Long Lines of Triangulation

HE report on the completion of the connection by triangulation between France and the island of Corsica, which was accomplished in 1925, is a very interesting and important piece of geodetic information. It is only a question of time when all islands which are contiguous to or within reasonable distances of other land will be connected by triangulation to make possible the correlation of maps, charts, and geographic information. M. Helbronner communicated a brief account of the Corsica operations to the French Academy of Sciences in November, I925, and this was reprinted in La Montagne, January, 1926.1 An abstract of the article is printed in the June, I926, number of the Geographical Journal.2 The abstract contains a statement that the line of triangulation executed to connect Corsica with France was 271 kilometers, the longest geodetic ray hitherto secured. This statement aroused my curiosity as to long lines for I knew of a line in the triangulation of the United States which was considerably longer than the one mentioned above

Cartography · Geography · Triangulation · Geographic Information Systems Studies · Historical Geography and Cartography · History