utm earth definition
U.S.G.S. Definition. Universal Transverse Mercator Grid System (UTM) The Universal Transverse Mercator Grid System (UTM) provides rectangular coordinates that may be used to indicate locations of points on the surface of the Earth. UTM involves linear measurements, and the unit of measure is the meter. A point is located by specifying a hemispheric indicator, a zone number, an easting value, and a northing value. UTM is designed for world use between 80 degrees south latitude and 84 degrees north latitude.