ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Tetrahedral interpolation

Imagine you have a map of a mountainous area. Now, you want to know the height of a specific point on the map that isn't labeled. But you know the height of a few other labeled points around it. How can you estimate the height of the unlabeled point?

Tetrahedral interpolation is a method that helps you estimate the height of the unlabeled point based on the heights of the labeled points around it. It works by dividing the area around the unlabeled point into smaller tetrahedrons (a 3D shape with four triangular faces) based on the labeled points.

In each tetrahedron, the height of the unlabeled point can be estimated by looking at the heights of the labeled points that make up the faces of the tetrahedron. The method then calculates a weighted average of the heights of the unlabeled point in each of the tetrahedrons to arrive at an overall estimate of the height.

So, in simpler terms: Tetrahedral interpolation is a way to guess the height of a point on a map based on the heights of nearby points that are labeled. It works by dividing the area around the point into smaller shapes, estimating the height in each shape, and then combining these estimates to make an overall guess.