He noted that NGA’s predecessor, the Defense Mapping Agency , mapped the moon ahead of the Apollo missions in the 1960s and 1970s. “Today, we’re working with NASA, the U.S. Geological Survey, the U.S. Space Force and U.S. Space Command to develop a lunar geodetic system,” said Whitworth. “The lunar geodetic system is likely to be the first of many celestial body reference systems NGA will be tasked with in the years ahead.”‘A big deal”Whitworth said the agency views the lunar geodetic system as a scientific and technical challenge that will take years to reach fruition. It’s a global geodetic reference system for the Earth used for mapping, charting, geopositioning and navigation. But a lunar reference system comparable to WGS 84 is “something that does not exist today,” said James Griffith, NGA’s director of source operations and management.

Source: Forbes May 23, 2023 04:56 UTC