triangulation

triangulation: see geodesy.

---

triangulation

The use of two known coordinates to determine the location of a third. Used by ship captains for centuries to navigate on the high seas, a form of triangulation known as "trilateration" is employed in GPS receivers to pinpoint their current location on earth. Trilateration is also used by cellular phone carriers to identify a caller's location for emergency 911 services.

Triangulation Vs. Trilateration
Tri-ang-ulation deals with the measurement of the angle of the triangle formed between the observer and two known locations. Tri-lat-eration deals with the distances between observer and locations and is closer to what GPS navigation systems actually do. GPS uses three and four known locations from satellites to pinpoint the person or vehicle. See GPS and E911.

---

triangulation

1. the fixing of an unknown point, as in navigation, by making it one vertex of a triangle, the other two being known

2. Chess a key manoeuvre in the endgame in which the king moves thrice in a triangular path to leave the opposing king with the move and at a disadvantage

---

triangulation [trī‚aŋ·gyə′lā·shən]

(engineering)

A surveying method for measuring a large area of land by establishing a base line from which a network of triangles is built up; in a series, each triangle has at least one side common with each adjacent triangle.

(mathematics)

A decomposition of a topological manifold into subsets homeomorphic with a polyhedron in some Euclidean space.

(navigation)

Determination of the position of a ship or aircraft by obtaining bearings of the moving object with reference to two fixed radio stations a known distance apart; this gives the values of one side and all angles of a triangle, from which the position can be computed.