Theodolite

/θiːədˈɒla‍ɪt/

/θiːədˈɑːlaɪt/

Theodolite

precision optical instrument used for measuring horizontal and vertical angles in surveying and engineering applications

synonyms : transit

Examples

1. The ubiquitous tool for a survey is called a theodolite, and it’s one job is to measure the angles between two points.

2. So what we were left with was this from the '50s, this kind of plane table, alidade, theodolite, poor guys-- graduate students, usually in their 20s and 30s-- sent off to go find sites beyond the main core.

3. Modern theodolites, called total stations, can not only measure angles, but distance as well, and they have on-board computers to do the calculations and record the data for later use.

4. So in the hundred years that people did research to try to figure out how people lived, where they lived, how many people there were, and so forth, the technology had changed, obviously, a little bit-- laser theodolites versus just compass and tape--