Maps of Australia dangerously inaccurate
Tectonic shifts result in GPS telling drivers to go through walls or onto sidewalks
Australia’s extensive road network would theoretically be perfect for self-driving cars.
But there is one major problem: Tectonic movements have pushed the continent away from where it used to be and where GPS systems assume it is still located. In other words: All maps of Australia are about a metre and a half off at the moment.
It’s a problem that has created headaches for developers and scientists alike, with navigation systems telling drivers to go through walls or onto sidewalks.
Consumer navigation systems are sometimes inaccurate on other continents as well, but the impact of Australia’s tectonic shifts is unique.
Last updated in 1994, the country’s local co-ordinate system is long out of date, researchers say. A new version is now scheduled to replace it in January 2017 — moving Australia 1.8 metres to the north, which is where it should be by 2020. On average, the continent is shifting six centimetres per year to the north. That shift has been going on for millions of years.
About 100 million years ago, Antarctica, India and Australia were all connected with each other, then, over the next 55 million years, they split up — setting off a movement that continues until today.
It may not be noticeable to us, but maps and location data leave no doubts.
George Musser, an editor with the Scientific American, spent weeks researching why GPS systems and maps are sometimes off by several metres. Apart from GPS hardware challenges and misalignments that stem from the satellite images the location data is based on, geology presents a particular obstacle to scientists, according to Musser.
“I discovered a sizable infrastructure of geographers, geologists and geodesists dedicated to ensuring that maps are accurate,” Musser wrote in the Scientific American. “But they are always a step behind the restless landscape. Geologic activity can create significant errors in the maps on your screens.”