Download Mapping Earth*s Surface

Mapping Earth’s Surface
CHAPTER 2
Vocabulary Cards
 On your index cards you need to put the following
words.
 Place the word on one side and the definition on the
other side.
Chapter 1
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Hydrosphere
Hypothesis
Longitude
Atmosphere
Inference
Latitude
Biosphere
Meniscus - The curved
surface of a liquid in a
graduated cylinder.
Always read the bottom
of the curve.
Topographic Map
Exploring Earth’s Surface
 Topography
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Shape of the land
The topography of an area includes the area’s elevation, relief, and
landforms.
 Elevation

Height above sea level
 Relief
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The difference in elevation between the highest and lowest parts of
an area
 Landforms
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A feature of topography, such as a hill or a valley, formed by the
processes that shapes Earth’s surface.
Types of Landforms
 Three main types: plains, mountains, & plateaus.
 Plains
 A landform made up of nearly flat or gently rolling land with
low relief
 Coastal

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Along a seacoast, low elevation, low relief
Interior

Away from the coast, low relief, elevation can vary
 Mountains
 A landform with high elevation and high relief
 Usually occur as part of a mountain range
Mountain range- a group of mountains that are closely related in
shape, structure, and age
 The different mountain ranges in a region make up a mountain
system

 Plateaus
 A landform that has high elevation and a level surface

Rarely perfectly smooth on top
Landform Regions
 A large area of land where the topography is made up
mainly of one type of landform
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The Great Plains
Rocky Mountains
An upland is a region of hilly topography
A lowland is a region of plains with low elevation
A basin is lower than the mountains around it
Models of Earth (Section 2)
 Navigation and Mapping
 Maps and Globes
 Show the shape, size, and position of Earth’s surface features
A map is a flat model of all or part of the surface as seen from
above
 A globe is a sphere that represents earth’s entire surface


Drawn to scale and use symbols to represent topography and
other features on Earth’s surface
Scale relates distance on a map to a distance on Earth’s surface
 Symbols are shapes and pictures that stand for features on Earth’s
surface
 Symbols are listed in a key, or legend

Scale Practice
 Scale and Ratios
 A ratio compares two numbers by division.
 Example: the scale of a map given as a ratio is 1:250,000
 At this scale, the distance between two points on the map
measures 23.5 cm. Find the actual distance.
 1. write the scale as a fraction
 2. write a proportion with d as the distance between
two points
 3. cross multiply
 4. Use T-box to convert units

Problem 2: use the same scale. The points are 4.7 cm apart,
how far apart are they on the ground?
An Earth Reference System
 To find a point on Earth’s surface, you need a
reference system like the grid of squares on a
checkerboard
 Most maps and globes show a grid. Because Earth is
a sphere, the grid curves to cover the entire planet.
 Two of the lines that make up the grid, the equator
and prime meridian, are the baselines for measuring
distances on Earth’s surface
Measuring on a sphere
 Degrees are used to measure distance on the surface
of a sphere
 Each degree is a measure of an angle formed by lines
drawn from the center of Earth to points on the
surface.
 Degrees are further divided into smaller units called
minutes and seconds
Lines in the Globe
 2 imaginary lines are used to divide the globe into
four sections
 The equator is halfway between the North and South
poles

It divides the Earth into the Northern and Southern
Hemispheres
 The prime Meridian makes a half circle from the
North Pole to the South Pole.

It divides the Earth into the Eastern and Western Hemispheres
Locating Points on Earth’s Surface
 The lines of latitude and longitude form a grid that
can be used to find locations anywhere on Earth

Based off of the equator and prime meridian
 Latitude: distance in degrees north or south of the
equator

Defined by the angle it makes with the equator and the center
of the Earth
 Longitude: distance east or west of the prime
meridian

Defined by the angle it makes with the prime meridian and the
center of the Earth
Map Projections
 To show Earth’s curved surface on a flat map,
mapmakers use map projections
 Mercator Projection

All the lines if latitude and longitude appear as straight,
parallel lines that form a rectangle. The North and South poles
cannot be shown
 Equal-Area Projection
 Correctly shows the relative size of Earth’s landmasses, but
shapes near the edges appear stretched and curved
 Conic Projection
 Lines of longitude appear as straight lines while lines of
latitude are curved. Show limited parts of Earth’s surface.
Maps and Computers
 Mapmakers drew maps by hand, then used surveying
which used instruments, then used photographs
taken from airplanes.
 Since the 1970s, computers have revolutionized
mapmaking.
 With computers, mapmakers can store, process, and
display map data electronically
 Computers produce maps using data from many
sources, including satellites and the Global
Positioning System
Sources of Map Data
 Mapping satellites use electronic devices to collect
computer data about the land surface. Pictures of the
surface based in these data are called satellite images
 Today mapmakers can collect data for maps using
the Global Positioning System, or GPS

The Global Positioning System is a method of finding latitude,
longitude, and elevation of points on Earth’s surface using a
network of satellities.
Maps
 Mapmakers use north, south, east, and west to
describe direction
 Mapmakers usually orient their maps to show north
at the top
 It is possible to describe the relationship of one place
to another. One place is north, south, east, or west of
another place. This kind of orientation is known as
relative location.
 Using longitude and latitude, a grid of imaginary
lines, it is possible to identify the absolute location of
any point on the Earth’s surface
Maps
 The relationship between a distance on the map and
the corresponding distance on the ground is known
as scale
 Using the distance scale, it is possible to determine
the actual distance on the ground between two
points shown on a map
 A large-scale map shows a small land area I great
detail
 A small-scale map shows a large land area with less
detail
Topographic Map
 A map showing the surface features of an area
 Use symbols to show the land as if you were looking
down on it from above
 Mapmakers use contour lines to represent elevation,
relief, and slope on a topographic map
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A contour line connects points of equal elevation
The change in elevation from contour line to contour line is the
contour interval
Every fifth contour line is known as the index contour
 Practice: P. 57
 Topographic Lab