coordinate system

A reference system used to measure horizontal and vertical distances on a planimetric map. A coordinate system is usually defined by a map projection, a spheroid of reference, a datum, one or more standard parallels, a central meridian, and possible shifts in the x- and y-directions to locate x,y positions of point, line, and area features. In ARC/INFO, a system with units and characteristics defined by a map projection. A common coordinate system is used to spatially register geographic data for the same area.

A system to measure horizontal and vertical distances so that a geographic feature true position can be established in relation to an accepted public reference system such as State Plane or Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) coordinate systems.