Course outline

University of Gondar
Faculty of Social Sciences & humanities.
Department of Geography and Environmental Studies (GeES)

Course Title: Cartography (3 Cr. Hours) Academic Year:201/10-2011

Course Number: GeES Semester: 1st
Instructor :Wagaw L

Course objective:

This course is a preparatory discussion on the principal concepts, techniques and method
of the science cartography and map-making process. The intention in this course is to
impart understanding on the importance of mapping as a means of communication and
the steps of mapping involved. Cartography is an “Art of accurately-scaled Maps and
Charts”; concerned with the organization and communication of geographically-related
information in either graphic or digital form. The name by itself encompasses all germane
stages from data acquisition to presentation and use. More of the focuses of the course is
on analogue, than digital, cartography. Therefore, the course assumes to offer you the
fundamental concepts about the construction, interpretation, use and application of paper
maps. The course seeks a continuous follow, so that students are advised to remain
dynamic in lectures and engage in practical lab exercises.

1. Chapter One: Introduction part: Basic Concepts

1.1 What is Map?
1.1.1 Basic definition
1.1.2 Types and uses of Map
1.1.3 Map Language and Marginal information on Maps
1.1.4 Drafting topographic features using symbols and colors
1.2 What is Globe?
1.2.1 Parallels and Meridians
1.2.2 Latitude and Longitude & Graticule
1.2.3 Shape and size
1.2.4 The earth objects to be mapped
1.2.5 Basic Geodesy

2. Chapter Two: Measurements on Maps

2.1 Measurement of distances and areas
2.2 The problem of Map scale
3. Chapter Three: Map Making (projection)
7.1 Globe-Map relationship, Reference and scale factor
7.2 Large scale Maps
7.3 Enlargement and Reduction of Maps
7.4 Coordinate systems
7.5 Basic concepts of Transformation (False Northing and False Easting)

1
 4. Chapter Four: Bearings and Directions on Maps
3.1 Cardinal direction
3.2 Geographic, magnetic and Grid North
3.3 Measurement of direction on Maps
3.4 Azimuth
3.5 Bearing
5. Chapter Five: Position on Maps
4.1 Position by place names
4.2 Position by bearings and Azimuth
4.3 Position by geographic grid
4.4 Position by National grid
6. Chapter Six: Relief on Maps
5.1 Ways of showing relief on Maps
5.2 Contours and their properties
5.3 Ways of showing altitude on contour Maps (Indexing)
5.4 Drawing of contours
7. Chapter Seven: Slopes and Gradients on Contour Maps
6.1 Slopes & Gradients
6.2 The drawing of sections and profiles
6.3 Intervisibility

Evaluation:
Attendance and Assignments 30%
Final Exam 70%
Attendance is mandatory
References:
Birch, T.W. 1949. Maps: Topographical and Statistical, Oxford Clarendon Press.
Bygott, John 1957 An introduction to Map Work and Practical Geography, 6th ed.,
University Press Ltd., London.
Campbell, John 1991 Map use and Analysis, Wm. G. grown Publishers.
Garnett, Alice 1955 The Geographical Interpretation of Topographical Maps, George
G. Harp & Co.Ltd., London.
Jennis, J.H. 1973 AnElementary Map Interpretation, Ungman, London.
Maling, A.H. 1973 Coordinate Systems and Map Projections, Ungman, London.
Mankhouse, F.J.1973 Maps and Diagrams, Methene Co., London.
Raisz, Erwin 1941 General Cartography (2nd ed.), McGraw Hill Book Company,
London.
Robinson, Arthus H Elements of Cartography (4th, 5th, 6th, ed.), John Willy and Sons.
Steers, J.A. 1956 An Introduction to the Study of Map Projections, University of
London.
Campbell, John 1998 Map Use and Analysis, Chapter 5, pp 86-89.
Tyner, J. (1992) Introduction to Thematic Cartography, Chapter 3, pp 43-66.

2
What is Map? It is a reduced model of the earth

 Cartography is Concerned with reducing the spatial characteristics of a large area, a

portion or all of the earth – and putting it in a map to make it observable
 Cartography is “the conveying of spatial information by means of maps” or
“The science, technology and art of map-making”
 Map is neatly drawn bird’s eye view of the earth’s surface – places spatial data i.e.
data about objects or phenomena for which the location on the earth is known, in
their correct relationships to one another
 A map is a spatial information system that gives the answers to many questions
concerning the area depicted: the distance between points, the positions of points in
respect of each other, the size of areas and nature of the distribution patterns
 It is a picture of a place that is usually drawn to scale on a flat surface
 It is used as a tool to record and store, retrieve spatial data
 It is, also, used for making measurement, analysis and interpretation of spatial
patterns of distributions of both cultural (human or man-made) and natural features
 A map is an abstract representation and portrayal of the reality (physical features of
a portion of the Earth's surface) by graphically displaying on a planar surface
Maps display signs, symbols, and spatial relationships among features – Or
represent an abstract characteristics such as political or administrative boundaries,
population density, mean annual precipitation, or climate which are not visible in the
landscape
 Is a pictorial representation of earth’s features on a paper or sheet – Maps are drawn
using graphic symbols to depict features on the Earth's surface
 Most usually, a Map is a two-dimensional, geometrically accurate representation of
a three-dimensional space –
 It is a two-dimensional (2-D) representation (Eg: paper, tracing sheet, cloths …) of
three-dimensional (3-D) earth features using proper symbols and colors.
 A well-designed map should include:

 Clarity: Suppose, to produce an effective Geomorphological map (Eg.

an effect of glaciation on a landscape), the map-maker need to deeply
understand about that geomorphologic action
 Order: Sequenced as Title, overall pattern, map legend, peripheral
data
 Balance: refers to the overall layout of the map elements (title, legend,
scale, north arrow or Graticule to indicated orientation, inset maps and
border)
 Visual Contrast: The clarity of the map derives in part from clear
visual contrast between symbols used to represent different features –
It gives the eye a focal point and makes the map more
interesting/attract map-reader’s attention A map that contains only
lines of the same color and weight is unlikely to attract the map
3
 reader's attention Visual contrast can be based on any of the graphic
variables (shape, size, color, value/intensity, pattern/texture, direction)
 Unity and Harmony: The map shouldn’t be too complex, but even if
it represents a complex spatial patterns, the map-reader must
understand it at a glance – use related/consistent symbols, colors and
patterns
 Visual Hierarchy: According to the purpose of the map, unnecessary
information should be eliminated entirely – Information that is
relevant to the purpose of the map should be symbolized in a way that
makes more important information visually more prominent

Tasks of cartography

Map compilation-data collection, data Processing, symbolization, standardization,

assembling, and categorization to make it manageable.

Map production (construction)-it could be mechanical or computerization

Map reproduction-which is editing, printing, processing, marketing & distribution.

Map revision-map revision is the process of updating the already existing ma depending
on change of the place, technology, budget i.e. it varies from place to place

At times people were consider cartography as mechanical drawing & as part of

mathematical geography. Of course, cartography is a multi disciplinary subject which
serves as a bridge b/n different discipline & need the contribution of each. It is an
auxiliary subject.

Art Vs Cartography

It is well known that the ultimate aim of cartography is representing part/all parts of the
earth & other celestial body on graphic scale. This is the artistic nature of cartography

But to what extent cartography is an art is difficult to answer it .It is because of the fact
that there are cartographers with artistic knowledge and there are also cartographers with
out artistic skill.

Artists have freedom to come up with piece of workBut cartographer its own aim,
purpose, area, standardization of symbols, e.t.c. A cartographer need to have background
knowledge of geography especially location& spatial distribution of features &know hw
to represent real objects on the earth onto map.

Cartography as a science of human communication

Cartography has

4
-articulacy nature—verbal, words of speech

-literacy—reading

-Numeric—numbers on map can indicate –altitude, number of people, ----

-Graphic-visual

-Body language—

Human communication involves 5 stages

SourcetransmitterChannelReceiverDestination

Noises are errors that affect communication/disturbances. These errors arise due to poor
drawing, over crowding situation, & complexity & simplicity of the information the map
carries.

Types of Maps:

 Cadastral Maps:

 Drawn on a large scale

 Show the boundaries of every field and plot of land or a particular area
– The map that indicates the legal boundaries and ownership of the
property

 Thematic Map:
 Concentrates on the distribution of a single attribute or the relationship
among several themes (E.g. Soil type, vegetation, Population, average
annual income, precipitation….)
 A map that displays the spatial distribution of an attribute that relates
to a single topic, theme, or subject of discourse
 This includes Univariate or single variable maps (show the spatial
distribution of a single variable such as precipitation, population or
crop yields), Special purpose maps (designed for use by skilled users
within a discipline such as geological maps, hydrological maps or for
some specific actions like electoral map of elections) and Derived
maps (are based on statistical data E.g. Maps which represent
proportion maps, rate maps, mean/average maps or density maps)
 The dissymmetric map is a method of thematic mapping, which uses
areal symbols to spatially classify volumetric data – Cartographers use
dissymmetric mapping for population density

 Topographic Maps:
5
  Drawn on a large scale
 Are survey maps, or general reference maps – A map depicting
terrain/relief showing ground elevation, usually through either contour
lines or spot elevations
 Represents the horizontal (Relative location) and vertical (elevaton)
positions of the features represented – It is a graphic representation
delineating natural and man-made features of an area or region in a
way that shows their relative positions and elevations
 Show details of both physical and man-made features (hills, forests,
canals, wells, rail roads, bridges, churches, mosque etc…)

 Atlas Maps:
 Provide general information of physical, climatic and economic
conditions of a particular place
 Useful for educational purpose

 Wall Maps:
 Boldly drawn for better visibility in a classroom of conference hall.
 Are meant for display
 Show various physical and man-made features.
 Supply information about relief, climate, vegetation, population, town,
cities etc…
 Choropleth Map:
 Maps showing variation…how the amount of a phenomenon varies
from one area to another area (Eg. Population densities of countries)
 Isarithmic (Isoline) Maps:
 Isolines are lines connecting points having equal value
 Isolines are referred to as isometric lines if the data are based on
sample points from a continuous surface or as isoplethic lines when
the data are based on arbitrary points such as the centre points of
administrative units used for data collection purposes
 Isotherms connect points having equal temperatures, Isobars connect
points having equal barometric pressures, Isohyets connect points
having equal amounts of rainfall, Isobaths connect points having equal
depth below sea level

 Bathymetrical Maps:
 Show the depth of seas and oceans

Uses of Maps:

6
 Broadly speaking, Visualization, Navigation, Codification and Measurement
are the basic functions of a map

 Maps represent and portray a part or whole of the earth’s surface on a

reduced scale Visualization
 Helps to find out the way from one place to another – aids to orientation or
navigation (road maps, bus route maps, tourist maps, hydrographic charts
and aeronautical charts)– it indicates direction to travelers especially @
unfamiliar areas
 Physical planning purpose – A map inventories the present situation,
defines the development processes and contains propositions for a future
situation – E.g. future land use Measurement
 Management tasks or monitoring – generally large scale maps –Eg.
Management and maintenance of roads, railways, forests,
canals….Measurement
 Codification – showing legal situation as regards to property rights –
cadastral maps are produced for codifying land ownership – records
political boundaries
 Maps may also be subdivided according to themes: show physical
features, or weather/climate map, vegetation map, population map,
geological map, language map…different maps serving different themes
Visualization and Measurement
 The common among all the maps – show position of places and things in
relation to the earth Absolute location and in relation to one another
(Relative location) – maps are used to record, present and analyze the
location and distribution of points, lines or objects Visualization

 Surveying:
o Is the process of determining the location, form and boundaries of a
piece of land by measuring its bounds and features
o The data collected in a survey provide the essential source (database)
from which maps are prepared

 Engineering:
o Engineering field (particularly Civil Engineering) relies heavily on
the information provided in maps.
o Surface topography is important in engineering projects such as those
involved in construction of buildings, bridges, roads, dams, tunnels
etc. ( i.e. maps give the basic idea and location where these
construction works to be carried out

 Hydrology:

7
 o Maps related to hydrograph supplies information pertaining to harbors,
rivers, and other water bodies
 Geodesy:
o Geodesy is a branch of science and mathematics that determines the
exact position of figures, points and areas along with the curvature of
the earth surface

 Geological:
o Give information about the geological features like rock type,
waterways and structures etc…

 Forestry:
o Give the information related to forest cover and type in a particular
area
 Urban Planning:
o Maps Pertaining to detailed information of city can be used for various
planning purposes – like location for new colonies, construction of
roads, power line, waterline, flyovers, drainage etc…
 Natural Resource Analysis:

o Qualitative and quantitative analysis of natural resources (Eg. Fertility

analysis, access to water… can be done by using information from
maps like types of land, water, forest, minerals etc.
o These information are very useful in estimation and optimal utilization
of natural resources in any area

Marginal Information on Maps

 Maps give detailed information of an area through symbols and colors

 There are some basic formats that every map contains, which make maps
to look similar to each other and only theme of the map changes
 These information are:

 Title:
 All map should contain a suitable title
 Title
 identifies the map
 convey meaning and purpose for creation of the map

 The date of compilation:

 Things change with time, so the map reader must know the date of the map
under review

8
 Legend:

 Each map or each series of maps have their own symbols or colors for
different objects
 These symbols or colors are described in the form of small boxes containing
the same symbol and description or meaning of that symbol/color usually at
the bottom right part of the map
 The legend communicates the meaning of the symbols on a map

 Scale:

 The scale is the ratio between the distance of any two points on the map and
the distance representing the same two points on the ground
 The scale can be represented in either of the three ways:
 Word statement
 Representative Fraction
 Graphical Scale

 Word statement (verbal Scale):

1. Expressed in a phrase such as “Ten centimeters to one

kilometer” which means that 10cm on particular map is
equivalent to 1 km on the ground)
2. It is more appropriate to use word statement that indicates
the map is at a scale of 10, 100, 1000, etc… (E.g. Ten
centimeters to one kilometer —
Map scale= 10 cm to 1 km)

 Scale Ratio (R F ):

o expressed as the ratio between two distances :

 The distance between two points as measured on the map

 The actual distance between the same two points as measured
on the earth’s surface
 This ratio is always presented with the map units listed first

o E.g. Distance between two points on the map is 10cm and the distance
between equivalent points on the earth is 1km (100,000cm). Then the
ratio is 10:100,000 –which is reduced to 1:10,000 for listing on map.
o Scale ratios are not expressed in any specific units of measurements
(Are unit less) – i.e. both sides of the ratio must be specified in the
same units
o E.g. 1: 10,000 means 1cm on map represents 10,000 cm on the ground

9
 o Frequently the scale ratio is written as a fraction called representative
fraction – Eg. 1: 10,000 can be written as 1/10,000

 Graphical Scale:

o Map scales also are represented in graphic form --- dividing the line in
to units, each of which represents, at map scale, the actual distance
between two points on the earth
o These units generally are chosen to be easily usable, rounded numbers,
such as tens or hundreds of kilometers, miles, miles, meters or feet
o Often, part of the scale is subdivided into fractional units to aid in
measuring distance more precisely
o Is a usually used scale, because the map may shrink with time and the
scale shrinks accordingly

Km 10 8 6 4 2 0 10 20 30
40

 Map Index Number:

 Topographical maps need a unique identification number shown in the lower

left or upper right part of the map
 This number is used to find the adjoining sheets if required

 Coordinate System:

 Every map is part of a particular portion of the earth, so it contains intersection

of latitudes and longitudes
 The values of latitudes and longitudes are shown in the fore corners of the map
at intersection points of latitude and longitude

 North Arrow:

 Every map should have a north arrow pointing towards the north

 So, having the above marginal information on maps, it looks something like
below:

10
 350 35015’

8015’ Title 8015’

1:50000

8000’ 8000’

350
35 15’
0

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9km

Index No
Legend
A B C
D E F
G H I

Hfkdfd;fdfpdofd

fd[fdforierwe][e
A
Map Language

 To convey its message in a summarized form, a map uses its own language
expressed with the help of its conventional symbols and colors
 A map symbol (language) is a diagram, sign, letter or abbreviation which by
convention or reference to key (legend) is understood to represent a specific
feature of object
 Each map or each series of maps have their won symbols, which are
explained in key or legend
 Whenever you are reading a map, consult the legend carefully so that you can
understand the complete story told by the map

 If you want to be an author of your map, you are, of course, allowed to use
your own symbols as on as you give their meaning in a key in the margin of
the map. When selecting the symbols for your map, it should satisfy the
following requirements:

11
  Uniformity – should be uniform in the entire map
 Comprehensibility – should be comprehensive,
complete with maximum possible information
 Legibility – clear on the map
 Sufficient preciseness – in terms of location, space
occupied etc

Groups of symbols:

 Symbols for water features – color Blue – Seas, lakes, rivers, water bodies,
reservoirs, canals etc …
 Symbols for relief features – color Brown and Black – contours, Hatchers, spot
height etc…
 Symbols for vegetations – color Green – forests, woodland, bushes, plantations
etc …
 Symbols for communication features:
 Railways – Black color – (single track, multiple track,
normal or narrow gauge)
 Roads – Red color – (all weather, hard surface, gravel or
loose surface, cart track)
 Aerial ropeways, ferry routs, power line, telephone line etc
…-- Black color
 Settlements – Red or pink color – different style and lettering – cities, towns,
developed areas etc …
 Miscellaneous symbols – Black or Brown color – administrative boundaries –
international, state, district etc … Buildings like church, mosque, school, post
office etc… Enterprises like mills, quarries, mines etc…

 You should note that most of these symbols are pictograms

 The variety of symbols used in different parts of the world is enormous. The
main duty of a student can only be to make himself familiar with the symbols
those are used in his country
 When you face a map with unfamiliar symbol, find the meaning of the
symbol in the legend of the map
 Many symbols for common features have already become international… Eg.
Bridges, churches, mosques, schools, railways etc, and there is a trend to
create a really uniform international map language
 The number of symbols used on a single map depend on:
 Scale of the map
 The character of the area mapped (densely or sparsely
populated)

Map Classification

12
  There are many kinds of maps – Some maps show how far one village is from
another village, while another map would emphasize physical features like
mountains and rivers
 Some maps show weather and climate to the following major groups
 Classification of maps is based upon:

 Scale of the Map

 Large-scale Map:
o When a map of a given size covers a relatively small area of the
earth’s surface, it is called a Large-scale Map
o Large-scale map can include a considerable amount of information
o Maps scaled => 1:50,000 / 1:10,000 / 1:5,000 / 1:25,000 are
considered as Large-scale maps
o Convey more information

 Small-scale Map:

o If the map of the same size covers a large area of the earth’s
surface, relatively little detail can be included and the map is called
Small-scale map
o Scale => 1:500,000 / 1:1,000,000
o Convey less information

 Medium-scale Map:

o The scale lies between large and small scale i.e. greater than
1:50,000 but less than 1:500,000 are considered as medium-scale
o Convey intermediate information

 The contents of the Map

 General geographical maps  topographic map – gives
information about the topography of an area
 Topical maps or Thematic maps  information about a particular
theme – soil map, forest map, wasteland map, geology map etc …

 The purpose of the Map

 Maps of scientific research
 Maps of educational reference
 Navigational map
 Tourist map

13
  Spatial (space) coverage (Aerial extent)
 World map
 Map of continents
 Map of oceans
 Regional map
 Zonal map
 Country, district maps etc…

 The main difference between these different classes of maps is not only based
upon the difference in scale but also upon the uses you can put on maps
 The smaller the scale the less detailed the maps and vice versa
 Another basic difference between maps drawn in different scale is the effect
that the scale has on the sizes of the maps covering the whole country when it
is drawn in different scale
 Based on the above expression, you should finally remember the important
fact that a mapmaker always selects the scale for the map so that it fits the
purpose of the map
 Because of the detailed information that can be shown on large and medium
scale maps, they are usually called topographical maps

Topos =Place

Topography

Graphia=Style of drawing

 Topographic maps – are general maps which show a selection of natural and
man-made features of the landscape within one framework, which results
from a systematic survey of the area shown on the map
 Topical or Thematic maps – other large or medium scaled maps that deal
with only one aspect or theme of the area such as relief, soil, rock type, land
use, vegetation etc… are called topical or thematic maps

Map Generalization (Cartographic Abstraction)

 Every map has to be generalized or simplified – i.e. maps cannot show each and
every detail of the real world they represent
14
 The smaller the scale of the map, the greater the amount of generalization is
required because the amount of space available to show any given feature becomes
less
 The following map characteristics can be used for generalization:
Selection:
 One means of generalization is the selection of and retention
of more important features in the area and the elimination of
less important ones – no modification but choice
 E.g. If a series of lakes is shown, some of the smaller lakes in
the group can be eliminated as the scale reduces

Small scale

Large scale

Simplification:
 A second technique of generalization is the simplification of
the features retained on the map – eliminate unwanted detail

Large scale Small scale

E.g. district boundary show more detailed information in large

scale map compared to small scale map

15
 Combination:
 Another step of generalization is combination of two or more
similar features into a single symbol.
 E.g. If there are to many small wooded areas in a region, two
or more of small areas of them can be grouped to single
wooded area

Small scale

Large scale

Location shift and size exaggeration:

 The generalization of particular map may also require shift of
location of a particular feature to highlight them and gain
necessary space
 Sometimes size of a feature also require to be
emphasized/exaggerated than actual size to have legibility,
visibility on the map

History of cartography
As to the history of cartography no one knows the exact time when it was started. What
we know is that, its history is as old as geography, Art, astronomy---
The history of cartography could be dividing
1. Primitive (Ancient) prior to 4th c A.D
2. Middle (medieval) 4-16thc A.D
3. Modern16thc on words

16
A. Ancient (Primitive) cartography

During ancient times people used to express their idea, experience est. through
pictures, charts, drawings which we call it “rough sketch maps” these maps were used
by ancient people for the purpose of hunting & gathering.(what is found where)

What are the characteristics of ancient maps?

-they carry only localized information
-they are with out scale –all of which were drown on soft ground, clay tablets, stone,
bones, on wall of caves,& bronze
What are those ancient areas from where we can find ancient sketch maps?

These are Egypt, Mesopotamia, and Babylon’s. Asia,(India & China ) central
America-the Incas

B. Greek Cartography –the Greeks were the first or pioneer in education, science
and technology. This is because they are close to Babylon. Among the Greek scholars
the following could be mentioned
What are the contributions of the Greek cartographer for the development of
cartography?
1. Anaximander –was who first formed the world map
2. Hicataetus-wrote the first geo.book He believed that the earth as a circular plain or
disc

3 Herodotus-was great Greek traveler who rejected that the earth was not circular
plain or disc. He also circum navigated Africa
4. Aristotle-(384-322) B.C-who believed the earth is spherical shape.
5. Eratosthenus-the man who coined the word “Geography” and attempted to measure
the circumference of the earth. 24662 mile (39459.2km), he also tried to present the
spherical shape of the earth on plain surface
6. Hippartus-he compiled the earlier work of Greek scholars
7. Ptolomey-(90-160) AD. It was at his time that the development of geo. &
cartography reached at its maximum stage. This man comes up with 8 volumes of
geographic books. Emphasizing on the principle of mathematical cartography and
methods of representing a spherical surface on a plain surface –place names including
their latitude & longitude –location. He was the first man who showed Ethiopia on
world map. He was the father of mathematical& cartographic geo.
His ideas were dominant until the 15th c (Dark Age). His problem was, miscalculated
the circumference of the earth to the extent 10=90.4km in contrast to the Eratosthenes
99.6km. All these mistakes were carried (corrected) by modern cartographer

C. The Roman Cartography

17
What is Globe? Is the best model of the earth
On a globe, features from the earth’s surface – their shape, the area they occupy
and the distance and direction between them – are correctly shown

The earth is spherical in shape

Nearly 75% of the earth surface is occupied by water in the form of oceans,
rivers, lakes, ponds, etc…..
The remaining 25% of its surface is occupied by lands in the form of
mountains, forests, grasslands, marshes, plateau etc…
These together constitute the earth
The earth rotates on its axis with respect to pole in westward direction to get day
and night on the earth
It also revolves around the sun in a elliptical orbit to get different seasons and months
Depending upon the amount of sunlight received, one complete revolution leads to
one year
There are seven continents on the earth – Asia, Africa, Australia, Europe, North
America, South America and Antarctica
The oceans are Arctic, Pacific, Atlantic, Indian etc…

900 North pole

North hemisphere

00 Equators

South hemisphere

900 South Pole

To describe the exact location of a particular point on the sphere, we need to establish
a reference system called the Grid System which consists of a set of imaginary
lines drawn across the face of the earth – The key reference points are the North
and South Poles and the Equator (given by nature) and the prime meridian
(agreed upon by cartographers)
Equator:
Is imaginary line drawn on the earth in East-west direction bisecting it into two equal
parts
It is the line that encircles the globe halfway between the poles, perpendicular to the axis

18
The upper part is called North hemisphere – and the lower part is called South
hemisphere
The Equator is at 00

Poles:
The North and South most part of the earth are called poles
The North and South poles are the end points of the axis about which the earth spins
The poles are at 900 N & S – and the distance between the two poles is 180 degrees,
because a full circle contains 360 degrees

Parallels and Meridians (Geographical Coordinates)

Parallels:
Are Imaginary lines drawn and run East-West direction, parallel to the equator and
parallel to one another at right angles to the meridians
These are numbered in degrees North and South from the equator, which is given a value
00 with the maximum value 900 assigned to each pole – Parallels increasingly become
smaller and smaller (so that Small Circle) closer towards the pole
On the globe, the 60th parallel (600) is only half as long as the equator)
Parallels are used to define locations of points in the North-South direction – in terms of
distance measured as an angle from the earth’s center (Equator)
These are also called Lines of Latitudes – defined as the measure of distance in degree
North and South of the equator – or the angular distance from the equator
The polar circumference of the earth (assume a full circle) is 24,899 miles (app. 40,000
kms … 1km=0.6214 miles if 1 mile = 1.61 kms) – Thus, the distance between each
degree of latitude 24,899 miles/360 = app. 69 miles or 40,000/360 = app. 111 kms
But, even though we assume, the earth is not a perfect circle, has a slight flattening near
poles (see Geodesy part), therefore all degrees of latitude are not equally long i.e.
degrees of latitude are slightly longer near poles ( 111.70 km; 69.41 mi) than near the
equator (110.56km; 68.70 mi)
To record the latitude of a place in a more precise way degrees are subdivided into 60
Minutes (‘) and each Minutes also into 60 second (“), exactly like an hour of time
1 minute of latitude is about 1.85 kms (1.15 mi) and one second of latitude about 31
meters (101 ft…1ft=0.000189mi)

Imaginary line drawn parallel to equator at 23 ½ 0 north is called Tropic of Cancer and
line drawn 23 ½ 0 south is called Tropic of Capricorn.

19
 900
600
300
Parallels
00

300

600
900

Great Circle:
Which is the Equator, located midway between the poles
Is the line defined by the intersection of the plane with the earth’s surface, by visualizing
a plane passing through the center of the earth
The Arc of the Great Circle is the shortest distance between two points
Each half of a great circle (Arc of a Great Circle) that joins the poles is defined as
meridians
A Small Circle is created when a plane passing through the earth divide into two unequal
portions
Lines of Latitude or Parallels, placed parallel to the Great Circle (Equator) are series of
small circles
Small
Circle
Axis

Parallels

Equator (Great Circle)

Pole
Meridians:
Are each half of a Great Circle (Arc of the Great circle) that pass through and join the
poles @ right angles to the parallels

20
Imaginary lines drawn in North-South direction, since the distance North or South of the
Equator is not enough to locate a point in space
Meridians are farthest apart @ the Equator and come closer and closer together as
latitude increases and totally converge @ the North and South poles
Unlike parallels of latitude, all meridians are of the same length
Since all the meridians are identical, one must be selected as a starting point called Prime
meridian – The Prime Meridian is an arbitrary line and the starting point for East-West
measurement
It could have been assigned to any North/South line which circles the globe
Most maps use the Greenwich England as the Prime Meridian – which is an imaginary
line passing through the Royal Observatory @ Greenwich – selected as 00 longitude
The Prime Meridian given a value of 00and remaining meridians are numbered in degrees
east or west of the prime meridian
This gives the values of Longitudes – defined as the angular distance East or West of a
prime meridian and changes in East-West direction
East-West measurements range from00 to 1800 from meridian to 180th meridian in each
direction on the opposite side of the Prime Meridian
Like parallels of latitude, degrees of longitude can be subdivided into minutes and
seconds – However, distance between adjacent degrees of longitude decreases away from
the equator because the meridians converge @ poles
Time depends on longitude – The earth, which makes a complete 3600 rotation once 24
hours, is divided into 24 time zones roughly centered on meridians at 150 interval –
Greenwich Mean Time (GMT) is the time at the Prime Meridian

21
 90 0
Graticules: The pattern of Meridians and Parallels on the earth’s surface

Plane

Great Circle

Meridian

900 00 Equator

Parallels Graticules

aticules:

 The imaginary network of the lines of Meridians and Parallels upon

which the map is drawn

Characteristics of Graticules :
 The Arc of the Great Circle is the shortest distance between two
points
 Meridians are arcs of the great circle that meet @ the poles
 The Equator is a Great circle, located midway between the poles –
Parallels (Lines of Latitude) are concentric small circles that are
parallel to the equator

22
  Parallels are true East-West lines
 Parallels are equally spaced between the equator and poles
 Parallels are always parallel to one another, so that any two
parallels are always the same distance apart
 Meridians are spaced farthest apart on the equator and
converge to a single point at the poles
 Parallels and Meridians cross one another at right angles

The Earth Objects to be mapped

 Natural features – forest, mountain, hills, rivers, grassland, relief
features, wasteland, soil, rock, water bodies etc …
 Cultural features or man-made feature – features created by man Eg.
Roads, rail, bridges, canals, buildings/dams etc…

Basic Geodesy – Shape and Size of the Earth

Spherical Earth:
The basic shape of the earth is spherical but somewhat flattened at poles
But, a more detailed examination reveals that the earth’s shape is not exactly spherical

Flattened @ poles

Geoidal Surface (Geoids – meaning Earth-like):

Reveals that the earth’s shape and size is not a regular ellipsoid, but somewhat irregular
The precise shape of the earth is represented by a figure called Geoid, which is defined as
a theoretical surface on which the potential of the gravitational force of the earth is
perpendicular and equal at all points to its strength at mean sea level
If the earth were of same geological composition and devoid of mountain ranges, ocean
basins, and other vertical irregularities, the Geoid surface would match the ellipsoid
exactly
The earth’s surface undulates, and thus there is variation in gravity Vertical distance
(From deepest part of the ocean to the highest mountain peak of the earth) = 19, 880

23
meters But the diameter of the earth = 12, 756,370 meters, excluding the Vertical
distance
The Geoid is three-dimensional shape and corresponds approximately with the Mean Sea
Level (MSL)

This surface of the earth is not suitable for mathematical calculations

Earth Surface
(Irregular)

Geoid Surface
(MSL)

Ellipsoidal Surface (Ellipsoid):

Since Geoid is not suited for mathematical computations, an ellipse that best fits the
The earth revolves easterly on its axis this rotation generates centrifugal force, which
causes the earth to bulge slightly @ the middle and to flatten slightly @ the poles
resulting in a shape called Ellipsoid
An Ellipsoid has a slightly greater radius @ right angles to the axis of rotation and
slightly smaller radius along the axis This is what we call Polar Flattening
The flattening ratio is not so great (averaged to be 1/298), this means that the earth is so
close to the true Spherical shape that results from a full circle
i.e. If we sliced the earth from pole to pole through its center, we would see slightly
elliptical cross section
The size and shape of the ellipse is specified by its semi-major and semi-minor axes and
its flattening is designated by the letter ‘f’
It is the difference between the lengths of the semi-major and semi-minor axis divided by
the length of the semi-major axis

24
 a Semi-minor Axis

Semi-major Axis

Semi-major
Axis

Equatorial Polar radius

radius

Table1: Official Ellipsoids

Radius (a) in Radius (a) in Polar

Name meter meter flattening

WGS 84 6,378,137.0 6,356,752.3 1/298.26

GRS 80 6.378,137.0 6,356,752.3 1/298.26
WGS 72 6,378,135.0 6,356,750.5 1/298.26
Australian 6,378,160.0 6,356,774.7 1/298.25
Krasovskiy 6,378,245.0 6,356,863.0 1/298.30
Hayford 1909 6,378,388.0 6,356,911.9 1/297.00
(International)
Clarke 1880 6,378,249.1 6,356,514.9 1/293.46
Clarke 1866 6,378,206.4 6,356,583.8 1/294.98
Bessel 1841 6,377,397.2 6,356,079.0 1/299.15
Airy 1830 6,377,563.4 6,356,256.9 1/299.32
Everest 1830 6,377,276.3 6,356,075.4 1/300.80

25
 f=0 f=1/8

f=1/3.5

f=1/2

The difference between Spheroid and Geoid is small when mapping large area; therefore
spherical shape of the earth is taken for most of the mapping purposes E.g. Atlas Map
etc…
Spherical shape is the reference surface for small-scale maps of countries, continents and
large area
But, with detailed large-scale maps of small areas (such as Topographic maps), the
difference between locations on the spherical and ellipsoidal approximations is
significant, therefore Ellipsoid is used as reference surface of these large-scale maps
Geoid Surface is used for Geodetic Control Survey (for ground surveyed horizontal and
vertical positions)
Ellipsoid surface is considered for Topographic Mapping
Location
For any mapping, position of point on the earth is required
Positioning is done with reference to the imaginary lines drawn in East-West and North-
South direction on the earth surface
 Direction
The determination of direction requires a frame of reference
A baseline must be established first and direction is expressed in terms of angular
measurement in relation to baseline
The baseline usually used for direction finding is North-South line that passes through the
viewer’s position and establishes north
Because more than one north reference can be established, the viewer must decide which
one to be used:
A reference is required to determine the direction
First a baseline is established
Direction is expressed in terms of angular measurement with respect to baseline
Baseline is usually North-South line to establish north

26
More than one north can be established

True North:
Direction towards the North pole
Magnetic North:
A north arrow of magnetic compass needle points towards the north magnetic pole
Grid North:
Any map may have more specialized grids such as UTM (Universal Transverse
Marketer) and SPC (Slate Plane Coordinate Systems) superimposed on it
The Grids North is the direction of north trending lines of such grids

27
UNIT TWO

Measurements on Maps
A variety of information about the earth, and about the features distributed on its surface,
is obtained by direct measurements from maps
Two measurements of primary importance:
The distance between locations
The area of a region

Measurement of distance
Map distance measurement assume that one of the two conditions is met so that the
measurements taken are valid
First condition is that the distances are short so that the earth’s curvature is not an
important factor
The second is that the map is on equidistant projection and the measurements are taken
along appropriate
For E.g. it is not appropriate to directly measure the distance between New York and
London. However, to measure the distance between the downtown and suburbs of a city
is valid
Before starting any measurement on map, it is advisable (necessary) to consider the
following three points
If you are asked to measure a distance between two points A and B, it is the real distance
(ground distance) that is wanted not distance on the map
Therefore, don’t give answer like this, “the distance from A to B is 30 cm”
To obtain the real answer it is required to change the distance obtained through
measurement on map (map distance) to real distance (ground distance) with the help of
scale of the map
Distance on map is measured in centimeters but distance on field is given in kilometers
Therefore it is meaningless to say that, “the distance from Addis Ababa to Asmara by
road is 10740000 cm=1074 km
All distance obtained through measurements on maps called map distance don’t consider
the ups and downs on the field
In the real world the routes between locations almost always involve ups and downs
The actual surface distance between two objects, therefore is longer than the map
distance, except in exceptional case where ground surface is perfectly flat
Assuming that there is relatively uniform slope between two points, the calculation of the
distance correction for elevation involves simple application of the Pythagorean Theorem

Suppose two points A and B have map distance of 30 cm and elevation is 100m and that
of is 200m. The scale of the map is 1:50,000
Then map distance=cm
Scale 1cm=0.5 km

28
Ground distance= 30 x 0.5= 15 km

B=200m

Surface Distance
Height

A=100m
Ground Distance
Now Height difference between A and B is 200m-100m=100m
The field or surface distance= (1500)2 + (100)2=
In distance measurement exercise, you will be asked to find three types of distance

Opisometer – is an instrument having route measuring wheel

The wheel is allowed to move along the route whose distance is required
The length traversed by the wheel is indicated on the instrument
The total length recorded by the instrument is converted into ground distance
Accurate measurements along bending lines like roads are possible only on large-scale
map
On small and medium scale maps, roads are shown in such a generalized way that all
small bends of roads are eliminated
In such case accurate road distance measurement is not possible
Measurement of Areas
The normal scale of a map usually is defined in linear dimensions
The aerial scale of a map in contrast is defined in aerial units
The scale of a map is sometimes used to describe the relationship between the area of a
feature plotted on a map and area of the same feature on earth’s surface
The ratio between area of a region on a map and the area of the same region on the earth
is the square of map’s linear scale
Arial scale= (linear scale) 2
For E.g. if the scale is 1:50,000
Linear scale is 1 cm to 0.5 km
Arial scale = (0.5km) 2 =0.25 km2
Areas of Regular shapes
Regular shapes include square, rectangles, triangles, trapezoid, etc…
From geometry, areas of regular shapes can be calculated by knowing the necessary
parameters like base, height, length, radius etc…
These parameters are obtained through measurements on maps

29
 Using scale of the map, the map area is converted to ground area

Square Rectangle Triangle

Circle Trapezium

 Area of Square = (side)2

 Area of circle = Πr2
 Area of Rectangle = Length x Breadth
 Area of Triangle = ½ x base x height
 Area of Trapezoid = ½ (side1 + side2) x height etc…

Areas of Irregular shapes

Most areas to be measured from maps are irregular in shapes
The following methods are used to calculate the area of irregular shapes on maps and
then using the scale of the map, it is converted into ground area

Direct Methods of Measurements

Polar Plannimeter:
Is an instrument that measures areas on a map in terms of square inches or square
centimeters?
As usual, these measurements are then arithmetically converted to earth measurements
Digital Plannimeter:
Is an instrument to calculate the area on map with high accuracy?
Steps:
The Plannimeter dial is set zero
Scale of the map is entered into the Plannimeter
Tracing point is marked on the area to be measured

30
 Tracing point is placed over the starting point – then carefully moved over the Perimeter
of the area in clock-wise direction and returning to the starting point
Note the reading on the dial – at least 3 readings should be taken for an area – measure at
least three
A final area is recorded after taking the average of the readings
Indirect Methods of Measurements of Irregular Shapes
Grid square:
A grid is an array of horizontal and vertical lines intersecting each other at right angles
Each square is called grid cell

Steps:
A grid of known area (generally each cell =1cm2) is drawn on tracing or transparent sheet
These grids are overlaid on area of interest
Count the full square that completely fall within the area
Count the half or partial cells

Then, Area = [Full Cells + (half cells)/2 + (Quarter cells)/4] etc … X Cell value

Dot measurement:
With the dot-Plannimeter method of aerial measurement which is a variant of the grid
square method, a regularly spaced pattern of dots is placed over the map
This is similar to the grid square method – the only difference is that instead of using
grids, dots are used
Dots of known widths (generally 1 cm2) are overlaid on the shapes
Number of dots within the shape and number of dots at the boundaries are counted

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

31
 Area = [dots within + (dots @boundary)/2] X dot width

In contrast to grid square method and strip method, which are exhaustive counting
methods, the dot Plannimeter method is simple procedure
Strip method:
In strip method, a series of parallel lines of known width (generally 1 cm 2) are drawn
over the area
The end of each strip is formed by drawn vertical lines at the edge of area being
measured
Length of each strip is measured
Sum the individual strip lengths and multiply the total length with strip width to get the
area

Area = Total strip length (cm) X strip width (cm)

Strip Width

Polygon method:
It is based on methods of measurement for regular shapes
Divide the area into number of regular shapes
Measure the required parameters for each regular shape
Calculate the area for each shape
Sum the area to get the area of irregular shape

32
 A B
C

Area = Area A + Area B + Area C + Area D

Problem of Map scale

1.How to change from one scale to another scale…….
From RF to simple Scale?
1:50000, 1:100000, 1:250000 etc…
From Simple scale to RF?
1 inch to 1 mile, 1cm to 0.5km, 1cm to 5 km etc…
From Simple scale and RF to Graphical Scale?
1 inch to 1 mile, 1 cm to o.5 km, 1:250,000, 1:500,000 etc …
2.How to find out scale when it is not given:
We need to deduce scale when it is either not given on the map or the scale given on a
foreign map shows distances in unknown units to us
Map without scale is called Drawing or Sketch

Case I – When some ground distance is given:

Eg – Distance between A and B on ground is 5 km
Then measure the distance between A and B on the map (Map distance) – Let us say it is
50 cm
Hence 50 cm to 5 km = 50 cm to 500,000 cm
1cm to 10,000 RF = 1: 10,000

Case II – When nothing is known about the distance on the map but map is
provided with Latitude and Longitude:
The map distance between two latitude and Longitude lines can be compared to the earth
distance between them
Average length of degree of latitude is 110.5 km near equator and 111.7 km near poles
So depending upon the place, we can calculate ground distance between two latitude
degrees
Measure the same distance between two latitude lines on map
Calculate the scale using the formula:

Scale = Map distance/Ground distance

33
  If length of Longitude is used then distance between Longitude
degrees is Cosine of latitude multiplied by 111.3 km
 i.e. if longitude is measured at 450 latitude, then

Cos (latitude degree) X 111.3 km = Ground distance between Longitudes

The distance between the two longitude degrees = Cos 450 X 111.3 km = 78.7 kms =
Ground distance between Longitudes measure the map distance between the same
points and calculate the scale using the formula above

Case III – By comparison with other map:

The map distance between points A and B on map X is 50 cm and the scale is 1:50,000
The same points A and B are present on another map Y where the map distance between
AB is 25 cm, what will be the scale of the other map
On map X, 1cm = 0.5 km
 50 cm is 50 x 0.5 = 25 km
Now on map Y, AB = 25 cm
 1cm on map Y = 25/25km = 100,000
Scale of Y is 1:100,000

Bearing and Direction on Maps

North, South, East and West are the four cardinal directions – the angle between two
adjacent points is 900
The four cardinal positions can be further subdivided into eight points – The angle
between two adjacent pints will now be 450
To be more accurate, the directions can be again be subdivided into sixteen points – the
angles between two adjacent points is 22½0
Even with sixteen compass points we cannot cover all directions accurately – so we have
to take help of direction finding system, which will give us the exact direction in terms of
degrees
When we start from North which is 00, move clock wise till you come to East, which will
be 900
Likewise, move clockwise further till you come to South which is 1800
Again, move clockwise from South till you get 2700, which is west
And, finally, come back to North when you have completed 3600 or made a complete
circle.
Thus, when you take north as point of reference, you can find direction in terms of
degrees

Cardinal direction

34
On mariner’s compass, there are 32 points showing different directions
Points marked North, South, East and West on a mariner’s compass are known as
Cardinal directions
And the remaining points are known as Intermediate points
Normally only 16 directions out of the 32 are shown below as we use only these
directions
The 16 directions are drawn @ an interval of 3600/16 =22030’

N
NNW 00 or NNE
NW 3600 NE

WNW ENE

W E
2700 900

WSW ESE

SW SE
SSW S SSE
1800
The other 16 directions are as follows:

North by East = the direction halfway between N and NNE

North-east by East = the direction halfway between NE and ENE

North-east by North = the direction halfway between NE and NNE
East by North = the direction halfway between E and ENE
East by South = the direction halfway between E and ESE
South-east by East = the direction halfway between SE and ESE
South-east by South = the direction halfway between SE and SSE
South by East = the direction halfway between S and SSE
South by West = the direction halfway between S and SSW
South-west by South = the direction halfway between SW and SSW
South-west by west = the direction halfway between SW and WSW
West by South = the direction halfway between W and WSW
West by North = the direction halfway between W and WNW
North-west by West = the direction halfway between NW and WNW
North-west by North = the direction halfway between NW and NNW
North by West = the direction halfway between n and NNW

35
Geographic, Magnetic and Grid North
The determination of direction requires a frame of reference
The baseline must be established first and direction is expressed in terms of angular
measurement in relation to baseline
The baseline usually used for direction finding is North-South line that passes through
the viewer’s position and establishes North
Because, more than one North reference can be established, the viewer must decide
which one to be used

A reference is required to determine the direction

First a baseline is established
Direction is expressed in terms of angular measurement with respect to baseline
Baseline is usually N-S line to establish North
More than one North can be established
True or Geographic North
The most commonly used north for finding direction is True North (sometimes called
Geographic North)

Direction towards North Pole =

True North

True North is the northerly direction along a line on Longitude (Meridian Direction)

Determination of True North

True north is easily determined, on clear night in northern hemisphere, by sighting
POLARIS, which is a star located almost directly over the Geographical North Pole
A Gyrocompass provides another means for determining true North – it has an
advantage that it can be used at any time of the day or night
Gyrocompass aligns itself with the spin of the earth’s axis
Its North arrow points towards True North and it is not affected by the variation of the
earth’s magnetic field

Magnetic North
A north arrow of magnetic compass points towards the North Pole – a direction called
Magnetic North
The North magnetic Pole is currently located in the northern hemisphere near Canada
nearly 1440 km from the Geographic North
The Magnetic North coincides with the True North in some parts of the earth’s surface
The line joining these two points is known as Agonic Lines
However, the two poles are not same to most of the location on the surface

36
As a result the Magnetic compass does not usually point towards the Geographic north,
and therefore not directly indicate true North
The difference between True North and Magnetic North at any given location is called
Magnetic Declination
A line joining points with the same magnetic declination is called Isogonic Lines
A direction measured from the Magnetic North, the one indicated by the magnetic
compass is referred to as the Magnetic bearing or Azimuth with respect to the True or
Geographic North

True North
Magnetic North

True North
Magnetic North

Magnetic Declination

Grid North
Any map may have more specialized grids such as UTM (Universal Transverse
Mercator) and SPC (State Plane Coordinate Systems) superimposed on it
The direction of north trending lines of such grid is called Grid North
Meridians which are aligned with True North, converge as one moves away from the
equator towards the either poles
Whereas the grid lines of rectangular grids do not
Therefore, although the North-South lines of the rectangular grids may coincide with the
True North at the grid origin (some other special point), they usually don’t align at other
locations

Towards North Pole Meridians

Direction of North trending Grid = Grid North

Rectangular grid overlaid on Meridians and parallels near polar areas

37
Thus, there is always a difference between the direction of north-South line of particular
grid and either True or Magnetic North
In addition, Grid North of two or more grids seldom matches, so there may be more than
one Grid North on a given map

Declination Diagram
A declination diagram is placed on the map to show the relationship between the three
North’s
TN
GN * MN
YO X0

True North is usually marked by a line with a star (*) at the end (and letter TN)
Magnetic North is shown by a line with a partial or half arrow head and letter MN
Grid North is shown by line with abbreviation GN
The angular difference between the three North’s is indicated on the face of the diagram
(Xo and Yo)
A date of the diagram is usually indicated as Magnetic declination changes with time

Direction Designation
Directions are usually designated as either Azimuth or Bearing based on True,
magnetic and Grid North’s

Measurement of Directions on Map

Using traditional system – directions can be measured using North, South, East and West,
and subdivision of them like NE, SE, NW etc…
Using more modernized system – the direction in degrees and fractions of degrees East or
North

Azimuth
An Azimuth is an angle usually measured clockwise in degree, minute and second
from north to the target
It ranges from 0000 North through 0900 East to 1800 South to 2700 West to 3600
North again
Depending upon the reference direction, Azimuth can be:
True Azimuth – measured with respect to TrueNorth
Magnetic Azimuth – measured with respect to magnetic North
Grid Azimuth – measured with respect to Grid North

38
Back Azimuth
A back Azimuth is exact reverse of an Azimuth and determined from target to
observation point
Value of Back Azimuth is determined by adding 1800 to an azimuth that has a value
less than 1800
E.g.: If Azimuth is 450, Back Azimuth is = 450 + 1800 = 2250

Or subtracting from azimuth that has a value of 180 or more

E.g.: If Azimuth is 2450, Back Azimuth is 2450 – 180 = 650

TN

O Azimuth Angles
C
B

TN
A

O
Back Azimuth

Bearings

39
 Bearing is an angle measured from North-South baseline, whichever is nearer to the
target
Bearing angle never exceeds the value 900
A bearing is designated as – North 450 East or N450 E
the base direction is stated first (North or South), then the number of degrees and finally
the direction of bearing in East or West with reference direction
Therefore, bearings are given according to the four quadrants – North-East, North-West,
South-East and South-West

TN
NW A
450
O NE
W E

SW SE

Bearing = N450E
S

TN
NW NE
O
W E
SW
650 SE
A Bearing =S650W
S

Depending upon the reference directions, Bearings are:

True Bearing – measured with respect to True north
Magnetic Bearing – measured with respect to Magnetic North
Grid Bearing – measured with respect to Grid North

Back Bearing
It is the opposite of Bearing
The value of back Bearing is Obtained by changing both of the directional reference and
measured from target to the observation point

40
 TN
TN
NW NE Back Bearing
450 A
O
W E

TheSW SE and Bearing can be calculated on the basis of

relation between Azimuth
the Quadrant in which the point lies – What is the relationship between
Bearing = N450E
Azimuth and Bearing in different quadrants?
S
Steps for Calculating Azimuth on Map Back Bearing = S450W

Suppose you have to calculate the Azimuth between A and B with respect to True North
Draw a line joining the two points A and B ( Traverse line or Course)
Draw a pencil line parallel to the true North (or other North which is required) through
the point A from which the direction of other point B is to be determined
Using the two lines (line of direction of North-South and line joining A and B), set the
protractor at 00 North and measure the angle between the two lines in clock-wise
direction…say 750

N
Θ0 B
A
S

State the direction in terms of Azimuth

Measure the distance AB on the map and convert it into ground distance…say AB= 5 km
Then, B is at Azimuth 750 and 5km from A

41
Step for Calculating Bearings on Map
Suppose, if you have to calculate the Bearing of town points A and B on a map with
respect to True North, then the following steps should be followed
Draw a line joining the two points A and B
Draw a pencil line parallel to the True North line passing through point A from which
Bearing of B has to be measured
Draw another line perpendicular to the True north line passing through A to get four set
of quadrants
Measure the angle between North-South line whichever is nearer to B and line AB sing
protractor
State the Bearing

TN

NW Θ0 B
NE
A E
W
SW SE
S Bearing = N Θ0E

Position on Maps
 Sowing position or location of a certain point is one of the earliest and still one of the
most important uses of maps
 How to show position of point as related to other points that might be familiar to the
map-reader
 “Where is the lake? Where is that mountain? Where is that town or village located?
What is the general trend or coastline of river? Etc… are the frequently asked
questions – How does a map answer these questions?
 There are four conventional methods to give the position of a place:
 Position by the use of place names
 Position by the use of Bearing and Distance
 Position by the use of Geographical Grid
 Position by the use of National Grid Reference

Position by the Use of Place Names

 The place is marked with dot on the map in its accurate position and its name is
attached to it
 It is commonly used and simplest way for positioning
 If you are interested to find any place on the map, look over the map until you
find that place

42
 The first thing you have to do when the map shows the whole country in your
hand is…
 Locate the town or village you live, and then use the map to find
other town, village, rivers, hills etc…
 If you are supplied with a World Map, then locate your country and
capital city – then try to find other important places like London,
Paris, Moscow etc…
 Short Comings:

 Place name used on a map must be suited to the scale of the map
used…
 On small scale map only importance and major places are
printed – the bigger the scale becomes, the more minor place
names can be added
 It is meaningless to use the town map of Nazareth to locate
the town itself
 It is impossible to use the map of whole Africa to locate the
places such as Saris, Arat Kilo, Sidist Kilo, Piazza, Shola
etc…

 The place name should be meaningful to the person who uses the
map to find them…
 All educated people in Africa will know about Addis Ababa,
therefore they would also like to know about the exact
position of Addis Ababa – hence it can be shown on the
Continental Map
 However, places like Saris, Arat Kilo, etc… only have
meaning to people living in Addis Ababa –thus, it would be
useless to print them on continental Map

 place names used on map should not be ambiguous

 for example – there are several Combolchas, Piazzas,
Neghellies, Sarises, and Robes in Ethiopia  it you use these
places in a text that refers to whole country, it causes
confusion to the one who wants to locate them on the map of
Ethiopia
 the same is true with other places in the world – for example,
there are 10 towns called Paris, 8 of them are in USA, 7
Athens, 3 Cairo and so on… so it is confusing that which of
the Paris you are talking about
 To avoid ambiguity, one should write like this – Paris in
France, combolcha in Wello…

 place names do change from time to time

 place names on old Italian Map – Adama (in past)

43
  place name in Ethiopian Topographic Maps – Nazareth
during the last repines
 If somebody writing about Ethiopia, today wants to make it
possible for the reader to make use of those old maps for the
purpose of locating place, he/she should provide information
like this:
 Nazareth formerly Adama (in past)
 Adama now Nazareth (at present)

Position by the Use of Bearing and Distance

 As it is Aforementioned, Bearing is an angle measured form North-
South baseline, whichever is nearer to the target  Bearing angle
never exceeds the value 900 – A Bearing is designated as Eg…
North 450 East or N 450 E  the base direction is stated first, then
the number of degrees and finally the direction of bearing in East
or West with reference direction
 Therefore, Bearings are given according to the four quadrants –
North-East, North-West, South-East and South-West
 It is common and simple method for positioning
 It avoids the ambiguity like the same name of different places
 The position of the place is given with reference to Bearing or
Azimuth and distance from major places
 Debrezeit is 45 Km South-East of Addis Ababa
 Kombolcha is 10 Km North of Harar
 Kombolcha is 25 Km South-East of Dessie
 You should not specify like Addis Ababa is 70 Km NNW of Mojo

 Short Comings of the above Two Methods:

 Both methods do not give a definite location of a certain place
 In the first method  the map-reader will suffer in finding a
place among thousands of place names
 In the second method  the map-reader must know the
location of major places given for reference
 Example – Harar, Addis Ababa, Dessie
 If you want to refer certain spot in the field and if spot does not have
name on your map, you cannot refer to it at least by first method

Position by the Use of Geographic Grid

 In this method, the position is given accurately with the help of a grid
composed of a network of lines known as Parallels and meridians
 One set of lines run from North Pole to the South Pole – these imaginary lines
are called Meridians and join all the points with the same longitude
 The other set o lines run around the globe parallel to the equator and called
Parallels – these lines join all the points with the same Latitudes

44
  Latitude is angular measurements from the center of the earth northwards and
southwards – longitude is angular measurements from the center of the earth
in eastwards and westwards
 The parallels give the position in degree (0), minutes (‘) and seconds (“) north or
south of the equator – this is the Latitude of the place The meridians also
give position of a point in degree, minute and seconds east or west of the
zero degree (Prime Meridian) – this is the Longitude of the point
 10 = 60’ and 1’ = 60”


Consider the following figure for the positioning of points A, B and C

90N
8045’N .A
8030’N B .
m n
.C
8015’N x

y
80N
350E 35015’E 35030’E 35045’E 360E

 Position of A 8045’ N and 35045’ E

 Position of B 8030’ N and 35015’ E
 Position of C is determined as follows …
 Measure the distances x, y, m and n on the map in cm
 Say E.g. x=5 cm, y=15cm, m= 20cm and n=8cm
 Now for 15 cm, Longitude difference= 35045’E – 35030’ E =
15’ … Therefore for 5 cm, Longitude difference = (15’x5)/15
=5’E…Therefore Longitude of C  35030’ E + 5’ =
35035’ E
 Now for 20 cm, Latitude difference = 8030’ N – 35015’ N =
15’ N … Therefore for 8 cm, Latitude difference =
(15’x8)/20 = 6’ N… Therefore Latitude of C  80 15’
N + 6’ = 8021’ N
 Thus position of C 8021’ N and 35035’ E
 The great advantage of this method for positioning over the above two
methods is that you can find the place by simply referring the Latitude and
Longitude value given on the map

 Shortcomings

45
  The shape of grid lines on the globes are curved lines while
the shape of grid lines on the most maps are almost straight
lines
 No simple relationship between degrees and the actual
distance we use (i.e. Not convenient for calculation) – and the
length of degree also vary from latitude to latitude and from
longitude to longitude
 Longitude @ equator = 111.1 km
 Longitude @ the poles is almost 0 km

Position by the Use of National Grid Reference

 The cri-cross reference lines on a map is called Grid

 The grid provides a frame of reference for locating points on a map

 The vertical and horizontal lines of the grid cross at the points called Co-
ordinates – Each of these lines are numbered

 The lines that run horizontally are called Nothings

 The lines that run vertically are called Easting

 These lines are the basis for reference to landmarks and places shown on
the map

 There are two types of grid references:

 The four figure grid reference

 The Six figure grid reference

 When reading grid references, Easting are given first and then the Nothings

 Position on maps can be given in Kilometers and meters by using a set of

lines forming grid

46
 The lines forming the sides of the squares are horizontal (called Northing –
run from West to East) and vertical (called Easting – run from North to
South)

 Since verticals are parallel to each other, they do not indicate true North as
Meridians – the kilometer distance is measured from the grid origin

 The grid origin used on Ethiopian maps is located in North-Western Kenya

where the 34030’ E meridian crosses the equator

Four Digits Grid Reference System

 On a map drawn on a small scale. The 10 Km sides of the square are
marked with numbers that increases towards East and North
 One digit is printed bigger than the other digit EG. 310, 47 and like
that
 This digit gives the tens of kms from the origin
 The Northing and Easting are numbered at every 10 Km interval
 Again, each side of the square is divided into 10 units (I unit
represents 1 Km)

39

38 .A
37
B.
.C Divided into 10
4/10 6/10
36
units

35
23 24 27
25 26

Divided into 10 units

Steps for positioning A Easting Northing

1 Locate the vertical grid line left to the point 6
47
 A and read the large number
Measure the tenth of the side of the square
2 from
 this grid line to the point 0
Locate the horizontal gridline below the
3 point A and read the larger number 8
Measure the tenth of the side of the square
4 from the gridline to the point 0

 Therefore the position of A is 6080

Steps for positioning A Easting Northing

Locate the vertical grid line left to the point
1 B and read the large number 4
Measure the tenth of the side of the square
2 from this grid line to the point 0
Locate the horizontal gridline below the
3 point B and read the larger number 7
Measure the tenth of the side of the square
4 from the gridline to the point 0

Therefore the position of B is 4070

Steps for positioning A Easting Northing

Locate the vertical grid line left to the point
1 C and read the large number 5
Measure the tenth of the side of the square
2 from this grid line to the point 4
Locate the horizontal gridline below the
3 point C and read the larger number 6
Measure the tenth of the side of the square
4 from the gridline to the point 6
 Therefore the position of C is 5466

48
Representation of Relief Features on Map

 The height of the surface of the earth varies from place to place
 Land features like plains, hill, plateau, valleys, ridge etc…, which make the earth’s
surface uneven, are known as relief features
 The relief features have three dimensions namely length, breadth and height but
map on which they are represented has only tow dimensions namely length and
breadth
 Therefore, one needs to get a specialized training in the art of representing relief
features on maps and considerable experience and skill to visualize features on the
map

Methods of representing relief features on maps

49
Hachure:
They are short disconnected lines drawn in the direction in which water flows – that is
down the direction of steepest slope
Is earliest method for showing relief features
They are of the same thickness
For slopes, Hachure are close together and wider apart for the gentle slope
Hachure is not drawn for the area which is lever like plateau top, plains etc…
They are drawn in rows – Each row is disconnected from others
They are short and equal length for the slopes of the same steepness – But are relatively
long for gentle slopes

Disadvantages
Hachure are drawn close together to represent steep slope and hence obscure many other
useful details of the map
Hachure do not represent height above Mean Sea Level
They do not show the uphill or downhill direction of slope without the presence of
streams and spot height

Hill-shading:
Hill shading represents the relief of the ground on the map vividly and effectively
Hill shading with contours gives more satisfactory results
To understand this more easily, suppose
A relief model is prepared and illuminated obliquely from North-South
Its photograph is taken from above then that photograph is relief map of the ground
Slopes facing North and West are in light and Slopes facing East and South are in shadow
The North-Western and Western slopes are shaded with light color and slopes facing
Eastern and South-Eastern where shadow is cast are shaded dark, as slope becomes
steeper and steeper
The level areas (plains, ridge-top etc…) are not shaded

Disadvantages
Absolute height above Mean Sea Level not given
Whether the un-shaded areas are low level or high level, it doesn’t tell
Layer Tinting:
This method is used to represent relief features on small-scale maps by coloring with
different tints of colors
A color legend is given so that the height above Mean Sea Level is represented by
different colors
Blue is used to represent sea and other water bodies – the deeper the water, the darker the
shade of blue is used
The tint of green is used to represent different height under 500 m – the shade of green
varies as green to light green to yellow green as height increases
For height between 500 m to 5000 m, different shades of brown are used – the shades
vary from light brown to brown to dark brown to reddish brown to Crimson red as height
increases

50
The areas above 500 m are not shaded

Disadvantage
the above coloring scheme is not strictly followed but still is used in many low scale
maps to represent relief
this method is used to show relief on Atlas and Wall maps but not on Topographical
maps

Spot Height and Bench Mark:

These methods are used to represent height above Mean Sea Level on the map
Spot Height – is the height above Mean Sea Level (MSL) on the ground – it is indicated
by a dot on map with a figure written near it – The figure stands for the height of the
point above MSL
Bench Mark – is a mark chiseled on a stone pillar a few decimeters above the ground –
the height of mark (not ground) above MSL is indicated by .BM with a figure
representing height – Thus .BM 605 means the Bench Mark is located on the
ground where height is 605 above MSL
. 560 – Spot Height
.BM 650 – Bench Mark
Contours:
Representation of relief features on map by contours is a standard and common method
All the possible information regarding the shape of ground can be obtained quite
accurately from a contour map
A CONTOUR is an imaginary line on a map connecting all adjacent points of the same
height above the MSL – thus a line joining all 200 m points on a map is called a 200m
Contour

51
Indexing Contour – Ways of showing altitude on contour Maps
By breaking the line and writing the number along its trend with the height above the
figure
By printing the number along the trend of the contour line on the side that is pointing
towards higher ground … see the figures below
The closer the contour lines are to one another, the steeper the slope is in the real world

480

480
460
460

Contour Interval:
The contours are always labeled with a figure showing height above MSL – the figures
are written either in gaps or between contours or on the sides of the contours to which
height increases
Contours are drawn at a certain interval called
contour intervaIt is stated in feet or meter and is defined between vertical heights
between two contours
Horizontal Equivalence: the horizontal equivalence between two points on a map is in
fact the horizontal distance between the same two points on the ground

Contour Types
Index Contour
In an area of relatively complex terrain, every fourth or fifth contour needs to be
accentuated as wider line weight, called Index contour
Are easier to identify and follow
Have numbers inserted @ intervals along their length to indicate elevation they represent

100

52
Intermediate Contour
Are regular contours, spaced @ the normal interval and drawn with a finer line weight,
lie between the index contours
They may or may not be numbered depending upon space availability

Supplementary Contour
Additional contours, usually drawn @ intervals that are some regular fraction of the
basic contour interval
Are appropriate in areas of flat terrain, with a relatively far apart contours
Are usually drawn as dashed or dotted lines to distinguish them from contours drawn @
the basic interval

Depression Contour
When an area lies @ a lower elevation than the surrounding terrain it forms a depression
is mapped with contours on its surface called Depression contour
 Distinguished from normal contours by adding short ticks pointing
downward towards the bottom of the depression, @ right angles to
the contour line

Carrying Contour:
If a series of contours fall extremely close together, they may not all be shown as
individual lines
A single contour drawn to represent the several contours that would be drawn if space
allowed is the Carrying Contour
Not occur frequently, because a wider interval applied in such cases
Contour Characteristics:
Contour newer branch – No contour will start from any other contour
Contour line does not cross each other (Except in few cases, such as an Over-hanging
Cliff)
They always close by returning to its starting point – The closer may take place in
another adjacent map
Contour lines can be printed with difference in thickness
Contours are smooth lines without numerous bends

53
The horizontal spacing of contour lines reveals the nature of the slope that the line
represents
The vertical interval between contour elevations is constant

Representation of Relief by Contours:

Some relief features like concave slope, convex slope, valley, spur, ridge, escarpment
etc… occur frequently on surface of the earth
Therefore, contours are means to represent these relief features on map and by
interpreting the contour patterns the whole landscape can be understood easily

Uniform Slope:
When the rise or fall of the ground per unit horizontal distance is same at every part of
the slope
Such slopes are represented by contours, which are spaced at equal distance – i.e.
evenly spaced contour lines

100
400

200
300
500
600
800
900

700

CI = 100 m
Concave Slope:
A slope which curves inward
Its lower part rises gently but upper part abruptly – therefore, the lower part of concave
slope is represented by widely spaced contours but its upper part by closely spaced
contours
800

600
1000
1200
1400

Convex Slope: CI = 100 m

A slope which curves outward

54
 It is steep at bottom but gentle at the top – therefore, contours are close together at foot
and wide apart near the top of the convex slope

760
800

720

680
640
600
CI = 20 m
Terraced Slope:
Rises first gently, then steeply, then gently again and so on
The gently rising section of the slope is represented by widely-spaced contours and the
steeply rising section is represented by closely-spaced contours

720

680
760
800

640
600

CI = 20 m
Undulating Slope: scale 1:25000
When some part of the slope is convex, then concave and again convex and so on
It generally gives wave appearance – therefore, it becomes wider @ some place and close
together @ others

55
840

680
 800

720
760

640

600
CI = 20 m
Conical Hills:
A hill, which rises like a cone
It is represented by contours, which are nearly circular
The outer most contour represents minimum height and the inner most contour
represents maximum height

2000
1800

1600

1400
Plateau: CI = 100 m
The surface of the plateau, being more or less level, is represented by widely spaced
contours
The slopes surrounding the plateau, being steep, and hence represented by closely spaced
contours

1000

800
CI = 100 m

56
600
 V-shaped valley:
Is shown by V-shaped contours
The outermost contour represents the maximum height and the innermost contour
represents the minimum height

Stream

700

600

CI = 50 m
500

400

Gorge:
Is a deep narrow valley with precipitous sides
The sides of the gorge are represented by closely spaced contours

57
  Stream

5800
5600

5400
5200
5000

Scale 1:50,000

Waterfall:
In the mountainous area, a section of a valley becomes very steep almost vertical
A stream flowing over a vertical slope makes a waterfall
As waterfall is vertical, it is represented by contours which merge into each other

800 700
600
58
 Stream 500

U-shaped Valley:
 The side of U-shaped valley is very steep and bottom is flat
 Therefore, each sides of U-shaped valley are represented by
closely spaced contours and its floor by widely spaced
contours

Stream
1700
2100
1900

59
 1500

CI= 100 m

Hanging Valley:
Is a tributary valley at much higher elevation than the main valley
The stream draining a hanging valley flows over a precipitous slope before joining the
river of main valley
But because of quite cut, the slope of hanging valley are represented by closely spaced
contours
The slope becomes very steep where it opens into the main valley
4400

4600
4200
3800
4000
4000
3800

Stream
Stream

60
 3600

CI= 100 m

Ridge:
It is a narrow but highland, sloping steeply downward on its sides
Its length is much greater than its width
It generally connects two hills and represented by narrow closed contours

3000
2800
2600

61
Spur:
It is a ridge projecting from the main body of mountain towards low ground
It is represented by V-shaped contours
The outermost contour shows the minimum height but the innermost contour the
maximum height

760
740
720
700

680660
640
620
600

CI= 20 m

Saddle:
It is the lower part connecting two hills and separating two lowlands
It is used as a pass
It is shown by space between contours representing hills

1700
62
 1600
1500
1400
1300
1200

CI= 100 m

Saddle

Cliff:
It is a higher and precipitous slope
It is shown by contours, which often coincides

140
Sea
120
100
80
60
40
20

Sea Cliff CI= 20 m

63
Over-hanging Cliff:
It is a cliff in which the upper part overhangs its lower part
The contour representing the upper overhanging part crosses those representing lower
part

300
250
200
150
100
50
0
CI= 50 m

64
 Escarpment:
 It is high but steep face of hills or plateau of considerable length
 The upper part of which is represented by widely spaced long contours
and its faces are represented by closely spaced contours

1900

2100

1900
1700

1500

CI= 100 m

Dissected Plateau:
 This is when a plateau is cut by deep valley and gorge

65
 900

700
500

CI= 100 m

Cirque:
It is large hollow shape formed as a result of glacial erosion on the side of the mountain
and it appears like an arm chair
It has generally a lake, which is drained by stream through a gap
The slope forming its back and sides rises steeply but the slope forming the side through
which the stream flows fall steeply
The contour representing the back and sides except the one through which the stream
flows are closely spaced
Its bottom is nearly level and represented by widely spaced contours

Lake
Stream

8000

7800
7600
7400

7200
7000

66 CI= 100 m
Contour Drawing
 Contours are drawn on a map on which heights of various points are marked
by spot height, benchmark and triangulation points

Steps
 To draw contours, have a close look at the heights shown and
locate the areas of maximum and minimum height
 Determine the contour interval if it is not given
 For determining contour interval, find out the difference in
height of highest point and that of the lowest point
 Keeping in view this difference and space available, fix the
contour interval – the contour interval should be a convenient
round number
 If the heights are given in feet, the convenient contour interval
will be 50feet, 100 ft, 250 ft etc… --if the heights are given in
meters, the convenient contour interval will be 10m, 20m, 50m,
100m etc…
 Consider the following figure showing spot heights at different
points for drawing contours (all measurements are in meter)

756
738
.
.. . . . .

740
. .

760
885
855 840
.

745 968 948 720

.
. . . .

730
.
.

10751100

.
764 842 1015
. .

930 C
. . .

715 A
.

805 1060
.

940 1150
.

1125
.

880 D B 990
.

935
. . .

756 850 1135 860

942
.

1100 1025
.

840 930 1055

750
.

865 1000
.

945
962 925
. .
.

900
.

845 855
876


.

728
.

870 835
800
. .

820


.

775
.

790
.

760 780 732

67
 

Maximum and minimum heights are 1150m and 715m respectively

The difference between the highest and the lowest points is 1150-715 435 m
Since the map is small, so we can fix 100 m as a contour interval – so for the above
figure, contours of 800m , 900m, 100m and 1100 m can be drawn
As there are very few points showing heights @ exact 800 m, 900m, 1000m and 1100, so
we require interpolating contours
In the figure, 1100m contour will pass through A as its height is 1100m – now, see the
adjacent points around A and find the points having just above and below heights than A
– say B (1125m) and C (1075m)
Draw a pencil line joining B and C – Measure the distance between B and C – say 0.5 cm
Calculate the height difference between B and C i.e. 1125 – 1075 50m
Calculate the height difference between C and 1100 contour – it is 1100-1075 25m
Now, for 50m height difference, the length is 0.5cm, therefore, for 25 m height difference
the length will be (0.5 x 25)/50 0.25 cm
Draw a pencil point at distance 0.25 cm from C – this the point where contour line of
1100m will pass – Repeat the process with the other points and find the points for 1100m
contour – Join those points to get 1100m contour
Similarly, contours for 1000m, 900m and 800m can be drawn

Drawbacks:
In this method, we assume that a slope is uniformly steep – But every slope cannot be
uniform – Thus it is not the accurate method
It is cumbersome and time-consuming – and hence suitable for small area contouring
only
More accurate method like Use of Aerial photograph and Stereo plotter are now used for
contouring than manual

Exercise or assignment

Slopes and Gradients

The steepness of slope, the variation in the steepness of a slope from place to place and
the average slope has great significance to studying landuses for various purposes

Types of slopes
 Uniform Slope
Concave Slope Convex Slope
Terraced Slope Undulating Slope

Gradient:

68
 Vertical Interval (VI) and Horizontal Equivalence (HE) lend themselves to express the
steepness of slopes in terms of gradient

K
120 m 140 m 120 m

100 m 100 m

A B
80 m C 80 m

A’ K’ B’
140 m
120 m
100 m
80 m

Slope AK is represented on the contour map by line A’K’

Vertical Interval (VI) = difference in height between the points A’K’ i.e. 140 m –
80 m = 60 m
If the distance A’K’ on the map is 4.7 cm and the scale of the map is 1cm to 2.5 km
then, distance A’K’ on the ground = 4.7 x 2.5 km = 11750 m
Gradient of Slope A’K’ = 60/11750 = 1/196
It means that there is a rise of one unit of length in horizontal distance for every 196 units
– It is also written as 1 in 196
Gradient of a slope is defined as – the proportion between its Vertical Interval and
Horizontal Equivalence expressed as a fraction of the denominator of which is unity (1)
Gradient of slope will become steep or gentle according as the horizontal equivalent
decreases or increases in length
Thus, slope BK is steeper than slope AK in the figure, because Horizontal Equivalence
BC is shorter than the Horizontal Equivalence AC
Therefore, gradient enables us to find the degree of steepness of a slope
The smaller the value in denominator, the higher will be the gradient and hence steepness
of the slope and vice versa

69
Gradient is used to find out whether the slope is suitable for climbing motor vehicles,
railways, animal drawn vehicles etc… Eg. Gradient of 1/25 is steep for railway but gentle
for motor vehicle

Expression of Gradient
In addition to expressing gradient as fraction, it is also expressed in two other ways
As a Percentage
In this case, gradient is expressed as 1%, 2%, 3% and so on…
The gradient of slope of 1% is 1/100, 2% = 2/100 = 1/50, and so on…

As a Degree of Angle
The angle of the slope for a gradient of 1/57.14 is 10, for the gradient of 1/28.65 = 20, for
the gradient of 1/19.08 = 30 and so on…
The slope of 10 is considered as equal to gradient 1/60 (approximately)
Conversion from slope to Gradient or vice versa – Is possible by remembering
 Gradient of 1 in 100 (1/100) = a slope of 1%
 Gradient of 1 in 60 (1/60) = a slope of 10
 For instance, 1/196 Gradient is 0.51% or 0.300

Comparison of Slopes
B (610 m)

C (460 m) 3.2 cm

3.8 cm
A (380 m)

Suppose it is required to compare the steepness of the slope AC with that of the
steepness of slope CB – the height of points A, B and C are 380m, 460m and 610m
respectively – Say the scale of the map is 2 cm to 1 km
Measure the distance AC and CB on the map – Let it be 3.80 cm and 3.20 cm
Ground distance between A & C = 3.8 x 0.5= 1.9 km = 1900 m
Ground distance between C & B = 3.2 x 0.5 = 1.6 km = 1600m

70
Vertical Interval between A & C = 460 – 380 = 80 m
Vertical Interval between C & B = 610 – 460 = 150 m
Therefore, Gradient of Slope AC = VI/HE = 80/1900 =1/23.7
Gradient of Slope CB = 150/1600 = 1/10.7

Thus, Gradient of Slope CB is steeper than the Gradient of Slope AC – hence, slope AC
is gentler than the slope CB

Profile
A Profile is simply a cross-sectional view through a particular piece of terrain
Profiles provide a relatively quick and accurate means of determining such useful
information as the relative steepness of the slope of the terrain at the given location
It is a line, which shows the rise and fall of the surface of the ground along chosen line on
a map
It is drawn to get a clear idea of the nature of relief along a line

Steps for Drawing Profile

Draw a line passing through contours – Let this line be AB
Take a piece of drawing paper and place its edge along AB
Draw a line parallel to AB on paper – Say this is CD, which serves as a baseline and is
equal to AB
To make CD equal to AB, drop perpendiculars from the points A and B on the line CD
Find the maximum and minimum contour heights – Say it is 600 m and 460 m
respectively – It means profile lies between 620 m and 420 m
To get a clear picture of the rise and fall of the ground – the vertical scale should be
exaggerated and be about 5 to 10 times as large as the horizontal scale – Thus, when
horizontal scale is 1:50,000 the vertical scale should be 5/50,000 = 1:10,000
(exaggeration is 5 times) or vertical scale should be 10/50,000 = 1:5,000 (exaggeration is
10 times)
 Suppose we are taking vertical scale exaggeration as 10 times then,
horizontal line representing 440m and 620m will be (620-440)/50 = 3.6
cm apart
 If the contour interval is 20m, then 460, 480, 500, 520, 540, 560, 580, 600,
620 there will be 9 contour between 440 and 620 – spacing between two
lines will be 3.6/9 =0.4 cm
 Draw lines parallel to CD at 0.4 cm distance and label these lines with
height 440, 460, 480, 500, 520, 540, 560, 580, 600 and 620 m
 Drop perpendicular form the point of intersection of line AB and the
contours on the lines representing the corresponding heights
The points at which perpendicular lines meet with the horizontal line are
connected to from a smooth line
This smooth line is the required profile
Write at the bottom of the profile, horizontal scale – 1:50,000, vertical
scale – 1:5,000 and vertical exaggeration =10 times

71
 520
520
540
560
560 540 500
520
580 500

440
480480
460
600
A

A
B 600
580
560
72 540
520
500
480
 Horizontal Scale = 1:50,000
Vertical Scale = 1:5,000
Vertical Exaggeration= 10 times

Types of profile:
Traverse Profile – It is drawn across a valley, a mountain ridge etc… and it is a t right
angle to the direction in which a valley, a mountain range etc run
Longitudinal Profile – It is drawn along a river course, watershed, road etc…A road, a
river course etc… often run in zigzag manner

Intervisibility
Sometimes we need to know from a map whether two points are mutually visible or not
Two points are inter-visible when there is no intervening object to intercept the line of
sight
Two points on the ground will be mutually visible 
When the ground is perfectly flat
A B
When one point is located at the bottom and the other at the top of a concave slope

 
B

When the intervening ground is not much higher than the target
point to be seen
An object will not be visible
When hill, tree or building intervene the object to be seen

13 14
 

73
 15


 When two points are lying on concave slope

17

16 
Determination of Intervisibility between two Points
By drawing profile:
After having drawn the profile, connect the two points with a straight line
This straight line represents the Line of Sight
If the profile rise crosses the line of sight, the two points are not mutually visible
For example – points A and B are not mutually visible in case of the profile drawn
previously

By comparing heights:
The above method is shortened by drawing perpendicular line only from the two given
points and a third point which may be expected to intervene

500 800
600
A K B
700 700
600 600
500 500
400 400
300

D
4 cm
M
C 3 cm

74
 2 cm
2.5 cm 3.5 cm
1 cm

A’ K’ B’

Suppose K is intervening point between A and B – Draw a line A’B’ parallel and equal to
line AB (Line of Sight of Contour Map)
Mark point K’ on line A’B’ so that A’K’ =AK and K’B’ =KB
Select a suitable vertical scale and draw perpendiculars from the A’, K’ and B’ based on
vertical scale – The length of the perpendicular can be calculated as …Suppose height of
1000m is represented by 5 cm… then height of 500m is represented by 2.5 cm, 7000m by
3.5 cm and 800m by 4cm
Draw perpendicular CA’ = 2.5cm, MK’=3.5cm and DB’ = 4cm
Since perpendicular MK’ crosses the line CD, point B is not visible from the point A
Had line MK’ not crossed the line CD, the point B would have been visible from point A
By comparing Gradients
Suppose it is required to find whether or not the point B is visible from point A when
ground at the point C is expected to intervene

A C. B

380 400 420 440 460 480 500 520 540 560 580 600

Height of A = 380m, B = 600m and C = 460 m

Map distance AC = 3.8cm, BC = 3.2 cm
Ground distance AC = 3.8cm x 0.5 = 1900m
Ground distance CB = 3.2 x 0.5 = 1600m
Gradient of slope AC = 460 – 380/1900 = 1/23.7
Gradient of slope CB = 600 – 460/1600 = 1/10.7
The gradient of slope CB is greater than the gradient of slope AC – it means slope AC is
gentler than slope CB – Therefore slope ACB is concave slope and points A and B are
mutually visible

75
Had the slope CB been gentler than the slope AC, the slope ACB would have been
convex slope and the two points A and B would have not been mutually visible

Map Making (Projection)

 During the process of map-making, the map should follow the characteristics of
globe – the earth’s shape, as aforementioned, is basically spherical
 It is not possible to retain all the globe characteristics on a flat map 
 Attempts to represent spherical earth on a flat piece of paper result in distortion
 So whatever is possible, try to retain some characteristics, depending upon your
requirement  accordingly projection is selected
 Map Projection is a systematic rendering on a flat sheet paper of a Graticule, by
adding a representation of geographic features found on the earth
 Three physical surfaces are commonly used for the construction of map
projection , Projection Surfaces Plane, Two developable surfaces (Cone and
Cylinder)
 Projection onto Planar (Flat) Surface is called Azimuthally Projection

Globe Characteristics

76
 On a globe, features from the earth surface (their shape, the area they occupy and the
distance and direction between them are correctly shown

 An ideal map projection retains all of these characteristics and translates them to the
map
 The characteristics of an ideal map projection should be:
 Co formality:
 The retention of correct shape of the earth feature on the
map is called Co formality – i.e. map features can be
recognized by their distinctive shapes
 Co formality also allows the accurate recording of direction
 The requirement for a conformal map are that the lines of
latitude and longitudes must cross one another at right
angles and the scale must be the same in all the directions
at any given point
 It is true only for the small area
 Example, Mercator Projection, Lambert conformal Conic,
Traverse Mercator
 Mercator Projection is designed in such a way that the
North-South scale changes at the same rate as the East-
West scale – this means scale of Mercator is same in all the
directions t the given point on the map
 Equivalence (Equal Area):
 When a map is produced on equal area projection, a unit area
drawn on it always represent the number of square kilometers
(Sq km or km2) on the earth’s surface
 To retain equivalence, any scale changes that occur in one
direction must be compensated by suitable changes of scale
in opposite direction depending upon the position on earth
 Example, Albert Equal Area Projection and Sinusoidal
Projection
 In the Sinusoidal Projection, the scale is true along the central
meridian and each parallel, which gives the projection its
equal area characteristics
 Distance (Equidistant):
 Correct distance relationship requires that the length of a
straight line between two points on the map represents the
correct great circle distance between the same points on the
earth

77
  Example, Azimuthal Equidistant Projection – All the points
on Azimuthal Equidistant Projection are plotted at their
distance from the center of the projection and are in their
true globe direction or azimuth from the center
 Distance relationship other than those measured from the
center of the projection is increasingly distorted away from
the central point
 Direction:

 When a projection retains correct direction, a straight-line

drawn between two points on the map shows the correct
Azimuth of the line

 An azimuth is an Angle formed @ the starting point of a

straight line in relation to Meridian – Example, Gnomonic
Projection

 Here spacing of the Graticule increases rapidly away from

the center of the projection resulting in and increasingly
exaggerated scale

Projection Selection:
 The characteristics of a map are determined by the projection on which it
is plotted
 The relation of shape, equivalence, direction, and distance with some
compromise in these are used for the preparation of a map
 The selection of a projection system is based on area, shape and purpose
of the map
 Purpose of the Map

 Mercator and Gnomic projections are used for Navigational

Purposes

 Azimuthal Equidistant Projection is used for distance measurement

purpose

 Lamberts Conformal Conic Projection is used for mid-latitude air

chart – route selection and distance determination

 Conformal projection such as Traverse Mercator is used for

Topographical Mapping – short distance, directions and area
calculation can be done on these maps
 Projections depending upon the Area to be Mapped

78
  Small area – less distortion
 Large area – more distortion
 Latitude of the area of interest areas near equator – cylindrical
projection, as in a normal orientation its tangent is at the equator
 Pole-centered – Azimuthal Projection is suitable for poles
 Projections based on the Shape of the Area of interest
 Area to be mapped is long in North-South direction and short in
East-West direction traverse Mercator Projection or Sinusoidal,
Example, Chile
 Area more in East-West direction and less in North-South direction
Conic Projection, Example, Lamberts conformal and Alberts
Equal Area projections are suitable for the mapping of USA
 When compass direction between locations are important 
Conformal, Example, Mercator
 For radio or Seismic work – as waves involved in such studies,
travels in great circle direction and is plotted as straight line
Gnomonic Projection

Locational System (Coordinate System)

 There are two basic systems for designating locations on the map
 One system involves the use of Latitude and Longitude Graticule
and the other involves the use of state plane rectangular grid system
 Either of the two Locational systems can be used
 The mapping area should be given correct coordinate system, which is
further subdivided into small Graticule, Example, on 1:50, 000 scale
map, the outer boundaries of both latitude and longitude vary by 15
minutes – This can be further subdivided into 5 minutes Graticule
 This method of defining location is being used internationally and
hence one should follow the same technique during the preparation of
map
Plotting
 Once the format and scale of the map is decided, the next step is plotting the
map this is the process of transferring the surveyed data to the map
 In the preparation of the topographical maps, the first plotting task is to define
accurately the position of the control points on the map
 This is best accomplished by preparing a rectangular grid and plotting each
traverse point by means of its computed coordinates
 The plotting of other details including contour can be done with the use of
circular protractor
 A measuring scale can also be used to locate the points
79
  One should check the correct relationship between the features after the
process of plotting

Enlargement and Reduction of Maps

 Sometimes you might like to use a map that you find in a book as an aid
for some demonstration purpose, in teaching or for a wall display dealing
with the certain developments some where in the world

 The problem you face is that the original map in the book, magazine or
atlas is drawn in such a small scale that it doesn’t lend itself very well
directly for wall poster display or teaching aid

 What is needed in this case is a change of scale, an enlargement of scale –

The opposite also might be the case

 You might like to use large-scale map as an illustration in your notebook

but you cannot possible fit that map on the page of your notebook

 What you now have to do is reduce the scale

 These changes of scale can be done accurately with the help of specially
designed machine called Pantograph

 But as they are not available everywhere, simpler and less accurately can
be used

 The various steps are:

 Find the size of the original map through measurement and

your mind that about how big you want your new map to be
 This will give you the scale of new map that you want to
construct
 The number of times you can increase the original scale is of
course decided by the size of the paper that is at your disposal
– suppose you are enlarging two times
 Draw a frame of your new map in such a way that the sides are
double to the sides of original map
 Cover the original map with a grid of 0.5 x 0.5 cm squares
(Grid), draw with a soft pencil so that it can be removed later
 Cover your map under construction with a 1 cm x 1 cm squares
 Using grid as guide, trace the major features that you want to
show on your enlargement map carefully with the pencil

80
  Finalize your map using ink, color etc… for the different
features that you wanted to show – Give other marginal
information of the map
 Check your work carefully – Remove your gridlines from the
map

 This method of enlargement or reduction of scale can be used for any kind
of drawing and the result is relatively accurate if your measurement and
tracing are accurately done

 Example: Given original scale 1:50,000

 Then, increased Twice  2/50,000 = 1:25,000 will be the scale of the new map
 Increased four times  4/50,000 = 1:12,500 will be the scale of the new map
 Decreased twice 1/ 2 x 50,000 = 1:100,000 will be the scale of the new map
Decreased four times  1/ 4 x 50,000 = 1:200,000 will be scale of new map And so on
Graphical Geometrical Method


What is a Map Scale

Cartography is concerned with reducing the spatial characteristics of an outsized
area, a portion or the entire earth – and putting it in a map to make it observable
This is possible with the help of Map Scale
A map is a hardcopy representation of part of the earth's surface and it is essential
that a scale ratio be present on the map to convey the reduction factor
A Map is 

 Bird’s eye view of the earth’s surface is drawn to Scale

 Abstract/pictorial representation of the reality for which the location on

the earth is knownReduced by a certain ratio

 The accurate representation of 3D (reality) by 2D (Planar/flat

paper/surface)
 Map Scale: is the reduction needed to display/portray a representation of the Earth's
surface on a map
 The scale of a map is the ratio between a distance (or dimension) on a map and the
corresponding distance (or Dimension) on the earth, with the distance (or
dimension) on the map typically expressed as 1 unit (UNITY)  Thus, a scale of

81
 1:100,000 means 1 inch on the map equals 100,000 inches (approximately 1.6
miles) on the earth
 Large scale maps depict a small area and show more detail, but small scale maps
depict a large area and show less detail. ...
 Map scale is the relationship between the actual size of a place and its size as shown
on a map
 A busy definition  Scale is the ratio between the size of something and a
representation of it the ratio between the distance of any two points on the map
and the distance representing the same two points on the ground
 Linear Scale (or simply Scale) = Map distance (MD) /Ground Distance (GD),
Noting that both the Numerator and the Denominator are of the same unit so
that scale becomes unit less…If different units are given convert them to a same
unit
 Example, when 1 cm on a map (Equivalent to 0.00001Km) represents 1km on the
ground (i.e. simply, converted to be 100,000cm), then Linear Scale = 1cm /
100,000cm 1:100,000 (unit less) or 0.00001km / 1km 1:100,000 (unit
less)…But the first method is simpler
 Areal Scale = Square of (Linear Scale)  Used to find Map Area (Ground Area x
Areal Scale) or Ground Area (Map Area x Areal Scale)…Unlike Linear scale
which is used to find Map Distance (Ground Distance x Linear Scale) or Ground
Distance (Map Distance x linear Scale)
 Scale line: A line representing graphical scale, used to convert map distances into
Ground Distances, Usually lengthened @ a whole number One main unit is to
the left of the zero and conveniently divided into smaller units
Let, Given Scale= 1:100,000 and Ground Distance to be represented/drawn on the
map =11km Length of Scale line (calculated just like MD) = 11 cm
What if the space where a scale line of Kilometers is to appear on the map became
limited? Example, @ a scale of 1:250,000, only 19cm space remains @ the map
for scale line MD/S = (19 x 0.25) km = 4.75 km can be represented @ the
reserved space, i.e. Full/Whole 4 kms Therefore, Total Length of Scale line =
4km/0.25km = 16 cm

Scale Factor
 A constant, which is proportional to scale used to convert MD to GD or vice
versa
 It is a size change magnitude, expressed in decimal
 Example, if Scale = 1: 100,000 Scale factor (SF) = 1 = 0.00001
100,000
 Scale = MD GD = MD = 1 x (MD) = MD x SF
GD Scale Scale
 Scale = MD MD = Scale x (GD) = GD = GD
GD 1 SF
Scale

82
  To convert series of MD’s into GD’s, simply multiply
them by SF and to convert series of GD’s into MD’s.
simply divide them by SF

Conversion of Scales
1:25,000
0 1 2km
1:50,000
0 1 2km

 Both scales represent the same ground distance…2km

 1:50,000 is half (1/2) smaller than 1:25,000, or 1:25,000 is twice larger

than 1:50,000

 The larger the denominator in the fraction representing the scale (50,000 >
25,000), the smaller the scale (1:50,000 < 1:25,000) because 1/50,000 <
1/25,000

 i.e. while a map is reduced, the denominator increases (E.g. if 1:25,00 is

reduced by half New Scale = 1:50,000) and/or while a map is enlarged,
the denominator decreases (E.g. if 1:50,00 is enlarged twice New Scale
= 1:25,000)

 Reduction/Enlargement Percentage =
Scale Denominator of Original Scale x 100
Scale denominator of New Scale

 Example, If 1:50,000 is enlarged to 1:2,500…  Enlargement

Percentage = 50,000 / 40,000 = 125%...... Always, Enlargement
Percentage is > 100% Where as Reduction Percentage is < 100%

 Production of smaller-scale maps from a larger scale map is possible

To determine the total number of maps to be produced
2
Larger Scale = Number of maps needed
Smaller Scale

Types of Scale
 The scale can be represented in either of the three ways:
 Word statement
 Representative Fraction (Arithmetic Ratio)
 Graphical Scale

83
 Word statement (verbal Scale):

 Quick idea of size relationship  Expressed in a phrase such as

“Ten centimeters to one kilometer” which means that 10cm on
particular map is equivalent to 1 km on the ground)
 It is more appropriate to use word statement that indicates the map is
at a scale of 10, 100, 1000, etc… (E.g. Ten centimeters to one
kilometer — Map scale= 10 cm to 1 km)

 Scale Ratio (Representation Fraction RF):

 expressed as the ratio between two distances :
 The distance between two points as measured on the map
 The actual distance between the same two points as
measured on the earth’s surface
 This ratio is always presented with the map units listed first
 E.g. Distance between two points on the map is 10cm and the distance
between equivalent points on the earth is 1km (100,000cm). Then the
ratio is 10:100,000 –which is reduced to 1:10,000 for listing on map
 Scale ratios are not expressed in any specific units of measurements
(Are unit less or unit free) – i.e. both sides of the ratio (Numerator and
Denominator) must always be specified in the same units
 E.g. 1: 10,000 means 1cm on map represents 10,000 cm on the ground
 Frequently the scale ratio is written as a fraction called representative
fraction (or Scale Factor) – E.g. 1: 10,000 can be written as 1/10,000

 Graphical Scale:

 Map scales also are represented in graphic form --- dividing the line in to
units, each of which represents, @ map scale, the actual distance between
two points on the earth 

 Graphic scale is a line drawn on a map and subdivided into units

appropriate to the scale of the map

 These units generally are chosen to be easily usable, rounded numbers,

such as tens or hundreds of kilometers, miles, miles, meters or feet

 Often, part of the scale is subdivided into fractional units to aid in

measuring distance more precisely – Deal with Scale line

84
  Isscalea usually used scale, because the map may shrink with time and the
shrinks accordingly

Km 10 8 6 4 2 0 10 20 30
40

 Map Classification based on Scale of the Map

 Large-scale Map:

 When a map of a given size covers a relatively small area of the earth’s
surface, it is called a Large-scale Map

 Large-scale map can include a considerable amount of information

 Maps scaled => 1:50,000 / 1:10,000 / 1:5,000 / 1:25,000 are considered as
Large-scale maps

 Convey more information

 Small-scale Map:

 If the map of the same size covers a large area of the earth’s surface,
relatively little detail can be included and the map is called Small-scale
map

 Scale => 1:500,000 / 1:1,000,000

 Convey less information
 Medium-scale Map:

 The scale lies between large and small scale i.e. greater than 1:50,000 but
less than 1:500,000 are considered as medium-scale

85
  Convey intermediate information
 How to find out scale when it is not given
 We need to deduce scale when it is either not given on the map or
the scale given on a foreign map shows distances in unknown units
to us
 Map without scale is called Drawing or Sketch
 Case I – When some ground distance is given:
 E.g. – Distance between A and B on ground is 5 km
 Then measure the distance between A and B on the map (Map
distance) – Let us say it is 50 cm
 Hence 50 cm to 5 km = 50 cm to 50,000 cm
 1cm to 10,000 RF = 1: 10,000

 Case II – When nothing is known about the distance on the map but map is
provided with Latitude and Longitude:
 The map distance between two latitude or Longitude lines can be compared to
the earth distance between them
 Average length of degree of latitude is 110.5 km near equator
and 111.7 km near poles
 So depending upon the place, we can calculate ground distance
between two latitude degrees
 Measure the same distance between two latitude lines on map
 Calculate the scale using the formula:
 Scale = Map distance/Ground distance
 If length of Longitude is used then distance between Longitude
degrees is Cosine of latitude multiplied by 111.3 km
 i.e. if longitude is measured at 450 latitude, then

 Cos (latitude degree) X 111.3 km = Ground distance

 Distance between two longitude degree = Cos 450 X 111.3 km = Ground

distance

 measure the map distance between the same points and calculate
the scale using the formula above

86
 Case III – By comparison with other map:
 The map distance between points A and B on map X is 50 cm and
the scale is 1:50,000
 The same points A and B are present on another map Y where the
map distance between AB is 25 cm, what will be the scale of the
other map
 On map X, 1cm = 0.5 km
  50 cm is 50 x 0.5 = 25 km
 Now on map Y, AB = 25 cm
  1cm on map Y = 25/25km = 100,000
 Scale of Y is 1:100,000

Measurements from Maps

 A variety of information about the earth, and about the features distributed
on its surface, is obtained by direct measurements from maps

 Two measurements of primary importance:

The distance between locations
The area of a region

 Measurement of distance
 Map distance measurement assume that one of the two conditions is met so
that the measurements taken are valid
 First condition is that the distances are short so that the earth’s curvature
is not an important factor
 The second is that the map is on equidistant projection and the
measurements are taken along appropriate alignments
 For E.g. it is not appropriate to directly measure the distance
between New York and London. However, to measure the
distance between the downtown and suburbs of a city is valid
 Before starting any measurement on map, it is advisable (necessary) to
consider the following three points
 If you are asked to measure a distance between two points A and
B, it is the real distance (ground distance) that is wanted not
distance on the map
 Therefore, don’t give answer like this, “the distance from A
to B is 30 cm”
 To obtain the real answer it is required to change the
distance obtained through measurement on map (map

87
 distance) to real distance (ground distance) with the help of
scale of the map
 Distance on map is measured in centimeters but distance on field
is given in kilometers
 Therefore it is meaningless to say that, “the distance from
Addis Ababa to Asmara by road is 10740000 cm=1074 km
 All distance obtained through measurements on maps called map
distance don’t consider the ups and downs on the field
 In the real world the routes between locations almost
always involve ups and downs
 The actual surface distance between two objects,
therefore is longer than the map distance, except in
exceptional case where ground surface is perfectly flat
 Assuming that there is relatively uniform slope between
two points, the calculation of the distance correction for
elevation involves simple application of the Pythagorean
theorem

 Suppose two points A and B have map distance of 30 cm and elevation is

100m and that of is 200m. The scale of the map is 1:50,000
 Then map distance=cm
 Scale 1cm=0.5 km
 Ground distance= 30 x 0.5= 15 km

B=200m

Surface Distance
Height

Ground Distance
A=100m

 Now Height difference between A and B is 200m-100m=100m

 The field or surface distance= (1500)2 + (100)2=

 Opisometer – is an instrument having route measuring wheel

 The wheel is allowed to move along the rote whose distance is required
 The length traversed by the wheel is indicated on the instrument
 The total length recorded by the instrument is converted into ground
distance
 Accurate measurements along bending lines like roads are possible only
on large-scale map

88
  On small and medium scale maps, roads are shown in such a generalized
way that all small bends of roads are eliminated
 In such case accurate road distance measurement is not possible
 Measurement of Areas
 The normal scale of a map usually is defined in linear dimensions
 The aerial scale of a map in contrast is defined in aerial units
 The scale of a map is sometimes used to describe the relationship between
the area of a feature plotted on a map and area of the same feature on
earth’s surface
 The ratio between area of a region on a map and the area of the same
region on the earth is the square of map’s linear scale
 Arial scale=(linear scale)2
 For Eg. if the scale is 1:50,000

 Linear scale is 1 cm to 0.5 km

 Arial scale = (0.5km)2 =0.25 km2

 Areas of Regular shapes
 Regular shapes include square, rectangles, triangles, trapezoid, etc…
 From geometry, areas of regular shapes can be calculated by knowing
the necessary parameters like base, height, length, radius etc…
 These parameters are obtained through measurements on maps
 Using scale of the map, the map area is converted to ground area

Square Rectangle
Triangle

Circle Trapezium

89
  Area of Square = (side)2
 Area of circle = Πr2
 Area of Rectangle = Length x Breadth
 Area of Triangle = ½ x base x height
 Area of Trapezoid = ½ (side1 + side2) x height etc…

 Areas of Irregular shapes

 Most areas to be measured from maps are irregular in shapes
 The following methods are used to calculate the area of irregular
shapes on maps and then using the scale of the map, it is converted
into ground area

 Direct Methods of Measurements

 Polar Plannimeter:
 Is an instrument that measures areas on a map in terms of
square inches or square centimeters
 As usual, these measurements are then arithmetically
converted to earth measurements
 Digital Plannimeter:
 Is an instrument to calculate the area on map with high
accuracy
 Steps:
 The Plannimeter dial is set zero
 Scale of the map is entered into the Plannimeter
 Tracing point is marked on the area to be
measured
 Tracing point is placed over the starting point –
then carefully moved over the Perimeter of the
area in clock-wise direction and returning to the
starting point
 Note the reading on the dial – at least 3 readings
should be taken for an area – measure at least
thrice
 A final area is recorded after taking the average of
the readings

90
  Indirect Methods of Measurements of Irregular Shapes
 Grid square:
 A grid is an array of horizontal and vertical lines intersecting each
other at right angles
 Each square is called grid cell

 Steps:
 A grid of known area (generally each cell =1cm2) is drawn on
tracing or transparent sheet
 These grids are overlaid on area of interest
 Count the full square that completely fall within the area
 Count the half or partial cells

Then, Area = [Full Cells + (half cells)/2 + (Quarter cells)/4] etc … X Cell value

 With the dot-Plannimeter method of aerial measurement which is a

variant of the grid square method, a regularly spaced pattern of dots is
placed over the map
 This is similar to the grid square method – the only difference is that
instead of using grids, dots are used

91
  Dots of known widths (generally 1 cm2) are overlaid on the shapes
 Number of dots within the shape and number of dots at the boundaries
are counted

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . .

 Area = [dots within + (dots @boundary)/2] X dot width

 In contrast to grid square method and strip method, which are exhaustive
counting methods, the dot Plannimeter method is simple procedure
 Strip method:
 In strip method, a series of parallel lines of known width (generally 1
cm2) are drawn over the area
 The end of each strip is formed by drawn vertical lines at the edge of
area being measured
 Length of each strip is measured
 Sum the individual strip lengths and multiply the total length with
strip width to get the area

 Area = Total strip length (cm) X strip width (cm)

92
 Strip Width

 Polygon method:
 It is based on methods of measurement for regular shapes
 Divide the area into number of regular shapes
 Measure the required parameters for each regular shape
 Calculate the area for each shape
 Sum the area to get the area of irregular shape

A B
C

 Area of
Enlargement and Reduction = Area
MapsA + Area B + Area C + Area D

 Sometimes you might like to use a map that you find in a book as an aid
for some demonstration purpose, in teaching or for a wall display dealing
with the certain developments some where in the world

 The problem you face is that the original map in the book, magazine or
atlas is drawn in such a small scale that it doesn’t lend itself very well
directly for wall poster display or teaching aid

 What is needed in this case is a change of scale, an enlargement of scale –

The opposite also might be the case

 You might like to use large-scale map as an illustration in your notebook

but you cannot possible fit that map on the page of your notebook

 What you now have to do is reduce the scale

93
 These changes of scale can be done accurately with the help of specially
designed machine called Pantograph or manually using Graphical
(Geometrical Method)

Scale = 1:50,000

 Optical
Scale = 1:100,000
instruments
such as Optical Pantograph and Cartographic Camera and/or making
use of computers (Computer-Assisted Methods) may serve the same
purpose

 But as they are not available everywhere, pantographs are simpler and less
accurately used

 The various steps are:

 Find the size/Scale of the original map through measurement

and your mind that about how big you want your new map to
be
 This will give you the scale of new map that you want to
construct
 The number of times you can increase the original scale is of
course decided by the size of the paper that is at your disposal
– suppose you are enlarging two times

94
  Draw a frame of your new map in such a way that the sides are
double to the sides of original map
 Cover the original map with a grid of 0.5 x 0.5 cm squares
(Grid), draw with a soft pencil so that it can be removed later
 Cover your map under construction with a 1 cm x 1 cm squares
 Using grid as guide, trace the major features that you want to
show on your enlargement map carefully with the pencil
 Finalize your map using ink, color etc… for the different
features that you wanted to show – Give other marginal
information of the map
 Check your work carefully – Remove your gridlines from the
map

 This method of enlargement or reduction of scale can be used for any kind
of drawing and the result is relatively accurate if your measurement and
tracing are accurately done

 Example: Given original scale 1:50,000

 Then, increased Twice  2/50,000 = 1:25,000 will be the scale of the new map
 Increased four times  4/50,000 = 1:12,500 will be the scale of the new map
 Decreased twice 1/ 2 x 50,000 = 1:100,000 will be the scale of the new map
Decreased four times  1/ 4 x 50,000 = 1:200,000 will be scale of new map And so on

95