ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

GRS80

Ok kiddo, have you ever heard of something called "geodesy" and how people measure and study the shape and gravity of the Earth? No? Well, it's pretty cool!

GrS80 is a fancy name for a specific "geodetic datum" that scientists and surveyors use as a sort of baseline for figuring out where things are on the Earth. Think of it like playing a game of "hide and seek" but with a giant ball instead of a room. You need to know exactly where all the hiding spots are on that ball so you can find your friends!

But here's the thing: the Earth isn't perfectly round. It's actually shaped a bit like a squished ball, with lumps and bumps and different gravitational pulls in different places. That's where GrS80 comes in! It's like a special key that helps people translate measurements and coordinates from a round globe model to the actual wonky shape of our planet.

GrS80 was created by a bunch of very smart scientists and mathematicians who spent a lot of time studying how gravity works on the Earth and carefully measuring things like the distance between two points on opposite sides of the planet. They even used fancy satellite technology to help them out!

This special geodetic datum is used all over the world for things like building roads, laying down pipelines, and even figuring out the location of important landmarks like the Statue of Liberty. So remember, when you're playing a game of "hide and seek" on the Earth, scientists and surveyors are using GrS80 to help make sure they find you!