PROGRAMS AND PLANS - Use of latitude-longitude for well numbers


               UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR
                          GEOLOGICAL SURVEY
                      WATER RESOURCES DIVISION
                         WASHINGTON 25, D. C.

                                             September 24, 1963
                                                      4056 0001

GROUND WATER BRANCH MEMORANDUM NO. 64.8

To:       District Chiefs and Staff Officials - Ground Water

From:     Chief, Ground Water Branch

Subject:  PROGRAMS AND PLANS - Use of latitude-longitude for well
                               numbers

The Ground Water Branch is in the process of devising an IBM
punch-card system for storage of well inventory data.  A meeting
was held in Miami, Florida the week of September 16, 1963, to
discuss the system and to determine what information should be put
on the cards.  Those attending the meeting included Branch
personnel from throughout the country, plus Branch Area Chiefs and
staff officials from the Washington office.  All agreed
unanimously that the system should be adopted and that the data
card should be designed for nationwide use.

A uniform method of well numbering for use by all district and
project offices also was recommended.  This would utilize latitude
and longitude to the nearest second which would describe an
approximately square area about 100 feet on a side.  The punch-
card system allots 15 columns to the well number--7 for longitude,
7 for latitude, and 1 for sequential numbering of wells in a
square.  The numbering system as set up is actually appropriate
for world-wide adoption in that longitude would be reckoned only
in a westerly direction starting with the Greenwich, England
meridian and going from 0 degrees to 360 degrees; latitude
designation would include identification of northern or southern
hemispheres.  For example, a well in Texas located at 102 degrees
15' 35" W and 31 degrees 45' 12" N would have the number
1021535314512N3; a well in New Jersey may have the number
0742510402130N1.  The first 7 numbers indicate degrees, minutes
and seconds of longitude, the next 6 indicate degrees, minutes,
and seconds of latitude; the letter indicates northern hemisphere;
and the last number indicates the scheduling sequence in the 100-
foot square formed by the seconds of latitude and longitude.

The punch-card format is to be completed shortly.  In the
meantime, it is recommended that the numbering system described
above be put into use immediately.



                                   (s) A. H. Lang
                                   for O. M. Hackett

WRD Distribution:  A, B3, S3, FO3, SL