The Finnish Geospatial Research Institute ( fi, Paikkatietokeskus), formerly Finnish Geodetic Institute (FGI, fi, Geodeettinen laitos, sv, Geodetiska institutet) is a research institute in

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

specializing in

geodesy Geodesy ( ) is the Earth science of accurately measuring and understanding Earth's figure (geometric shape and size), orientation in space, and gravity. The field also incorporates studies of how these properties change over time and equivale ...

and

geospatial information Geographic data and information is defined in the ISO/TC 211 series of standards as data and information having an implicit or explicit association with a location relative to Earth (a geographic location or geographic position). It is also cal ...

science and technology. It merged into the

National Land Survey of Finland The National Land Survey of Finland ( fi, Maanmittauslaitos, sv, Lantmäteriverket) is an official body, dealing with cartography and cadastre issues in Finland. It is subordinated the Finnish Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. On May 1, 201 ...

in 2015, when its name was changed. It is located in

Masala, Kirkkonummi Masala () is a village of 5,855 inhabitants in Kirkkonummi municipality. It is located in the western Uusimaa region, in southern Finland, just outside the Helsinki Metropolitan Area. Masala railway station, a station on the Helsinki commuter rai ...

History

The FGI was founded in 1918. The institute creates and maintains national

coordinate In geometry, a coordinate system is a system that uses one or more numbers, or coordinates, to uniquely determine the position of the points or other geometric elements on a manifold such as Euclidean space. The order of the coordinates is sign ...

height Height is measure of vertical distance, either vertical extent (how "tall" something or someone is) or vertical position (how "high" a point is). For example, "The height of that building is 50 m" or "The height of an airplane in-flight is abou ...

, and gravity systems. It also participates in projects that try to advance spatial data infrastructure and conducts research on

geodynamics Geodynamics is a subfield of geophysics dealing with dynamics of the Earth. It applies physics, chemistry and mathematics to the understanding of how mantle convection leads to plate tectonics and geologic phenomena such as seafloor spreading, mo ...

, advanced

spatial data Geographic data and information is defined in the ISO/TC 211 series of standards as data and information having an implicit or explicit association with a location relative to Earth (a geographic location or geographic position). It is also call ...

and

remote sensing Remote sensing is the acquisition of information about an object or phenomenon without making physical contact with the object, in contrast to in situ or on-site observation. The term is applied especially to acquiring information about Earth ...

and

photogrammetry Photogrammetry is the science and technology of obtaining reliable information about physical objects and the environment through the process of recording, measuring and interpreting photographic images and patterns of electromagnetic radiant ima ...

. The institute also has a statutory responsibility to maintain the national standards of acceleration of free fall and geodetic length.

Organization

The FGI is currently divided into four departments: *Geodesy and Geodynamics *Geoinformatics and Cartography *Remote Sensing and Photogrammetry *Navigation and Positioning

External links

Finnish Geospatial Research Institute web page
{{Authority control Research institutes in Finland Geodesy organizations