science

Struve Geodetic Arc

Struve Geodetic Arc is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Struve Geodetic Arc rather than just read about it. In short: The Struve Geodetic Arc is a chain of survey triangulations stretching from Hammerfest in Norway to the Black Sea, through ten countries and over 2,820 kilometres (1,750 mi), which yielded the first accurate measurement of a meridian arc. The chain was established and used by the German-born Russian scientist Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve in the years 1816 to 1855 to establish the exact size and shape of the ea…

Key takeaways

Struve Geodetic Arc belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Struve Geodetic Arc to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Struve Geodetic Arc from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

The Struve Geodetic Arc is a chain of survey triangulations stretching from Hammerfest in Norway to the Black Sea, through ten countries and over 2,820 kilometres (1,750 mi), which yielded the first accurate measurement of a meridian arc. The chain was established and used by the German-born Russian scientist Friedrich Georg Wilhelm von Struve in the years 1816 to 1855 to establish the exact size and shape of the earth. At that time, the chain passed merely through three countries: Norway, Sweden and the Russian Empire. The Arc's first point is located in Tartu Observatory in Estonia, where Struve conducted much of his research. Measurement of the triangulation chain comprises 258 main triangles and 265 geodetic vertices. The northernmost point is located near Hammerfest in Norway and the southernmost point near the Black Sea in Ukraine. In 2005, the chain was inscribed on the World Heritage List, because of its importance in geodesy and its testimony to international scientific cooperation. The World Heritage site includes 34 commemorative plaques or built obelisks out of the original 265 main station points which are marked by drilled holes in rock, iron crosses, cairns, others. This inscription is located in ten countries, the second most of any UNESCO World Heritage after the Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians and Other Regions of Europe. The measurements of the 30° Meridian Arc in 1816–1852 as well the description of the geodesic, topographical, and map making works in the Balkans from the nineteenth century until the beginning of the twentieth century by Russian Czarist Army was described in Astronomy, geodesy and map-drawing in Moldova since the middle ages till the World War I.

Chain

Norway Fuglenes in Hammerfest (70°40′12″N 23°39′48″E) Raipas in Alta (69°56′19″N 23°21′37″E) Luvdiidcohkka in Kautokeino (69°39′52″N 23°36′08″E) Baelljasvarri in Kautokeino (69°01′43″N 23°18′19″E)

Sweden "Pajtas-vaara" (Tynnyrilaki) in Kiruna (68°15′18″N 22°58′59″E) "Kerrojupukka" (Jupukka) in Pajala (67°16′36″N 23°14′35″E) Pullinki in Övertorneå (66°38′47″N 23°46′55″E) "Perra-vaara" (Perävaara) in Haparanda (66°1′5″N 23°55′21″E)

Finland Stuor-Oivi (currently Stuorrahanoaivi) in Enontekiö (68°40′57″N 22°44′45″E) Avasaksa (currently Aavasaksa) in Ylitornio (66°23′52″N 23°43′31″E) Torneå (currently Alatornio Church) in Tornio (65°49′48″N 24°09′26″E) Puolakka (currently Oravivuori) in Korpilahti (61°55′36″N 25°32′01″E) Porlom II (currently Tornikallio) in Lapinjärvi (60°42′17″N 26°00′12″E) Svartvira (currently Mustaviiri) in Pyhtää (60°16′35″N 26°36′12″E)

Russia "Mäki-päälys" (Mäkipäällys) (Finland 1917/1920-1940) in Gogland (Suursaari)(60°4′27″N 26°58′11″E) "Hogland, Z" (Gogland, Tochka Z) in Gogland (60°5′9.8″N 26°57′37.5″E)

Estonia "Woibifer" (Võivere) in Väike-Maarja Parish (59°03′28″N 26°20′16″E) "Katko" (Simuna) in Väike-Maarja Parish (59°02′54″N 26°24′51″E) "Dorpat" (Tartu Old Observatory) in Tartu. (58°22′43.64″N 26°43′12.61″E)

Latvia "Sestu-Kalns" (Ziestu) in Ērgļu novads (56°50′24″N 25°38′12″E) "Jacobstadt" in Jēkabpils (56°30′05″N 25°51′24″E)

Lithuania "Karischki" (Gireišiai) by Panemunėlis southwards (55°54′09″N 25°26′12″E) "Meschkanzi" (Meškonys) in Nemenčinė (54°55′51″N 25°19′00″E) "Beresnäki" (Paliepiukai) in Nemėžis (54°38′04″N 25°25′45″E)

Belarus "Tupischki" (Tupishki) in Ashmyany district (54°17′30″N 26°2′43″E) "Lopati" (Lopaty) in Zelva district (53°33′38″N 24°52′11″E) "Ossownitza" (Ossovnitsa) in Ivanovo district (52°17′22″N 25°38′58″E) "Tchekutsk" (Chekutsk) in Ivanovo district (52°12′28″N 25°33′23″E) "Leskowitschi" (Leskovichi) in Ivanovo district (52°9′39″N 25°34′17″E)

Moldova "Rudi" (in von Struve's spelling: "Rudy") near Rudi village, Soroca district (48°19′08″N 27°52′36″E)

Ukraine Katerynivka in Antonivka, Khmelnytskyi Oblast (49°33′57″N 26°45′22″E) Felshtyn in Hvardiiske, Khmelnytskyi Oblast (49°19′48″N 26°40′55″E) Baranivka in Baranivka, Khmelnytskyi Oblast (49°08′55″N 26°59′30″E) Staro-Nekrasivka in Stara Nekrasivka, Odesa Oblast (45°19′57.5″N 28°55′40″E)

Results

Historical At publication in 1858, the flattening of the earth was estimated at one part in 294.26. The earth's equatorial radius was estimated at 6,378,360.7 meters (20,926,380 ft). In 2005, the work was repeated using satellite navigation. The new flattening estimate was one part in 298.257 222 101 and the equatorial radius was 6,378,136.8 metres (20,925,646 ft). An earlier survey, in 1740, had given flattening at one part in 178 and an equatorial radius of 6,396,800 metres (20,986,900 ft).

Modern Northernmost point: Hammerfest (Fuglenes): 70° 40' 11.23″ N Southernmost point: Ismail (Staro-Nekrassowka): 45° 20' 02.94″ N Difference in Geodetic Latitude: 25° 20' 08.29″ Distance in kilometres: 2,821.853 ± 0.012

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Struve Geodetic Arc

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Struve Geodetic Arc claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Struve Geodetic Arc before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Struve Geodetic Arc ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Struve Geodetic Arc

In research: Struve Geodetic Arc appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Struve Geodetic Arc in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Struve Geodetic Arc is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Geodetic surveys, Struve Geodetic Arc, Struve family, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Struve Geodetic Arc outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Struve Geodetic Arc in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Struve Geodetic Arc means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Struve Geodetic Arc out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Struve Geodetic Arc in simple terms?

Why does Struve Geodetic Arc matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Struve Geodetic Arc?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Struve Geodetic Arc.