ge·od·e·sy
jē-ˈä-də-sē 
: a branch of applied mathematics concerned with the determination of the size and shape of the earth and the exact positions of points on its surface and with the description of variations of its gravity field
Examples of geodesy in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Lucia McCallum, Space.com, 26 July 2025
Minute-scale dynamics of recurrent dike intrusions in Iceland with fiber-optic geodesy
UNESCO.
—Jack Knudson, Discover Magazine, 25 Apr. 2025
The magnetic field offers a glimpse of the planet’s interior and a snapshot of its history, hinting at how far the whirling insides have decelerated over billions of years, says Antonio Genova, an aerospace engineer who studies planetary geodesy and geophysics at the Sapienza University of Rome.
—Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Apr. 2024
Her work on satellite geodesy and satellite measurements contributed to the accuracy of GPS, which impacts phones and is widely used in automobiles.
—Amritpal Kaur Sandhu-Longoria, USA TODAY, 8 Mar. 2023
That spells bad news for the regional tourism industry that relies on the glaciers, said Christoph Mayer, a senior scientist in the geodesy and glaciology group at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Munich.
—Victoria Milko, Anchorage Daily News, 10 Nov. 2021
But subsidence, or the gradual sinking of land, likely would not on its own cause a building to collapse, according to Wdowinski, whose expertise is in space geodesy, natural hazards and sea level rise.
—Laura Romero, ABC News, 3 Aug. 2021
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Noun
To reach the very high precision needed for modern technology, geodesy today relies on more than just the lanes exclusively reserved for astronomy.
—Lucia McCallum, Space.com, 26 July 2025
Minute-scale dynamics of recurrent dike intrusions in Iceland with fiber-optic geodesy
UNESCO.
—Jack Knudson, Discover Magazine, 25 Apr. 2025
The magnetic field offers a glimpse of the planet’s interior and a snapshot of its history, hinting at how far the whirling insides have decelerated over billions of years, says Antonio Genova, an aerospace engineer who studies planetary geodesy and geophysics at the Sapienza University of Rome.
—Shi En Kim, Smithsonian Magazine, 16 Apr. 2024
Her work on satellite geodesy and satellite measurements contributed to the accuracy of GPS, which impacts phones and is widely used in automobiles.
—Amritpal Kaur Sandhu-Longoria, USA TODAY, 8 Mar. 2023
That spells bad news for the regional tourism industry that relies on the glaciers, said Christoph Mayer, a senior scientist in the geodesy and glaciology group at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Munich.
—Victoria Milko, Anchorage Daily News, 10 Nov. 2021
But subsidence, or the gradual sinking of land, likely would not on its own cause a building to collapse, according to Wdowinski, whose expertise is in space geodesy, natural hazards and sea level rise.
—Laura Romero, ABC News, 3 Aug. 2021
Cite this Entry
“Geodesy.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/geodesy. Accessed 19 Jun. 2026.
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