New techniques of measurement make it possible in 1984 to determine positions on the surface of the Earth to a much higher precision than was possible in 1884. If we look beyond the requirements of navigation we can see useful applications of global geodetic positioning to centimetric accuracy for such purposes as the control of mapping and the study of crustal movements. These new techniques depend upon observations of external objects, such as satellites or quasars rather than stars, and they require that the positions of these objects and the orientation of the surface of the Earth are both known with respect to an appropriate external reference system that is ‘fixed’ in space. We need networks of observing stations and analysis centres that monitor the motions of the external objects and the rotation of the Earth. Observations of stars by a transit circle are no longer adequate for this purpose.