Reading Map Notes
• Latitude and Longitude- Label degree, minute, & seconds on the map
X
• Latitude lines run east to west but measure north to south. • Longitude lines run north to south but measure east to west. • Each degree is divided into 60 minutes and each minute is divided into 60 seconds. This allows us to pinpoints location with greater accuracy. • Write the coordinates for the White House. o 38°54’20”N,77°02’20”W
• Write the coordinates for the letter X. o 38°59’N, 77°06’
• Map Scales and Distance o \
Using the map below, answer the questions about the scale.
• How many miles is it from Cedar Rapids to Grand Rapids? 325miles • South Bend to Fort Wayne? 75miles • How many miles does the entire map cover? 420miles • In what direction is Chicago FROM Milwaukee? SouthEast
Time Zones
• Earth rotates once (360 degrees) on its axis in 24 hours. • 360degrees/ 24 hours = 15 degrees per hour. • Since there are 24 time zones, every 15 degrees longitude is a 1 hour time difference. • The world rotates counterclockwise (west to east), the time zones on the east are ahead of the west. • East increase- time is forwarded to all places to the east • West less- time is backward to all places to the west
• Topographic Maps o The following colors on a topographic map represent- . Green: vegetation . Black: human-made features . Blue: water . Brown: contour lines . White: ice/glaciers . Red: updates/benchmarks
o Contour Interval: Number of vertical feet or meters between two contour lines. o Flow of river: Downhill; opposite the "V" in contour lines. o Slope: steeper when the lines are closer together. o Elevation of a point: Locate closest index contour line. Label the contour lines using the contour interval. Point is at the elevation of the contour line. o Practice:
X C B
A
The elevations are all the same for points A, B, and C, true or false? True What is the contour interval in meters? 20 meters What is the elevation of point X? 760 meters In what direction (N,E,S,W) would you be walking up a hill? NE o Relief: the difference in elevation between two points. o Peak: closed contour lines indicate the top of a hill. o Depression: closed contour lines with marks along the inside show a crater. • Magnetic Declination • A compass has a magnetic needle which floats freely over the center of the compass rose. The needle rotates until one end points to magnetic north and the other end points to magnetic south. • The earth acts as if it has a giant magnet inside! The points on the earth's surface just over the two poles of the 'magnet' are called the magnetic north pole (MN) and the magnetic south pole (MS). And those are the places to which the ends of the compass needle point.
• There is an angle between the black arrow pointing to true north (the rotational north pole) and the red arrow pointing to ‘magnetic north’. That angle is called the magnetic declination. The declination can be towards the east or towards the west.