Back in 2015 I wrote about the planned retirement of NAD 83 and NAVD 88.  Well, it’s almost here.  The new replacement datums are coming in 2022.

To improve the National Spatial Reference System (NSRS), NGS will replace the North American Datum of 1983 (NAD 83) and the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88) with a new geometric reference frame and geopotential datum in 2022.

The new reference frames will rely primarily on Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS), such as the Global Positioning System (GPS), as well as on a gravimetric geoid model that is being collected now through the Gravity for the Redefinition of the American Vertical Datum (GRAV-D) Project.

These new reference frames will be easier to access and to maintain than NAD 83 and NAVD 88, which rely on physical survey marks that deteriorate over time.

Click below for a brief overview.

How will these new reference frames affect positions and height?

In SoCal, based on the graphics above (and a good eye), we will probably see an approximate horizontal change of 1.47 meters and an approximate orthometric height change of -0.625 meters.

Visit the New Datums website to get more information to help you prepare for the change.