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Marine Geodesy
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To cite this article: Karl Rinner (1987) Concepts and development of marine geodesy,
Marine Geodesy, 11:1, 3-9, DOI: 10.1080/15210608709379544
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Marine Geodesy, Vol. 11. pp. 3-9, 1987 0149-0419/87 $3.00 + .00
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KARL RINNER
Technische Universität Graz
Austria
Abstract The rapidly growing population of the earth has led to an increasing
significance of maritime regions for the production of mineralogical materials
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and as a reservoir for food. In addition, due to their protective function against
exterior attacks, maritime regions are more and more included in our living
space. In earlier times some tasks of marine geodesy have been accomplished
by the hydrographical or nautical survey. The name marine geodesy was de-
fined only 20 years ago.
Marine geodesy (MG) acts as a bridge between hydrography and geodesy,
which is profitable for both disciplines. This paper considers, first, the concepts
of hydrography, marine geodesy, nautical and hydrographical survey, and the
development of these disciplines. Finally, the state of MG is investigated in
the hydrographic and geodetic literature. In conclusion it is recommended to
place the, yet missing, textbooks and manuals of MG at the disposal of and
as a basis for the education and for the practical work of geodesists and hy-
drographers, as soon as possible. Proposals for the structure of these books
are also suggested.
3
4 Karl Rinner
Therefore, there are essential differences in the type of instruments and the
kind of methods employed to collect MG data. CG data are collected in the at-
mosphere, whereas in MG the main part of the data has to be collected in or
through the sea. This means that in MG, apart from the atmospheric refraction,
the sea water refraction has to be taken into account. In addition, in MG most
of the instrument platforms and targets are moving. Therefore, MG can be con-
sidered to be a dynamic geodetic sub-discipline involving two or more media.
Therefore two-medium geodesy is an actuality in MG. It is evident that in this
discipline more sophisticated mathematical and physical models and more ex-
pensive instruments are required than in CG (RINNER, 1983)
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The Development of MG
A knowledge of navigation is essential for the shipping traffic on oceans, lakes,
and rivers. By navigation is meant those procedures which make it possible to
determine the position of a ship and to follow a course in order to arrive at a
predetermined destination. In former times navigation aids were, in off-shore
regions, the astronomical determination of positions and azimuth, a compass, a
clock and sea-charts. For coastal navigations, bearings to and from known ter-
restrial points on the coast were used. Today we have available, in addition,
methods of radio-bearing to determine positions by satellites, inertial navigation,
sounding and position determination by ultrasonics, and others.
At all times and for all procedures, sea charts are required in which the es-
sential data for navigation, like sea-bed contours, buoys, lighthouses (beacons),
other targets or line;; determined by optical or other means, and coordinate-grids,
are recorded. The maritime and coastal survey had the task to provide these
fundamentals and to produce sea charts. These have, therefore, been regarded
as an auxiliary means of the navigation or as an instrument for navigation. For a
long time, geodetic concerns played a minor role since the technical requirements
concerning accuracy and efficiency were not met.
Only in our days are analogous methods, like positioning with NNSS and GPS,
satellite altimetry, azimuth-determination, gyro-compass, inertial geodesy and po-
sitioning methods by measuring ranges, range rates and range quotients applied
on continents, and oceans. Satellite altimetry allows for the determination of the
topography of the undisturbed sea surface and leads, together with gravity values
measured with ships or aircrafts, to the determination of the geoid and the gravity
field in maritime regions. Refined, more efficient, and more accurate ultrasonic
procedures give depth data for definite time epochs as a basis for sea charts. The
knowledge of the tide-variations at the same epoch enables the determination of
the actual depths. A regenerative mechanism is apparent between CG and MG.
The data of MG lead to an improved knowledge of the gravity field of the earth,
which, in turn, improves CG data and, in particular, the orbital data of satellites.
More accurate orbital data give more accurate positions in maritime regions and
so on.
The procedures of sea- and coastal surveying were developed in the hydro-
graphic bureaus of the maritime countries. These countries are represented by
the International Hydrographic Organization (IHO) in Monaco. The IHO and the
national hydrographic bureaus (e.g. Deutsches Hydrographisches Institut, Ham-
6 Karl Rinner
end because the sea floor is permanently changing due to sea currents. But I
cannot understand why the survey on land has not been finished."
The survey of rivers and lakes, which belongs to the hydrographic survey, is
characterized by the existence of control points on land that can be used as targets.
Like the coastal survey, it is a fringe between CG and MG—the methods of both
can be applied.
Continental-geodesy and marine geodesy overlap and complement each other
in essential parts, and together form the general discipline of geodesy. The com-
mon bridge is satellites, which contribute to the solution of geometrical and phys-
ical problems of both disciplines. The Navy Navigation Satellite System (NNSS),
originally designed for submarine navigation, has also revolutionized positioning
on land. The global positioning system (GPS), which is under development, will
likewise be usable for positioning on land and sea.
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"In spite of its obvious importance, nautical surveys have been largely
ignored by professional geodesists so far, and is neither mentioned in
the lectures of universities nor in textbooks. The issue was left to the
care of hydrographic offices, which, however, naturally developed this
discipline only as far as it seemed necessary to cope with the tasks
arising in their practical work. It has never experienced any scientific
cultivation and further development. It was not even touched by the
progress of land surveying in the field of instrumental observation and
calculation techniques. As a result, nautical surveys constitute an al-
most barren field, whose cultivation becomes an important task of mod-
ern geodesy."
Since these statements were made, more than 40 years have passed. During
this period the situation of MG has changed considerably. The significance of MG
for the industrial exploitation of the seas is increasing, and a kind of engineering
geodesy has been developed. As an impressive example, the activities of oil pro-
duction, using platforms and oil-rigs, is mentioned. New structures facilitate the
geodetic measurement of positions. The demarcation of national territories, which
has been defined in different geodetic systems, requires a basic knowledge of
geodesy. Nevertheless only a small number of the experts active in MG are
geodesists. Engineers of various kinds, hydrographers, oceanographers, geolo-
gists, and geophysicists are in the majority (HASLAM, 1985). The reason can be
found in the insufficient lectures on marine geodesy at universities, as well as in
the lack of textbooks. It can be assumed that these shortcomings will be addressed
in the future, and that MG will take its rightful place. It can be hoped that common
planning and coordination between MG and CG will lead to an improvement of
the results in both disciplines.
Karl Rinner
Final Remarks
MG is a fascinating area of geodesy. It is of great scientific and practical impor-
tance. There is no doubt that this importance will increase in the future because
the sea covers more than two thirds of the earth's surface and must be integrated
in the living space of mankind to a much greater extend than it is now. MG provides
a bridge between the old disciplines of hydrography and continental geodesy. MG
combines both disciplines into a global geodesy and provides new opportunities,
which are of use to both of them. Therefore, the hope is expressed that this short
presentation will initiate the publication of textbooks on marine geodesy, and that
the edition of a volume on "Meeresgeodasie" or "Seevermessung," which has
Concepts and Developments of Marine Geodesy 9
been already been proposed by the author on the occasion of the revision of the
German standard book "Handbuch der Vermessungskunde" by Jordan-Eggert-
Kneissl (1946), will become reality.
References
Berlin, O. K. M. 1943, Handbuch der Vermessungen der Kriegsmarine, 3 vol. Berlin.
Haslam, D. 1985. Why a Hydrographic Office? Int Hydrographic Review, Monaco, LXII
(1), 9-16.
Ingham, A. 1975. Sea Surveying, 2 volumes. John Wiley & Sons, New York.
Mourad, A. G. 1966. The Concept of Marine Geodesy. 1st Marine Geodesy Symposium,
Columbus, Ohio.
Mourad, A. G. and D. M. Fubara. ,1977. Marine Geodesy 1967-1971; IAG section 1, report,
Moscow.
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