Penn State Surveying Program

Homework Set 4

(Read the lesson The Size and Shape of the Earth)

  1. Using the GRS80 ellipsoid and a north latitude of 41°18'52.6489", what is the:
    1. radius of the meridian
    2. radius of the prime vertical
    3. radius of a line with an azimuth of 53°36'49.09"
    4. radius of the parallel of latitude
    5. length of an arc from longitude 73°03'37.0000"W to 75°15'56.0000"W
  2. The ITRF 2000 ellipsoid is defined with semi-major axis of 6,378,136.6 m and flattening of 1/298.25642, what is
    1. b?
    2. e2?
    3. e'2?
    4. the distance between the foci of the meridional ellipse?
    5. the distance subtended by 1" of longitude along the parallel of latitude at 41°18'43.01672"
  3. For a point with with a geodetic latitude of 41°48'43.01672", what is the distance from the intersection of the prime vertical with the semi-major axis to the center of the ellipse using the WGS84 ellipsoid?
  4. The height of Mount Everest is accepted as 8850 m above the geoid. It has a geoid separation of approximately -30 m at 27°59' N latitude. The height of Mount Chimborazo in Ecuador is accepted as 6,310 m above the geoid. It has a geoid separation of 25 m at a latitude of 1°29'S latitude. Using the GRS 80 ellipsoid, what are the radial distances
    1. Along the normals?
    2. From the Earth's mass center.

Last updated: November 04, 2004
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