Geodesy

This chapter presents the basics of geodesy applicable to air navigation. The shape and the size of the Earth are presented in four approximations: tangent plane, sphere, rotation ellipsoid, and geoid. The Earth’s gravity applications to air navigation are discussed further. Airports as terminal points of flights and flight tracks in general are space representations in a terrestrial framework, so the geodesy is particularly relevant. Moreover, geodesy provides the basis for understanding the atmosphere physics presented in the next Chapter.