Geomatics (also known as geospatial technology or geomatics engineering) is the discipline of gathering, storing, processing, and delivering geographic information, or spatially referenced information.
Geomatics is a relatively new scientific term, coined by Pollock and Wright in 1969, with the intention of combining the terms geodesy and geoinformatics. It includes the tools and techniques used in land surveying, remote sensing, cartography, geographic information systems (GIS), global navigation satellite systems (GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, Compass), photogrammetry, geography and related forms of earth mapping.
The term was originally used in Canada, because it is similar in origin to both French and English, but has since been adopted by the International Organization for Standardization, the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, and many other international authorities, although some (especially in the United States) have shown a preference for the term geospatial technology.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.