NOAA/NSTA Web Seminar: GPS and Geodesy LIVE INTERACTIVE YOUR DESKTOP Tuesday, May 29, :00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Eastern time

Geocaching and Benchmark Hunting Presented by: Casey Brennan National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) National Ocean Service (NOS) National Geodetic Survey (NGS)

Learning Objectives At the end of this session participants should be able to explain: 1.What is Geocaching 2.What is benchmark Hunting 3.Where can you find information on geocaches and benchmarks.

The National Geodetic Survey Founded in 1807 The National Spatial Reference System Surveying and map making

Surveying You need a known starting location! 2.Horizontal Surveys 3.Vertical Surveys 4.Positions are given in Lat and Long

How many people in the audience have seen one of these before? Yea, I have seen one of those before. Nope, never seen one.

Geocaching 101 Useful links (lots of helpful links) (frequently asked questions) Its kind of like a small treasure hunt Uses GPS technology and coordinates Lots of ways to track progress and have fun A good way to get to know a new area

How many people on here have already found a Geocache? Options: A: Yes I have found a geocache before B: No, I have never found one but I have at least gone looking C: Never even tried

Geocaching.com How to find caches near you How to get help (the forums) Volunteer need! And hang on, cause we are about to go onto the web to do some surfing.

How many caches have you found? Options: A: 0 B: 1-5 C: more than 5 D: more than 100

Benchmark Hunting 101 Similar to Geocaching, but there is no “cache” at the end. Can find some REALLY old marks and get a feel for history A good introduction to surveying Can be a useful public service

Benchmark hunting How to find a benchmark on geocaching.com (more web surfing) Tips on how to read a datasheet Finding a mark out in the field Where to get help: The benchmark hunting forum!

Lets Talk about Datasheets

True or False? The information collected by benchmark hunters is of no use whatsoever to NOAA’s National Geodetic Survey, its just for fun! TRUE FALSE

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National Science Teachers Association Gerry Wheeler, Executive Director Frank Owens, Associate Executive Director Conferences and Programs Al Byers, Assistant Executive Director e-Learning LIVE INTERACTIVE YOUR DESKTOP NSTA Web Seminars Flavio Mendez, Program Manager Jeff Layman, Technical Coordinator Susan Hurstcalderone, Volunteer Chat Moderator