| A | B |
|---|
| Angle of Repose | The maximum angle of a stable slope of a granular material determined by friction |
| Backsight | The reading on a rod held at a point of known or assumed elevation. |
| Bench Mark (BM) | A relatively permanent object |
| Closure Error | The difference between a measured or calculated elevation and the true or established elevation. |
| Coarse Grained Soil | Soil in which 50 percent or more |
| Construction Survey | A land survey that provides points and elevations for building civil engineering projects. Often called engineering survey. |
| Control Survey | Survey that establishes a network of horizontal and vertical monuments that serve as a reference framework for other surveys. |
| Datum | Any surface to which elevations are referred (for example |
| Design Storm | A selected storm event |
| Detention Pond | A pond that collects storm water |
| Differential Leveling | The process of determining the difference in height between a plane of sight and a point. |
| Duration | The period of time over which rain is measured. For example in the case of annual rainfall measurements |
| Egress | Exit or a way out. |
| Elevation | The vertical distance from a datum to a point or object. |
| Field Notes | A complete record of all measurements made during the survey with sketches and narration |
| Fine Grained Soil | Soil in which more than 50 percent |
| Finish Grade | The final elevation of the ground surface after excavating or filling. |
| Foresight | The reading on a rod held at a point whose elevation is to be determined. |
| Geodetic Survey | Surveys to determine relative positions of widely spaced points which require consideration of the size and shape of the Earth. |
| Grading | The process of changing the topography of a property for a purpose. |
| Height of Instrument | The vertical distance from the datum to the line of sight of the instrument. |
| Impervious | Incapable of being penetrated. |
| Ingress | Entrance or means to enter. |
| Initial Point | The starting point for a survey. |
| Land Surveying | The science of determining relative positions of points on or near the Earth’s surface. |
| Liquid Limit | The minimum moisture content |
| Low Impact Development | A storm water management approach that uses green space |
| Plane Survey | Surveys for which the curvature of the Earth is ignored and measurements are treated as if taken on a plane surface. |
| Plastic Limit | The minimum moisture content at which the soil can be rolled into a thread one-eighth of an inch in diameter without crumbling and is determined by trial and error. |
| Plasticity Index | The difference between the liquid limit and the plastic limit. |
| Poorly Graded | A soil that does not contain a good representation of all particle sizes. A poorly graded soil may contain a narrow range of particle sizes (uniformly graded) or may not contain one or more ranges of particle sizes (gap graded). |
| Property Survey | A land survey that establishes property corners |
| Rainfall Intensity | The ratio of the total amount of rain (rainfall depth) falling during a given period to the duration of the period. |
| Retention Pond | A permanent on-site pond used to manage storm water in which pollutants are allowed to settle out or be removed by biological activity. |
| Return Period | The length of time |
| Rod Intercept | The difference between the rod readings at the stadia wires. |
| Runoff Coefficient | A number that indicates the portion of rainwater that will be discharged by a particular surface. |
| Stadia | Two horizontal cross wires that are equidistant from the center crosshair in the sight. |
| Storm Water Wetlands | A permanent shallow pool of diverted rainwater that incorporates wetland plants. Pollutants are removed through settling and biological activity. |
| Topographic Survey | A land survey used to prepare maps showing location of natural and man-made features and elevations of points on the ground. |
| Well Graded | A soil that displays a good representation of all particle sizes. For instance |
