POLITECNICO DI TORINO

DIATI

Basic concepts of
Vertical Reference systems

Marco Piras
GEOMATICS
 Definition of elevation

Elevation Z
P
z = zp
•
z = 0 Land Surface

Elevation is measured from the Geoid

Geoid = “The equipotential surface of the Earth’s gravity field

which best fits, in the least squares sense, global mean sea level”.

https://evrs.bkg.bund.de/Subsites/EVRS/EN/Home/home.html
Vertical Datums
The Geoid

Equipotential
Surfaces

Topography
Definition of elevation

n’
n Geoid
W = W0
gP P

N
Reference Ellipsoid

Q Q U = WQ

From Figure 2-12, p.83 of Heiskanen and Moritz, 1967, Physical Geodesy
 Three systems for measuring elevation
What reference system (datum) is used?

1. Orthometric heights (land surveys, geoid)

2. Ellipsoidal heights (lidar, GPS)
3. Tidal heights (Sea water level)

Geoid is mean sea level at a particular point and varies with gravitational
potential
 Three systems for measuring elevation

Orthometric heights Ellipsoidal heights Tidal heights

(land surveys, geoid) (lidar, GPS) (Sea water level)

Conversion among these height systems has some uncertainty

Sea Surface Topography on Mediterranean Sea
 Gravity measurements help answer two big questions…

How “high above sea How large are near-shore

level” am I? (FEMA, hydrodynamic processes?
Earth’s USACE, Surveying and (Coast Survey, CSC,
Surface CZM)
Mapping)

Orthometric Ht
Geoid
From Leveling
Coast

Ocean
Surface

Ellipsoid

Geoid Height
Ellipsoid Ht
From Gravity From
From GPS
Satellite Altimetry
 Trends in Tide Levels
(coastal flood risk is changing)

Charleston, SC

+ 0.4 m/century

1900 2000

Juneau, AK
Galveston, TX

+ 0.7 m/century
- 1.2 m/century

1900 2000

1900 2000
 Gravity anomaly

Earth surface

Ocean

Geoid Gravity Anomaly

Gravity anomaly is the elevation difference between a standard

shape of the earth (ellipsoid) and a surface of constant
gravitational potential (geoid)
 Converting vertical datums

Point file attributed with

the elevation difference Datum1 terrain + adjustment
between Datum1 and = Datum2 terrain elevation
Datum2
 EUROPEAN VERTICAL REFERENCE SYSTEM

https://evrs.bkg.bund.de/Subsites/EVRS/EN/Home/home.html
EARTH GEOID MODEL (GLOBAL)

https://earth-info.nga.mil/GandG/wgs84/gravitymod/egm2008/
GLOBAL GEOID MODEL

https://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/geoid.html
GEOID MODEL AND MATLAB
 References

- Biagi L., Politecnico di Milano (DIIAR). Ph.D. Course

- Piras M., Politecnico di Torino (DIATI). Course of ICT for Geomatics
- Manzino A.M., Politecnico di Torino (DIATI). Course of Geomatics
(Italian language)
- Dermanis A., Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Greece). IAG School
on Reference Frames, 2010
- Altamimi, Z., P. Sillard and C. Boucher, ITRF2000: A New Release of the
International Terrestrial Reference Frame for Earth Science Applications,
submitted to J. Geophys. Res., 2001.
- Boucher, C. and Z. Altamimi, The EUREF Terrestrial Reference System
and its first realizations, EUREF Meeting, Bern, Switzerland March 4-6,
1992.
- Minster, B. and T.H. Jordan , Present-day plate motions, J. Geophys.
Res.83, 5331-5354,1978.