NGS participated in a 2024 survey to measure geoid slopes with astronomical techniques along the Mississippi River between New Orleans and Baton Rouge. This survey validates GEOID2022 in a region where accurate orthometric heights are critical, yet data is sparse.
In 2024, NGS collaborated with the Center for GeoInformatics at Louisiana State University, Oregon State University, and Swisstopo to deploy state-of-the-art astronomical cameras to measure geoid slopes along the Mississippi River between Baton Rouge and New Orleans. The goals of the survey were to compare the performance of these instruments and to validate GEOID2022 in this region. This survey aims to replicate the success of NGS’s past Geoid Slope Validation Surveys with fewer resources and in less time. Southern Louisiana was chosen because of the challenges both sparse data and subsiding land present to geoid modeling. This region has a critical need for accurate orthometric heights in a low-lying, vulnerable, and densely populated shipping corridor.