ABSTRACT
Aruba has an area of 193 km, and is slightly larger than Washington, DC. The Caribbean island is barren, with the capital in Oranjestad. Its highest point is Ceru Jamanota and its lowest point is the Caribbean Sea. Originally a single colony of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, these islands consist of two groups: the Windward Islands – Aruba, Curaçao, Bonaire, and the Leeward Islands – Sint Maartin, Saba, and Sint Eustatius. Geodetic Surveys were conducted by the Dienst van het Kadaster on all the islands comprising the Netherlands West Indies starting in 1951, and each island received a complete classical triangulation network and Transverse Mercator Grid System. The original Astro observation of the origin point was performed in 1949, therefore the earlier date. Thanks go to Mr. John W. Hager, retired from AMS/DMA/NIMA, to Mr. Dave Doyle, Senior Geodesist, United States National Geodetic Survey, and to Mr. Dwingo E. Puriël, Chief of Cadastral Office.
