Satellite geodesy is the measurement of the form and dimensions of the
Earth, the location of objects on its surface and the figure of the Earth's gravity field by means of artificial satellite techniques—
geodesy by means of
artificial satellites. It belongs to the broader field of space geodesy, which also includes such techniques as geodetic
very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) and
lunar laser ranging. Traditional
astronomical geodesy is
not commonly considered a part of satellite geodesy, although there is considerable overlap between the techniques.