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The History of Celestial Navigation pp 241–262Cite as

Reference Systems

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Abstract

A reference system, either terrestrial or celestial, is composed of (1) a specified origin, (2) the directions of fundamental axes, and (3) a set of conventional models, procedures, and constants used to realize the system. A reference frame is the realization of that system through a list of coordinates. Earth orientation describes the procedure, data and models used to relate a terrestrial reference system to a celestial reference system as a function of time.

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  1. US Naval Observatory (Retired/Director), Washington, DC, USA

    Dennis D. McCarthy

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  1. Dennis D. McCarthy
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Correspondence to Dennis D. McCarthy .

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  1. Astronomy Department, University of Virginia (Research Professor), US Naval Observatory (Retired/Director), Rockville, MD, USA

    P. Kenneth Seidelmann

  2. HM Nautical Almanac Office (Retired), UK Hydrographic Office, Taunton, UK

    Catherine Y. Hohenkerk

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McCarthy, D.D. (2020). Reference Systems. In: Seidelmann, P., Hohenkerk, C. (eds) The History of Celestial Navigation. Historical & Cultural Astronomy. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-43631-5_8

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