GNP - More Mapping Lesson

More Mapping

Movement of the Earth

  • Earth rotates on its axis every 24 hours which creates day and night
  • Earth revolves around the sun every 12 months which creates the seasons

Latitude and Longitude

The Earth is divided into lines of latitude and longitude that create the global grid (absolute location).

Lines

  • Meridians (Longitude) run north and south
  • Principal meridians are the point of reference in each region
  • Parallels (Latitude) run east and west.
  • The lines measure distances in degrees (in increments of 15 degrees)

Where is 0 degree latitude?

  • The equator is 0 degree latitude.
  • It is an imaginary line that is halfway between the North and the South Pole.

Where is 0 degree longitude?

  • The prime meridian is 0 degrees longitude.
  • It is located in Greenwich, England (GMT)
  • International Date Line (180 degrees)
  • Pass going east, go back a day

  • World Map: Northern Hemisphere highlighted

    Pass going west, go forward a day

Hemispheres

The equator and prime meridian divide the world into four hemispheres: north, south, east, and west.

Time Zones

  • The Earth is divided into 24 time zones, corresponding to 24 hours in a day.
    • Daylight Savings Time – used to create more daylight hours
    • Each zone moves in increments of 15 degrees from Prime Meridian
    • As the Earth rotates, the sun shines in different areas, moving from east to west during the course of a day.
  • Great Circles are formed by the Earth's surface and a plane through the center
    • Includes all Meridians (Longitude) and the Equator (Latitude)

World map of various time zones

Scale

  • Maps are drawn to scale, which means there is a direct connection between a unit of measurement on the map and the actual distance on Earth.
    • Ratio
    • Word
    • Line
  • Small scale shows a large area
  • Large scale shows a small area (1:1)

Map Scale

  • The smaller the right hand number the larger the scale of the map
  • 1:75000 is a more detailed map than 1:600000 which is a small scale map
    • Small-Scale (world)
    • Large-Scale (city)

Geographic Scale

  • Geographic scale is not an exact measurement (compared to map scale) but rather the comparison of places/processes around the world
  • Geographers will decide what type of unit they want to study on a map (for example, city vs. country, this is known as the level of aggregation)

Cognitive (Mental) Maps

  • An image of the way space is organized as determined by an individual's perception, impression, and knowledge of that space.
  • These are subjective and personal.

IMAGES CREATED BY GAVS (Northern Hemisphere World Map - This image was released into the public domain by its author.  Time Zones World Map released into the Public Domain via Wikimedia Commons)