Official U.S. government information about the
Global Positioning System (GPS) and related topics
National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation, and Timing
Advisory Board
Gary W. Thompson
Mr. Thompson has worked for the North Carolina Geodetic Survey (NCGS), which is the agency responsible for developing and maintaining North Carolina's official survey base, since 1977. As Chief since 1994, he has been continually modernizing the agency to keep up with advances and spatial data needs in the engineering, surveying, mapping, and scientific fields. From the three original CORS, the North Carolina CORS network has grown to eight-four (84) CORS. In 2004, NCGS started the operation of a statewide Real Time Network that supports multiple professions and industries in North Carolina.
In addition to serving as Chief of NCGS, Mr. Thompson serves as the Deputy Risk Management Chief (NC Emergency Management). He put the agency's modernized technologies, expertise, and quality control to the test while on the research team that conducted Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) aerial mapping research projects with NASA. He incorporated the results of those projects into practice while on the program management team that completed the engineering and surveying project that produced a statewide set of Digital Flood Insurance Rate Maps (DFIRMs) for North Carolina. He served on the program management team that collected statewide elevation data utilizing LiDAR in 2001-2005 and 2014-2017 and the team that is collecting statewide aerial imagery in five phases in 2019-2023.
Mr. Thompson's global navigation satellite system (GNSS) activities include:
- Responsible for the planning, observing, processing and submittal of 500+ Global Positioning System (GPS) geodetic projects to the National Geodetic Survey for the inclusion into the National Spatial Reference System (NSRS)
- Continuing education workshop presenter (50+ workshops since 1994) on GPS related topics
- Team lead for the update of North Carolina Board of Examiners for Engineers and Surveyors board rules (21NCAC 56.1608) related to GPS
- Team lead for the development of the North Carolina Guidelines for GNSS Data Collection (Statewide Global Navigation Satellite System Data Collection and Documentation Standards)
- North Carolina Geodetic Coordinator for the National Geodetic Survey
Mr. Thompson holds a Bachelor in Engineering Technology from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and is a Professional Land Surveyor (PLS) in North Carolina.
