Meters above sea Level

Above mean sea level

The term above mean sea level refers to the elevation or altitude of any object, relative to the average sea level datum. AMSL is used extensively in radio by engineers to determine the coverage area a station will be able to reach...

 is a standard metric

Metric system

The metric system is an international decimalised system of measurement. France was first to adopt a metric system, in 1799, and a metric system is now the official system of measurement, used in almost every country in the world...

 measurement

Measurement

Measurement is the process or the result of determining the ratio of a physical quantity, such as a length, time, temperature etc., to a unit of measurement, such as the metre, second or degree Celsius...

 of the elevation

Elevation

The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....

 of a location in reference to historic mean sea level

Sea level

Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...

; the determination of what actually constitutes mean sea level over time however, may be determined by other parameters, such as the effects of climate history and climate change

Climate change

Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...

, and may have differed in the past, as well as in the future, from that established by historic, modern, documented elevations.

Uses

Meters above sea level is the standard measurement of the elevation or altitude of:

• a geographic location such as a town
  Town
  A town is a human settlement larger than a village but smaller than a city. The size a settlement must be in order to be called a "town" varies considerably in different parts of the world, so that, for example, many American "small towns" seem to British people to be no more than villages, while...
  
  , mountain
  Mountain
  Image:Himalaya_annotated.jpg|thumb|right|The Himalayan mountain range with Mount Everestrect 58 14 160 49 Chomo Lonzorect 200 28 335 52 Makalurect 378 24 566 45 Mount Everestrect 188 581 920 656 Tibetan Plateaurect 250 406 340 427 Rong River...
  
  , or other landmark
  Landmark
  This is a list of landmarks around the world.Landmarks may be split into two categories - natural phenomena and man-made features, like buildings, bridges, statues, public squares and so forth...
  
  
• the elevation of the top of a building
  Building
  In architecture, construction, engineering, real estate development and technology the word building may refer to one of the following:...
  
   or other structure
  Nonbuilding structure
  Nonbuilding structures, also referred to simply as structures, are those not designed for continuous human occupancy. The term is used by architects and structural engineers to distinctly identify structures that are not buildings....
  
  
• or the altitude
  Altitude
  Altitude or height is defined based on the context in which it is used . As a general definition, altitude is a distance measurement, usually in the vertical or "up" direction, between a reference datum and a point or object. The reference datum also often varies according to the context...
  
   of an airplane or other flying object.

How determined

The elevation or altitude in Meters above sea level of any location, object, or point, can be determined in a number of ways. The most common include:

• Global Positioning System
  Global Positioning System
  The Global Positioning System is a space-based global navigation satellite system that provides location and time information in all weather, anywhere on or near the Earth, where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites...
  
   (GPS) which triangulates its location in reference to multiple satellites
• an altimeter
  Altimeter
  An altimeter is an instrument used to measure the altitude of an object above a fixed level. The measurement of altitude is called altimetry, which is related to the term bathymetry, the measurement of depth underwater.-Pressure altimeter:...
  
  , which typically measures atmospheric pressure
  Atmospheric pressure
  Atmospheric pressure is the force per unit area exerted into a surface by the weight of air above that surface in the atmosphere of Earth . In most circumstances atmospheric pressure is closely approximated by the hydrostatic pressure caused by the weight of air above the measurement point...
  
  , which decreases as altitude increases.
• a topographic map
  Topographic map
  A topographic map is a type of map characterized by large-scale detail and quantitative representation of relief, usually using contour lines in modern mapping, but historically using a variety of methods. Traditional definitions require a topographic map to show both natural and man-made features...
  
   or digital elevation model
  Digital elevation model
  A digital elevation model is a digital model or 3-D representation of a terrain's surface — commonly for a planet , moon, or asteroid — created from terrain elevation data....
  
   map, for which elevations have been determined by aerial photography
  Aerial photography
  Aerial photography is the taking of photographs of the ground from an elevated position. The term usually refers to images in which the camera is not supported by a ground-based structure. Cameras may be hand held or mounted, and photographs may be taken by a photographer, triggered remotely or...
  
   or surveying
  Surveying
  See Also: Public Land Survey SystemSurveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, and science of accurately determining the terrestrial or three-dimensional position of points and the distances and angles between them...
  
  .

Other measurement systems

feet above sea level is the most common analogue for meters above sea level in the American measurement system.