Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM)¶
The Universal Transverse Mercator is a system of map projections divided into sixty zones across the globe, with each zone corresponding to 6 degrees of longigude.
Classification |
Transverse cylindrical, conformal |
Available forms |
Forward and inverse, ellipsoidal only |
Defined area |
Within the used zone, but transformations of coordinates in adjacent zones can be expected to be accurate as well |
Alias |
utm |
Domain |
2D |
Input type |
Geodetic coordinates |
Output type |
Projected coordinates |
UTM zones.¶
UTM projections are really the Transverse Mercator to which specific parameters, such as central meridians, have been applied. The Earth is divided into 60 zones each generally 6° wide in longitude. Bounding meridians are evenly divisible by 6°, and zones are numbered from 1 to 60 proceeding east from the 180th meridian from Greenwich with minor exceptions [Snyder1987].
Usage¶
Convert geodetic coordinate to UTM Zone 32 on the northern hemisphere:
$ echo 12 56 | proj +proj=utm +zone=32
687071.44 6210141.33
Convert geodetic coordinate to UTM Zone 59 on the souther hemisphere:
$ echo 174 -44 | proj +proj=utm +zone=59 +south
740526.32 5123750.87
Parameters¶
Required¶
- +zone=<value>¶
Select which UTM zone to use. Can be a value between 1-60.
Optional¶
- +south¶
Add this flag when using the UTM on the southern hemisphere.
- +approx¶
New in version 6.0.0.
Use faster, less accurate algorithm for the Transverse Mercator.