Earth & Space Science for Everybody

Lasse A. Kivioja was born in Finland and immigrated to the United States in 1955. During his studies for his Master of Science degree in Physics in The University at Helsinki he worked part-time at the Finnish Geodetic Institute. Specializing in Earth s gravity, he was an instructor and received his Ph.D. degree from the Department of Geodetic Science at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio while working there at The Mapping and Charting Laboratory. He is a Professor Emeritus from Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, where he lectured and conducted research in Geodetic Sciences for 26.5 years and published several refereed articles including: In Bulletin Geodesique, he published a new exact non-iterative mathematical method for computing astro-latitudes and astro-longitudes for Astrolabe observations. In Bulletin Geodesique and in Surveying and Mapping he published a method for computing coordinates and azimuths for any 'way-points' and any 'end-points' in GPS positioning, solving the two Main Problems of Geometric Geodesy (Direct and Inverse Problems) by very precise computer integration using the original differential formulas for all geodetic line elements on the surface of any Earth Ellipsoid besting all older methods. Famous mathematicians spent some time solving these two elliptical integration problems. Among them are: Clairaut 1713-1765, Lagrange 1736-1813, Laplace 1749-1827, Legendre 1752-1833, Gauss 1777-1855, Bessel 1784-1846, Jordan 1838-1922 and Helmert 1843-1917. None of these famous men had electronic calculators. Published in Bulletin Geodesique studies of world sea-level variations influenced by the melting of land-supported ice masses. Consultant at National Geodetic Survey, Fredericksburg, Virginia. Developed and published in Surveying and Mapping methods of improving observational accuracies of first order theodolites. Made an autocollimation addition to a first order theodolite to account for its axis wobbles. Consultant at USAF Geodetic Survey Squadron, Cheyenne, Wyoming. Developed and published an improved method for astronomical azimuth observations in Bulletin Geodesique increasing achievable accuracies in the use of theodolites and leveling instruments using Mercury Leveling with autocollimation methods. Many first order theodolites were calibrated to account for small inherent systematic errors. Consultant at Argonne National Laboratories in Argonne, Illinois. Developed and published a new method suitable for leveling the 1104-meter long ring with about 200 supports to a few micron (0.001 millimeter) accuracies in the Advanced Photon Source. He has a United States Patent on Mercury Leveling Instruments."