Category Archives: Surveying
Straight on to Mars (and Beyond)
In the last issue we raised the question of whether mankind should go back to the Moon as a way to fuel future space exploration. While that article states the many salient reasons to take this path, many people feel we should aim higher and go straight on to Mars. (For insights on what geospatial...
The Contrarian on The Young Surveyors Network
The Young Surveyors Network: Is This the Right Approach? Point-Counterpoint Editor’s note (Scott P. Martin): One of the biggest concerns and discussions our profession has these days is regarding the diminishing numbers of young people discovering and pursuing our profession. Combine that with the advancing average age of licensed professional surveyors across the country, other...
Retracement in the Land of the Free
Art of Retracement By Warren D. Ward, PLS “I have to walk like a moose through this stuff!” claimed Glenny Dale, known on this crew as Glutton, The Old Man, because of his old legs. He had found a game trail that gave him about eight inches of flat path. But he had to tightrope his...
Part 1: Foundations for Computing Error Ellipses
Standard Error Rectangle and Error Ellipse What is an error ellipse? One of the advantages of a least-squares adjustment over other methods is that a byproduct of the adjustment is not only the most probable values for the unknown coordinates but also standard deviations on these values Suppose for a moment that we are computing...
Back to the Moon? Or—Straight on to Mars?
Editor’s note: at xyHt and Pangaea we’ve been adding “geo-space-al” content into our geospatial mix, and readers have been responding positively. Surveying on Mars is a great example. When you think about it, geospatial technology and space are inextricably intertwined; from GNSS to satellite-based remote sensing, we rely on space-based technology to tackle almost every...
HyperStacking GPR
A new technology shows promise for enabling users to see deeper targets and operate in noisy conditions. By Jeffrey Feigin, PhD Editor’s Note: The field of ground-penetrating radar (GPR) is experiencing a new wave of development. For many of our readers, first impressions of legacy GPR gear included a lot of limitations and confusing images....
