Australia Has Drifted About 5 Feet
- 8 years ago
The Australian government plans to update the country’s longitude and latitude coordinates as the land mass has drifted nearly five feet since a survey 22 years ago.
The Australian government plans to update the country’s longitude and latitude coordinates as the land mass has drifted nearly five feet since a survey 22 years ago.
This northerly movement, estimated to be about 2.75 inches a year, is caused by underlying tectonic activity, notes the BBC.
As such, a team with Geoscience Australia plans to re-calculate the current coordinates and replace the ones recorded in 1994.
Science Alert points out that the discrepancy likely doesn’t affect everyday map users but could make a difference with technologies that rely on precise locations like autonomous vehicles.
Dan Jaksa of Geoscience Australia confirms this, telling the BBC, “If you want to start using driverless cars, accurate map information is fundamental.”
According to ABC News, the new coordinates will be published in 2017 and, “…based on projections to 2020.”
The Australian government plans to update the country’s longitude and latitude coordinates as the land mass has drifted nearly five feet since a survey 22 years ago.
This northerly movement, estimated to be about 2.75 inches a year, is caused by underlying tectonic activity, notes the BBC.
As such, a team with Geoscience Australia plans to re-calculate the current coordinates and replace the ones recorded in 1994.
Science Alert points out that the discrepancy likely doesn’t affect everyday map users but could make a difference with technologies that rely on precise locations like autonomous vehicles.
Dan Jaksa of Geoscience Australia confirms this, telling the BBC, “If you want to start using driverless cars, accurate map information is fundamental.”
According to ABC News, the new coordinates will be published in 2017 and, “…based on projections to 2020.”