BASIC MAP SKILLS

Why do we use maps? How did people find their way before maps?

Let’s start with DIRECTION…. We can always determine direction by watching the sun…

The sun ALWAYS rises in the East.

…and the sun ALWAYS sets in the West

On a map, a compass rose provides directions…

The four main directions are called… ...Cardinal directions. (North, South, East, West)

The directions in the “middle” are called …….intermediate directions. (SE, SW, NE, NW.)

A simple compass rose:

Using maps and GPS, finding someone’s location is very easy today.

… But how could someone who is lost in the middle of the ocean be located?

How did the Titanic communicate its location when it was sinking?

The Earth is HUGE… so let’s break it down and divide it up so we’ll know where a place is located…

We can start by dividing the earth into two equal halves… We can start by dividing the earth into two equal halves…. (a top half and a bottom half.)

The line that divides the world into two halves is like a belt around a fat person’s belly….

This “halving” line is an imaginary line called the equator.

The equator is located at 0 degrees latitude The equator is located at 0 degrees latitude. The equator divides the planet into two halves: the Northern and Southern Hemispheres.

Areas around the equator are the hottest since the equator is the part of the globe closest to the sun.

> Lines of latitude run horizontally. >Also called parallels > Lines of latitude are measured using “degrees.” > Degrees latitude are numbered from 0° to 90° north and south. > Zero degrees is the equator, the imaginary line which divides the planet into two halves

Lines of latitude:

Lines of latitude are also called “parallels,” and again, they run ACROSS a map.

But if we’re going to LOCATE something we can’t have just horizontal lines.

We need lines that INTERSECT lines of latitude so a POINT can be found.

So we have intersecting LONG lines called LINES OF LONGITUDE.

Lines of longitude are also called MERIDIANS.

Throughout much of history, England dominated the seas and led the world in trading and exploration.

Longitude Since the English used to rule the seas, they decided long ago that the “zero” degree line of longitude would go through Greenwich, England.

Prime Meridian Greenwich, England

The Prime Meridian divides the earth into eastern and western hemispheres.

Orange cut through lines of longitude Orange cut through lines of latitude

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M2wL0lKF8ic

There are three very important lines to help us find our way anywhere in the world: The Equator (latitude) 2. The Prime Meridian (longitude) 3. The International Date Line

Human geography … …studies the relationships between the physical environment and the activities of humans.

Shows physical features, such as mountains, rivers, deserts, etc. A physical map: Shows physical features, such as mountains, rivers, deserts, etc.