TABLE OF CONTENTS Surveying is a process of determining the position of points on the Earth, measuring distances between them and using this information for a variety of purposes including the defining of boundaries of land ownership. GPS systems can be used for land boundaries, seismic (geology) surveying and volume (e.g. mining material) surveying. GPS enables surveying to be performed by a single person.
Cadastral surveying is the process gathering position location information that is used to define the locations of objects or land boundaries in a geographic area for the purposes of showing ownership and/or the value of the land. Precision GPS systems can be used to identify or install survey monuments. A survey monument is a point that has a known or defined location. Survey monuments may be used as a reference for differential (relative) positioning.
Seismic surveying is the process of gathering subsurface geology information that can be used to estimate or predict the potential for earthquakes or other Earth changing activity. GPS receivers can be used in combination with geophone acoustic systems to map subsurface geology.
The GPS system provides the primary position reference location to the acoustic energy source. The acoustic signals travel through the surface of the earth and are reflected back to acoustic sensors (geophones), which can capture the variations (attenuation) of the acoustic signals due to the sub terrain variations (oil and caves). Geophones are devices that can sense and communicate (or store in memory) reflected acoustic energy that travels...
