Measuring the Earth - From the Nebra Disk to GPS

Play Video

First broadcast on ZDF on April 7, 2019, 7:30 p.m. A film by Christopher Gerisch. TV editorial team Renate Marel, Johannes Geiger. Online editorial team Michael Büsselberg

Background and content

People have always tried to orient themselves on earth. Initially, they used striking points in nature or the stars. Today satellites measure the earth with millimeter precision. Today, the constantly available GPS guides you to your destination with meter precision. It has become so much a part of everyday life that it hardly seems possible to get by without it. What is used as a matter of course today is the fulfillment of a human dream. People have always been looking for orientation. The production of the Nebra sky disk in the Bronze Age testifies to the attempt to find one's way on earth and to wrest something reliable from unpredictable nature.

Cards as an instrument of power

In addition to orientation, measuring the earth has always been intended to bring even more: power advantages. The Turin deposit papyrus is evidence of this. Around the year 1150 B.C. Pharaoh Ramses IV had the deposits of rocks and mineral resources mapped there. The precise knowledge of the treasures of his empire made their mining and exploitation particularly effective. This is how he secured his power. The medieval mappae mundi can also be interpreted as an instrument of power. The creators of the Christian world maps painted the world in a way that fit the teachings of the church.

The Ebstorfer map was created around 1300 and has typical features of the Mappae Mundi. The map is oriented east instead of north. Paradise is located there, Jesus Christ sits enthroned above everything. The creator of this map depicts the Earth in a circle, divided into the three continents known at the time: Africa, Asia and Europe. In the center Jerusalem, as the central place of Christianity. Biblical stories are represented symbolically, such as the Tower of Babel or Noah's Ark. The Ebstorf map (interactive representation) reminds people in the Middle Ages that catastrophes are to be understood as divine punishment.

To this day, measuring the earth follows the same motives: orientation and power. In around 2015, the Federal Ministry of Defense paid 360 million euros for high-resolution 3D maps created by modern satellites from space - a huge strategic advantage in geopolitical conflicts.

The exploration of the seabed

And while there are hardly any white spots left on the earth's surface, exploration of the ocean floor is still in its infancy. Autonomous underwater drones are intended to advance exploration here. In addition to scientific interest, it is primarily about the location and exploitation of mineral resources on the high seas. Whoever has the best maps here will be well ahead of their competitors in the race for valuable raw materials.