Feedback on the New Datums

2015 Geospatial SummitApril 13 to 14, 2015

US Army Corps of EngineersJim Garster

Our major products/services which will be affected by the new datums:•Existing project maps; designs; studies•Project O&M Manuals

Our preparations to date include:• Engineer Regulation (ER 1110-2-8160) Policy on project

vertical datums• Engineer Manual (EM 1110-2-6056) Guidance referencing

project datums• U-SMART (USACE Survey Monument Archival & Retrieval

Tool) Keeps track of project control and ties to NSRS/NWLON

http://usmart.usace.army.mil

Preparation

US Army Corps of Engineers

We are excited because...Expected advantages of the new datums for your organization, its products, or services

• Consistency of vertical datums across the country• Better relationship between geodetic and hydrologic datums• Improved accuracy for GPS derived elevations

We are concerned because...Expected challenges of the new datums for your organization, its products, or services

• Another vertical datum…• Relationship between exiting/older datums and new datum• Small changes might get ignored• Potential dynamic datum

• Constantly changing coordinates• Conversion tools more complex

Advantages / Challenges

US Army Corps of Engineers

The tools, products, or services we need most (from NGS or others) are:• NGS should publish transformation routines/tools

• Need to include accuracy• User defined epoch for output datasheet• Command line application for transformations

• Superseded values need to be documented• OPUS, connections to the NSRS

The outreach we need most (from NGS or others):• NGS should develop on-line tutorials on datums and importance

of datum transformations.• publication which describes the differences between

NAD83/NAVD88 and the new datums

Transition Tools / Outreach Needs

US Army Corps of Engineers