Height Modernization

The National Height Modernization Program enables access to accurate, reliable, and consistent heights. Elevation information contributes to informed decision making and impacts a wide range of important activities including mapping and charting, flood risk determination, transportation, land use and ecosystem management.

In The News

Geoid Slope Validation Survey of 2011
To begin addressing the actual achievable accuracy of a gravimetric geoid model, NGS has started a project known as the Geoid Slope Validation Survey of 2011, or GSVS11, between Austin, Texas and Corpus Christi, Texas. Read more about the effort on the project page.

10/20/2011 - NGS Educates Partners at Great Lakes Height Modernization Consortium
National Geodetic Survey's (NGS) Height Modernization Program educated partners at this fall's Great Lakes Region Height Modernization Consortium Meeting, October 13-14, in Columbus, Ohio...more

10/20/11 - Diving Deeper, National Ocean Service Podcast Episode 33: Height Modernization
How do we rely on elevation data every single day? What do geodesists need to quickly and efficiently measure heights? Learn this and more in today's Diving Deeper, an interview with Renee Shields from the National Geodetic Survey on Height Modernization.
Listen to Podcast

10/13/11 - Making Waves, National Ocean Service Podcast Episode 85: Building a Better Geoid
National Geodetic Survey's Chief Geodesist Dru Smith explains what the geoid is—and how NGS staff are working to make this gravity-based global model of mean sea level a better tool to help us measure heights.
Listen to podcast.

9/5/11 - ACSM's Radio Hour discusses impacts on surveying activities caused by earthquakes out West
Guest Greg Helmer, a former co-chair of the California Spatial Reference Center, talks about the origins of Height Modernization in the state and the development of a National Program during a longer discussion about the impacts on surveying activities caused by earthquakes out West. You can listen to the broadcast by visiting the ACSM Radio Hour archives here.

8/19/11 – Height Modernization National Partner Meeting
A Partner Meeting was held on August 19, 2011 in Silver Spring, MD. During the meeting, NGS provided updates on current projects and improvements to existing models or tools. Partners highlighted activities in their states and discussed challenges they have encountered. Presentations from the workshop, as well as a final meeting report, will be available online here.

8/18/11 – LiDAR and Height Modernization Workshop
A LiDAR and Height Modernization Workshop was held on August 18, 2011 in Silver Spring, MD. The event explored the importance of vertical accuracy when collecting or using LiDAR data. Presentations from the workshop, as well as a final meeting report, will be available online here.

Read more news items in our News Archive.

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