir%3Dwgs84%26action%3Dwgs84%23tab_egm2008&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-19"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-19">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.ngdc.noaa.gov/geomag/WMM/">"World Magnetic Model"</a>. <i>NCEI</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">23 January</span> 2020</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=NCEI&rft.atitle=World+Magnetic+Model&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ngdc.noaa.gov%2Fgeomag%2FWMM%2F&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-20"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-20">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.unoosa.org/documents/pdf/icg/2018/icg13/wgd/wgd_12.pdf">"Evolution of the World Geodetic System 1984 (WGS 84) Terrestrial Reference Frame"</a> <span class="cs1-format">(PDF)</span><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">15 January</span> 2023</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Abook&rft.genre=unknown&rft.btitle=Evolution+of+the+World+Geodetic+System+1984+%28WGS+84%29+Terrestrial+Reference+Frame&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.unoosa.org%2Fdocuments%2Fpdf%2Ficg%2F2018%2Ficg13%2Fwgd%2Fwgd_12.pdf&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> <li id="cite_note-21"><span class="mw-cite-backlink"><b><a href="#cite_ref-21">^</a></b></span> <span class="reference-text"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1238218222"><cite class="citation web cs1"><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://epsg.org/datum_6326/World-Geodetic-System-1984-ensemble.html">"World Geodetic System 1984 ensemble"</a>. <i>EPSG Geodetic Parameter Dataset</i><span class="reference-accessdate">. Retrieved <span class="nowrap">21 December</span> 2022</span>.</cite><span title="ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info%3Aofi%2Ffmt%3Akev%3Amtx%3Ajournal&rft.genre=unknown&rft.jtitle=EPSG+Geodetic+Parameter+Dataset&rft.atitle=World+Geodetic+System+1984+ensemble&rft_id=https%3A%2F%2Fepsg.org%2Fdatum_6326%2FWorld-Geodetic-System-1984-ensemble.html&rfr_id=info%3Asid%2Fen.wikipedia.org%3AWorld+Geodetic+System" class="Z3988"></span></span> </li> </ol></div></div> <ul><li><span class="noviewer" typeof="mw:File"><span><img alt="Public Domain" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/6/62/PD-icon.svg/12px-PD-icon.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="12" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/6/62/PD-icon.svg/18px-PD-icon.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/6/62/PD-icon.svg/24px-PD-icon.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="196" data-file-height="196" /></span></span> This article incorporates <a href="/wiki/Copyright_status_of_works_by_the_federal_government_of_the_United_States" title="Copyright status of works by the federal government of the United States">public domain material</a> from websites or documents of the <a href="/wiki/National_Geodetic_Survey" class="mw-redirect" title="National Geodetic Survey">National Geodetic Survey</a>.</li></ul> <div class="mw-heading mw-heading2"><h2 id="External_links">External links</h2><span class="mw-editsection"><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">[</span><a href="/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&action=edit&section=11" title="Edit section: External links"><span>edit</span></a><span class="mw-editsection-bracket">]</span></span></div> <ul><li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://earth-info.nga.mil/php/download.php?file=coord-wgs84#.pdf">NGA Standardization Document</a> <i>Department of Defense World Geodetic System 1984, Its Definition and Relationships With Local Geodetic Systems</i> (2014-07-08)</li> <li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/pdfs/ADA280358.pdf">DMA Technical Report 8350.2</a> <i>Department of Defense World Geodetic System 1984, Its Definition and Relationships With Local Geodetic Systems</i> (1991-09-01). This edition documents the original Earth Gravitational Model.</li> <li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://earth-info.nga.mil/GandG/wgs84/">NGA webpage for WGS 84</a></li> <li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/PUBS_LIB/Geodesy4Layman/TR80003E.HTM#ZZ11"><i>Geodesy for the Layman</i>, Chapter VIII, "The World Geodetic System"</a></li> <li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://epsg.org/crs_4326/WGS-84.html">Spatial reference for EPSG:4326</a></li> <li><a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://files.igs.org/pub/station/general/">ANTEX (.atx) files that define IGS20</a></li></ul> <div class="navbox-styles"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><style data-mw-deduplicate="TemplateStyles:r1236075235">.mw-parser-output .navbox{box-sizing:border-box;border:1px solid #a2a9b1;width:100%;clear:both;font-size:88%;text-align:center;padding:1px;margin:1em auto 0}.mw-parser-output .navbox .navbox{margin-top:0}.mw-parser-output .navbox+.navbox,.mw-parser-output .navbox+.navbox-styles+.navbox{margin-top:-1px}.mw-parser-output .navbox-inner,.mw-parser-output .navbox-subgroup{width:100%}.mw-parser-output .navbox-group,.mw-parser-output .navbox-title,.mw-parser-output .navbox-abovebelow{padding:0.25em 1em;line-height:1.5em;text-align:center}.mw-parser-output .navbox-group{white-space:nowrap;text-align:right}.mw-parser-output .navbox,.mw-parser-output .navbox-subgroup{background-color:#fdfdfd}.mw-parser-output .navbox-list{line-height:1.5em;border-color:#fdfdfd}.mw-parser-output .navbox-list-with-group{text-align:left;border-left-width:2px;border-left-style:solid}.mw-parser-output tr+tr>.navbox-abovebelow,.mw-parser-output tr+tr>.navbox-group,.mw-parser-output tr+tr>.navbox-image,.mw-parser-output tr+tr>.navbox-list{border-top:2px solid #fdfdfd}.mw-parser-output .navbox-title{background-color:#ccf}.mw-parser-output .navbox-abovebelow,.mw-parser-output .navbox-group,.mw-parser-output .navbox-subgroup .navbox-title{background-color:#ddf}.mw-parser-output .navbox-subgroup .navbox-group,.mw-parser-output .navbox-subgroup .navbox-abovebelow{background-color:#e6e6ff}.mw-parser-output .navbox-even{background-color:#f7f7f7}.mw-parser-output .navbox-odd{background-color:transparent}.mw-parser-output .navbox .hlist td dl,.mw-parser-output .navbox .hlist td ol,.mw-parser-output .navbox .hlist td ul,.mw-parser-output .navbox td.hlist dl,.mw-parser-output .navbox td.hlist ol,.mw-parser-output .navbox td.hlist ul{padding:0.125em 0}.mw-parser-output .navbox .navbar{display:block;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .navbox-title .navbar{float:left;text-align:left;margin-right:0.5em}body.skin--responsive .mw-parser-output .navbox-image img{max-width:none!important}@media print{body.ns-0 .mw-parser-output .navbox{display:none!important}}</style></div><div role="navigation" class="navbox" aria-labelledby="Physical_oceanography" style="padding:3px"><table class="nowraplinks hlist mw-collapsible autocollapse navbox-inner" style="border-spacing:0;background:transparent;color:inherit"><tbody><tr><th scope="col" class="navbox-title" colspan="3"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1129693374"><link rel="mw-deduplicated-inline-style" href="mw-data:TemplateStyles:r1239400231"><div class="navbar plainlinks hlist navbar-mini"><ul><li class="nv-view"><a href="/wiki/Template:Physical_oceanography" title="Template:Physical oceanography"><abbr title="View this template">v</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-talk"><a href="/wiki/Template_talk:Physical_oceanography" title="Template talk:Physical oceanography"><abbr title="Discuss this template">t</abbr></a></li><li class="nv-edit"><a href="/wiki/Special:EditPage/Template:Physical_oceanography" title="Special:EditPage/Template:Physical oceanography"><abbr title="Edit this template">e</abbr></a></li></ul></div><div id="Physical_oceanography" style="font-size:114%;margin:0 4em"><a href="/wiki/Physical_oceanography" title="Physical oceanography">Physical oceanography</a></div></th></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Wind_wave" title="Wind wave">Waves</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Airy_wave_theory" title="Airy wave theory">Airy wave theory</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ballantine_scale" title="Ballantine scale">Ballantine scale</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Modulational_instability" title="Modulational instability">Benjamin–Feir instability</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Boussinesq_approximation_(water_waves)" title="Boussinesq approximation (water waves)">Boussinesq approximation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Breaking_wave" title="Breaking wave">Breaking wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Clapotis" title="Clapotis">Clapotis</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cnoidal_wave" title="Cnoidal wave">Cnoidal wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cross_sea" title="Cross sea">Cross sea</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Dispersion_(water_waves)" title="Dispersion (water waves)">Dispersion</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Edge_wave" title="Edge wave">Edge wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Equatorial_wave" title="Equatorial wave">Equatorial waves</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gravity_wave" title="Gravity wave">Gravity wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Green%27s_law" title="Green's law">Green's law</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Infragravity_wave" title="Infragravity wave">Infragravity wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Internal_wave" title="Internal wave">Internal wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Iribarren_number" title="Iribarren number">Iribarren number</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kelvin_wave" title="Kelvin wave">Kelvin wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Kinematic_wave" title="Kinematic wave">Kinematic wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Longshore_drift" title="Longshore drift">Longshore drift</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Luke%27s_variational_principle" title="Luke's variational principle">Luke's variational principle</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mild-slope_equation" title="Mild-slope equation">Mild-slope equation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Radiation_stress" title="Radiation stress">Radiation stress</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rogue_wave" title="Rogue wave">Rogue wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rossby_wave" title="Rossby wave">Rossby wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rossby-gravity_waves" title="Rossby-gravity waves">Rossby-gravity waves</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sea_state" title="Sea state">Sea state</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Seiche" title="Seiche">Seiche</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Significant_wave_height" title="Significant wave height">Significant wave height</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Soliton" title="Soliton">Soliton</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stokes_drift" title="Stokes drift">Stokes drift</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stokes_problem" title="Stokes problem">Stokes problem</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Stokes_wave" title="Stokes wave">Stokes wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Swell_(ocean)" title="Swell (ocean)">Swell</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Trochoidal_wave" title="Trochoidal wave">Trochoidal wave</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tsunami" title="Tsunami">Tsunami</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Megatsunami" title="Megatsunami">megatsunami</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Undertow_(water_waves)" title="Undertow (water waves)">Undertow</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ursell_number" title="Ursell number">Ursell number</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wave_action_(continuum_mechanics)" title="Wave action (continuum mechanics)">Wave action</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wave_base" title="Wave base">Wave base</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wave_height" title="Wave height">Wave height</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wave_nonlinearity" title="Wave nonlinearity">Wave nonlinearity</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wave_power" title="Wave power">Wave power</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wave_radar" title="Wave radar">Wave radar</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wave_setup" title="Wave setup">Wave setup</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wave_shoaling" title="Wave shoaling">Wave shoaling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wave_turbulence" title="Wave turbulence">Wave turbulence</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wave%E2%80%93current_interaction" title="Wave–current interaction">Wave–current interaction</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Waves_and_shallow_water" title="Waves and shallow water">Waves and shallow water</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/One-dimensional_Saint-Venant_equations" class="mw-redirect" title="One-dimensional Saint-Venant equations">one-dimensional Saint-Venant equations</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Shallow_water_equations" title="Shallow water equations">shallow water equations</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wind_fetch" title="Wind fetch">Wind fetch</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wind_setup" title="Wind setup">Wind setup</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wind_wave" title="Wind wave">Wind wave</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Wind_wave_model" title="Wind wave model">model</a></li></ul></li></ul> </div></td><td class="noviewer navbox-image" rowspan="10" style="width:1px;padding:0 0 0 2px"><div><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Upwelling.svg" class="mw-file-description" title="Upwelling"><img alt="Upwelling" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Upwelling.svg/120px-Upwelling.svg.png" decoding="async" width="120" height="80" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Upwelling.svg/180px-Upwelling.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Upwelling.svg/240px-Upwelling.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="365" data-file-height="242" /></a></span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><span typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Antarctic_bottom_water.svg" class="mw-file-description" title="Antarctic bottom water"><img alt="Antarctic bottom water" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e7/Antarctic_bottom_water.svg/120px-Antarctic_bottom_water.svg.png" decoding="async" width="120" height="76" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e7/Antarctic_bottom_water.svg/180px-Antarctic_bottom_water.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/e7/Antarctic_bottom_water.svg/240px-Antarctic_bottom_water.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="745" data-file-height="470" /></a></span></div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Ocean_current" title="Ocean current">Circulation</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Atmospheric_circulation" title="Atmospheric circulation">Atmospheric circulation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Baroclinity" title="Baroclinity">Baroclinity</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Boundary_current" title="Boundary current">Boundary current</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Coriolis_force" title="Coriolis force">Coriolis force</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Coriolis%E2%80%93Stokes_force" title="Coriolis–Stokes force">Coriolis–Stokes force</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Craik%E2%80%93Leibovich_vortex_force" title="Craik–Leibovich vortex force">Craik–Leibovich vortex force</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Downwelling" title="Downwelling">Downwelling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Eddy_(fluid_dynamics)" title="Eddy (fluid dynamics)">Eddy</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ekman_layer" title="Ekman layer">Ekman layer</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ekman_spiral" title="Ekman spiral">Ekman spiral</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ekman_transport" title="Ekman transport">Ekman transport</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/El_Ni%C3%B1o%E2%80%93Southern_Oscillation" title="El Niño–Southern Oscillation">El Niño–Southern Oscillation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/General_circulation_model" title="General circulation model">General circulation model</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geochemical_Ocean_Sections_Study" title="Geochemical Ocean Sections Study">Geochemical Ocean Sections Study</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Geostrophic_current" title="Geostrophic current">Geostrophic current</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Global_Ocean_Data_Analysis_Project" title="Global Ocean Data Analysis Project">Global Ocean Data Analysis Project</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Gulf_Stream" title="Gulf Stream">Gulf Stream</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Humboldt_Current" title="Humboldt Current">Humboldt Current</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hydrothermal_circulation" title="Hydrothermal circulation">Hydrothermal circulation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Langmuir_circulation" title="Langmuir circulation">Langmuir circulation</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Longshore_drift" title="Longshore drift">Longshore drift</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Loop_Current" title="Loop Current">Loop Current</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Modular_Ocean_Model" title="Modular Ocean Model">Modular Ocean Model</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_current" title="Ocean current">Ocean current</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_dynamical_thermostat" title="Ocean dynamical thermostat">Ocean dynamical thermostat</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_dynamics" title="Ocean dynamics">Ocean dynamics</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_gyre" title="Ocean gyre">Ocean gyre</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Overflow_(oceanography)" title="Overflow (oceanography)">Overflow</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Princeton_Ocean_Model" title="Princeton Ocean Model">Princeton Ocean Model</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rip_current" title="Rip current">Rip current</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Subsurface_ocean_current" title="Subsurface ocean current">Subsurface ocean current</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sverdrup_balance" title="Sverdrup balance">Sverdrup balance</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Thermohaline_circulation" title="Thermohaline circulation">Thermohaline circulation</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Shutdown_of_thermohaline_circulation" class="mw-redirect" title="Shutdown of thermohaline circulation">shutdown</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Upwelling" title="Upwelling">Upwelling</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Whirlpool" title="Whirlpool">Whirlpool</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Wind_generated_current" title="Wind generated current">Wind generated current</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/World_Ocean_Circulation_Experiment" title="World Ocean Circulation Experiment">World Ocean Circulation Experiment</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Tide" title="Tide">Tides</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Amphidromic_point" title="Amphidromic point">Amphidromic point</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Earth_tide" title="Earth tide">Earth tide</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Head_of_tide" title="Head of tide">Head of tide</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Internal_tide" title="Internal tide">Internal tide</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Lunitidal_interval" title="Lunitidal interval">Lunitidal interval</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Perigean_spring_tide" title="Perigean spring tide">Perigean spring tide</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rip_tide" title="Rip tide">Rip tide</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Rule_of_twelfths" title="Rule of twelfths">Rule of twelfths</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Slack_tide" title="Slack tide">Slack tide</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Theory_of_tides" title="Theory of tides">Theory of tides</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tidal_bore" title="Tidal bore">Tidal bore</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tidal_force" title="Tidal force">Tidal force</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tidal_power" title="Tidal power">Tidal power</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tidal_race" title="Tidal race">Tidal race</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tidal_range" title="Tidal range">Tidal range</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tidal_resonance" title="Tidal resonance">Tidal resonance</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tide_gauge" title="Tide gauge">Tide gauge</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Tideline" title="Tideline">Tideline</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Landform" title="Landform">Landforms</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Abyssal_fan" title="Abyssal fan">Abyssal fan</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Abyssal_plain" title="Abyssal plain">Abyssal plain</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Atoll" title="Atoll">Atoll</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Bathymetric_chart" title="Bathymetric chart">Bathymetric chart</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Carbonate_platform" title="Carbonate platform">Carbonate platform</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Coastal_geography" title="Coastal geography">Coastal geography</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Cold_seep" title="Cold seep">Cold seep</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Continental_margin" title="Continental margin">Continental margin</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Continental_rise" title="Continental rise">Continental rise</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Continental_shelf" title="Continental shelf">Continental shelf</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Contourite" title="Contourite">Contourite</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Guyot" title="Guyot">Guyot</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hydrography" title="Hydrography">Hydrography</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Knoll_(oceanography)" title="Knoll (oceanography)">Knoll</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_bank" title="Ocean bank">Ocean bank</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Oceanic_basin" title="Oceanic basin">Oceanic basin</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Oceanic_plateau" title="Oceanic plateau">Oceanic plateau</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Oceanic_trench" title="Oceanic trench">Oceanic trench</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Passive_margin" title="Passive margin">Passive margin</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Seabed" title="Seabed">Seabed</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Seamount" title="Seamount">Seamount</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Submarine_canyon" title="Submarine canyon">Submarine canyon</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Submarine_volcano" title="Submarine volcano">Submarine volcano</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Plate_tectonics" title="Plate tectonics">Plate<br />tectonics</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Convergent_boundary" title="Convergent boundary">Convergent boundary</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Divergent_boundary" title="Divergent boundary">Divergent boundary</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Fracture_zone" title="Fracture zone">Fracture zone</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Hydrothermal_vent" title="Hydrothermal vent">Hydrothermal vent</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Marine_geology" title="Marine geology">Marine geology</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mid-ocean_ridge" title="Mid-ocean ridge">Mid-ocean ridge</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mohorovi%C4%8Di%C4%87_discontinuity" title="Mohorovičić discontinuity">Mohorovičić discontinuity</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Oceanic_crust" title="Oceanic crust">Oceanic crust</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Outer_trench_swell" title="Outer trench swell">Outer trench swell</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ridge_push" title="Ridge push">Ridge push</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Seafloor_spreading" title="Seafloor spreading">Seafloor spreading</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Slab_pull" title="Slab pull">Slab pull</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Slab_suction" title="Slab suction">Slab suction</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Slab_window" title="Slab window">Slab window</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Subduction" title="Subduction">Subduction</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Transform_fault" title="Transform fault">Transform fault</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Vine%E2%80%93Matthews%E2%80%93Morley_hypothesis" title="Vine–Matthews–Morley hypothesis">Vine–Matthews–Morley hypothesis</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Volcanic_arc" title="Volcanic arc">Volcanic arc</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Ocean zones</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Benthic_zone" title="Benthic zone">Benthic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Deep_ocean_water" title="Deep ocean water">Deep ocean water</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Deep_sea" title="Deep sea">Deep sea</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Littoral_zone" title="Littoral zone">Littoral</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mesopelagic_zone" title="Mesopelagic zone">Mesopelagic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Oceanic_zone" title="Oceanic zone">Oceanic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pelagic_zone" title="Pelagic zone">Pelagic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Photic_zone" title="Photic zone">Photic</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Surf_zone" title="Surf zone">Surf</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Swash" title="Swash">Swash</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Sea_level" title="Sea level">Sea level</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Deep-ocean_Assessment_and_Reporting_of_Tsunamis" title="Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunamis">Deep-ocean Assessment and Reporting of Tsunamis</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Global_Sea_Level_Observing_System" title="Global Sea Level Observing System">Global Sea Level Observing System</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/North_West_Shelf_Operational_Oceanographic_System" title="North West Shelf Operational Oceanographic System">North West Shelf Operational Oceanographic System</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sea-level_curve" title="Sea-level curve">Sea-level curve</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sea_level_drop" title="Sea level drop">Sea level drop</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sea_level_rise" title="Sea level rise">Sea level rise</a></li> <li><a class="mw-selflink selflink">World Geodetic System</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%"><a href="/wiki/Acoustical_oceanography" class="mw-redirect" title="Acoustical oceanography">Acoustics</a></th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Deep_scattering_layer" title="Deep scattering layer">Deep scattering layer</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_acoustic_tomography" title="Ocean acoustic tomography">Ocean acoustic tomography</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sofar_bomb" title="Sofar bomb">Sofar bomb</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/SOFAR_channel" title="SOFAR channel">SOFAR channel</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Underwater_acoustics" title="Underwater acoustics">Underwater acoustics</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Satellites</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-odd" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Jason-1" title="Jason-1">Jason-1</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/OSTM/Jason-2" title="OSTM/Jason-2">OSTM/Jason-2</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Jason-3" title="Jason-3">Jason-3</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><th scope="row" class="navbox-group" style="width:1%">Related</th><td class="navbox-list-with-group navbox-list navbox-even" style="width:100%;padding:0"><div style="padding:0 0.25em"> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_acidification" title="Ocean acidification">Acidification</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Argo_(oceanography)" title="Argo (oceanography)">Argo</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Benthic_lander" title="Benthic lander">Benthic lander</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Color_of_water" title="Color of water">Color of water</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/DSV_Alvin" title="DSV Alvin">DSV <i>Alvin</i></a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Marginal_sea" class="mw-redirect" title="Marginal sea">Marginal sea</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Marine_energy" title="Marine energy">Marine energy</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Marine_pollution" title="Marine pollution">Marine pollution</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Mooring_(oceanography)" title="Mooring (oceanography)">Mooring</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/National_Oceanographic_Data_Center" title="National Oceanographic Data Center">National Oceanographic Data Center</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean" title="Ocean">Ocean</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_exploration" title="Ocean exploration">Explorations</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_observations" title="Ocean observations">Observations</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_reanalysis" title="Ocean reanalysis">Reanalysis</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_surface_topography" title="Ocean surface topography">Ocean surface topography</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_temperature" title="Ocean temperature">Ocean temperature</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_thermal_energy_conversion" title="Ocean thermal energy conversion">Ocean thermal energy conversion</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Oceanography" title="Oceanography">Oceanography</a> <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Outline_of_oceanography" title="Outline of oceanography">Outline of oceanography</a></li></ul></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Pelagic_sediment" title="Pelagic sediment">Pelagic sediment</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sea_surface_microlayer" title="Sea surface microlayer">Sea surface microlayer</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Sea_surface_temperature" title="Sea surface temperature">Sea surface temperature</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Seawater" title="Seawater">Seawater</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Science_On_a_Sphere" title="Science On a Sphere">Science On a Sphere</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Ocean_stratification" title="Ocean stratification">Stratification</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Thermocline" title="Thermocline">Thermocline</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Underwater_glider" title="Underwater glider">Underwater glider</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/Water_column" title="Water column">Water column</a></li> <li><a href="/wiki/World_Ocean_Atlas" title="World Ocean Atlas">World Ocean Atlas</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr><tr><td class="navbox-abovebelow" colspan="3"><div> <ul><li><span class="noviewer" typeof="mw:File"><span title="Category"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/96/Symbol_category_class.svg/16px-Symbol_category_class.svg.png" decoding="async" width="16" height="16" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/96/Symbol_category_class.svg/23px-Symbol_category_class.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/9/96/Symbol_category_class.svg/31px-Symbol_category_class.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="180" data-file-height="185" /></span></span> <a href="/wiki/Category:Physical_oceanography" title="Category:Physical oceanography">Category</a></li> <li><span class="noviewer" typeof="mw:File"><span title="Commons page"><img alt="" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/12px-Commons-logo.svg.png" decoding="async" width="12" height="16" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/18px-Commons-logo.svg.png 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg/24px-Commons-logo.svg.png 2x" data-file-width="1024" data-file-height="1376" /></span></span> <a href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Physical_oceanography" class="extiw" title="commons:Category:Physical oceanography">Commons</a></li> <li><span class="nowrap"><span class="noviewer" typeof="mw:File"><a href="/wiki/File:Waves_in_pacifica_1.jpg" class="mw-file-description"><img alt="icon" src="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Waves_in_pacifica_1.jpg/16px-Waves_in_pacifica_1.jpg" decoding="async" width="16" height="11" class="mw-file-element" srcset="//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Waves_in_pacifica_1.jpg/24px-Waves_in_pacifica_1.jpg 1.5x, //upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/45/Waves_in_pacifica_1.jpg/32px-Waves_in_pacifica_1.jpg 2x" data-file-width="2000" data-file-height="1358" /></a></span> </span><a href="/wiki/Portal:Oceans" title="Portal:Oceans">Oceans portal</a></li></ul> </div></td></tr></tbody></table></div> <!-- NewPP limit report Parsed by mw‐web.codfw.main‐59b954b7fb‐rcwd4 Cached time: 20241207144643 Cache expiry: 2592000 Reduced expiry: false Complications: [vary‐revision‐sha1, show‐toc] CPU time usage: 0.810 seconds Real time usage: 0.983 seconds Preprocessor visited node count: 2331/1000000 Post‐expand include size: 95542/2097152 bytes Template argument size: 1766/2097152 bytes Highest expansion depth: 12/100 Expensive parser function count: 4/500 Unstrip recursion depth: 1/20 Unstrip post‐expand size: 90680/5000000 bytes Lua time usage: 0.501/10.000 seconds Lua memory usage: 15501647/52428800 bytes Number of Wikibase entities loaded: 0/400 --> <!-- Transclusion expansion time report (%,ms,calls,template) 100.00% 821.394 1 -total 29.01% 238.289 1 Template:Reflist 21.59% 177.334 16 Template:Cite_web 17.39% 142.836 2 Template:Lang 15.36% 126.139 1 Template:Geodesy 14.91% 122.450 1 Template:Sidebar_with_collapsible_lists 11.33% 93.055 1 Template:Short_description 7.58% 62.231 1 Template:Physical_oceanography 7.22% 59.269 1 Template:Navbox 6.77% 55.590 2 Template:Pagetype --> <!-- Saved in parser cache with key enwiki:pcache:233654:|#|:idhash:canonical and timestamp 20241207144643 and revision id 1260751509. Rendering was triggered because: page-view --> </div><!--esi <esi:include src="/esitest-fa8a495983347898/content" /> --><noscript><img src="https://login.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:CentralAutoLogin/start?useformat=desktop&type=1x1&usesul3=0" alt="" width="1" height="1" style="border: none; position: absolute;"></noscript> <div class="printfooter" data-nosnippet="">Retrieved from "<a dir="ltr" href="https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&oldid=1260751509">https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&oldid=1260751509</a>"</div></div> <div id="catlinks" class="catlinks" data-mw="interface"><div id="mw-normal-catlinks" class="mw-normal-catlinks"><a href="/wiki/Help:Category" title="Help:Category">Categories</a>: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Coordinate_systems" title="Category:Coordinate systems">Coordinate systems</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Geodesy" title="Category:Geodesy">Geodesy</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Global_Positioning_System" title="Category:Global Positioning System">Global Positioning System</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Military_globalization" title="Category:Military globalization">Military globalization</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Navigation" title="Category:Navigation">Navigation</a></li></ul></div><div id="mw-hidden-catlinks" class="mw-hidden-catlinks mw-hidden-cats-hidden">Hidden categories: <ul><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Articles_with_short_description" title="Category:Articles with short description">Articles with short description</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Short_description_matches_Wikidata" title="Category:Short description matches Wikidata">Short description matches Wikidata</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Use_dmy_dates_from_January_2024" title="Category:Use dmy dates from January 2024">Use dmy dates from January 2024</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Articles_containing_German-language_text" title="Category:Articles containing German-language text">Articles containing German-language text</a></li><li><a href="/wiki/Category:Pages_using_div_col_with_small_parameter" title="Category:Pages using div col with small parameter">Pages using div col with small parameter</a></li></ul></div></div> </div> </main> </div> <div class="mw-footer-container"> <footer id="footer" class="mw-footer" > <ul id="footer-info"> <li id="footer-info-lastmod"> This page was last edited on 2 December 2024, at 12:44<span class="anonymous-show"> (UTC)</span>.</li> <li id="footer-info-copyright">Text is available under the <a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:Text_of_the_Creative_Commons_Attribution-ShareAlike_4.0_International_License" title="Wikipedia:Text of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License">Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License</a>; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the <a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Terms_of_Use" class="extiw" title="foundation:Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Terms of Use">Terms of Use</a> and <a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy_policy" class="extiw" title="foundation:Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy policy">Privacy Policy</a>. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the <a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://wikimediafoundation.org/">Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.</a>, a non-profit organization.</li> </ul> <ul id="footer-places"> <li id="footer-places-privacy"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Privacy_policy">Privacy policy</a></li> <li id="footer-places-about"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:About">About Wikipedia</a></li> <li id="footer-places-disclaimers"><a href="/wiki/Wikipedia:General_disclaimer">Disclaimers</a></li> <li id="footer-places-contact"><a href="//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Contact_us">Contact Wikipedia</a></li> <li id="footer-places-wm-codeofconduct"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Universal_Code_of_Conduct">Code of Conduct</a></li> <li id="footer-places-developers"><a href="https://developer.wikimedia.org">Developers</a></li> <li id="footer-places-statslink"><a href="https://stats.wikimedia.org/#/en.wikipedia.org">Statistics</a></li> <li id="footer-places-cookiestatement"><a href="https://foundation.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:MyLanguage/Policy:Cookie_statement">Cookie statement</a></li> <li id="footer-places-mobileview"><a href="//en.m.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=World_Geodetic_System&mobileaction=toggle_view_mobile" class="noprint stopMobileRedirectToggle">Mobile view</a></li> </ul> <ul id="footer-icons" class="noprint"> <li id="footer-copyrightico"><a href="https://wikimediafoundation.org/" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--size-large cdx-button--fake-button--enabled"><img src="/static/images/footer/wikimedia-button.svg" width="84" height="29" alt="Wikimedia Foundation" loading="lazy"></a></li> <li id="footer-poweredbyico"><a href="https://www.mediawiki.org/" class="cdx-button cdx-button--fake-button cdx-button--size-large cdx-button--fake-button--enabled"><img src="/w/resources/assets/poweredby_mediawiki.svg" alt="Powered by MediaWiki" width="88" height="31" loading="lazy"></a></li> </ul> </footer> </div> </div> </div> <div class="vector-settings" id="p-dock-bottom"> <ul></ul> </div><script>(RLQ=window.RLQ||[]).push(function(){mw.config.set({"wgHostname":"mw-web.codfw.main-59b954b7fb-7q4pm","wgBackendResponseTime":164,"wgPageParseReport":{"limitreport":{"cputime":"0.810","walltime":"0.983","ppvisitednodes":{"value":2331,"limit":1000000},"postexpandincludesize":{"value":95542,"limit":2097152},"templateargumentsize":{"value":1766,"limit":2097152},"expansiondepth":{"value":12,"limit":100},"expensivefunctioncount":{"value":4,"limit":500},"unstrip-depth":{"value":1,"limit":20},"unstrip-size":{"value":90680,"limit":5000000},"entityaccesscount":{"value":0,"limit":400},"timingprofile":["100.00% 821.394 1 -total"," 29.01% 238.289 1 Template:Reflist"," 21.59% 177.334 16 Template:Cite_web"," 17.39% 142.836 2 Template:Lang"," 15.36% 126.139 1 Template:Geodesy"," 14.91% 122.450 1 Template:Sidebar_with_collapsible_lists"," 11.33% 93.055 1 Template:Short_description"," 7.58% 62.231 1 Template:Physical_oceanography"," 7.22% 59.269 1 Template:Navbox"," 6.77% 55.590 2 Template:Pagetype"]},"scribunto":{"limitreport-timeusage":{"value":"0.501","limit":"10.000"},"limitreport-memusage":{"value":15501647,"limit":52428800},"limitreport-logs":"table#1 {\n [\"size\"] = \"tiny\",\n}\n"},"cachereport":{"origin":"mw-web.codfw.main-59b954b7fb-rcwd4","timestamp":"20241207144643","ttl":2592000,"transientcontent":false}}});});</script> <script type="application/ld+json">{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"Article","name":"World Geodetic System","url":"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/World_Geodetic_System","sameAs":"http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q215848","mainEntity":"http:\/\/www.wikidata.org\/entity\/Q215848","author":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Contributors to Wikimedia projects"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.wikimedia.org\/static\/images\/wmf-hor-googpub.png"}},"datePublished":"2003-05-25T14:10:12Z","dateModified":"2024-12-02T12:44:33Z","image":"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/b\/b1\/Globe_Atlantic.svg","headline":"geodetic reference system"}</script> </body> </html>