unit 2
Part D - Everyday Uses of GPS, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and Remote Sensing (RS)
*GPS* A hiker in Yosemite National Park cannot find the trailhead she is looking for using a paper map. She uses her smartphone to help her determine the exact location of the trailhead. -- *GIS* Once a satellite has gathered visual imagery of Earth, a NASA employee uses a computer-based tool to store and analyze the data. An employee at the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) needs to better understand a wetland area. He uses an overlay analysis that combines a soil data layer, a water moisture index, and a vegetation layer. -- *Remote Sensing (RS)* An urban planner needs to survey an area outside of a city to decide where a new housing development should be built. To help him make his decision, he hires a plane to collect aerial imagery of the urban outskirts. A scientist is interested in mapping urban expansion in China. To do so, she gathers satellite data from the last 10 years that has recorded radiation emitted from Earth.
Part E - Choosing a Map for a Specific Application Rank from largest scale map needed to smallest scale map needed.
*from Largest to Smallest* A new college student is lost on campus and uses a map on her smartphone to navigate from her dorm to a classroom. Tourists visiting Chicago need to figure out how to get from the airport to their hotel on the shore of Lake Michigan. A geologist is taking a trip across the United States, from California to Maine, to collect rock samples, and he creates a map of his route before leaving. A marine biologist is measuring the distance that bull sharks migrate from the coast of Brazil to the coast of the Mid-Atlantic United States. A climate scientist is particularly interested in how ocean currents transfer heat across the globe, and creates a map using satellite data to illustrate her findings.
Part B - Measuring Distance on a Map
*top* 6 units *from L to R* 4 units, 2 units, 5 units, 3 units
Part C - Calculating Real-World Distance
0.8 in -- 400 mi 2 in -- 1,000 mi 1.2 in -- 600 mi 1.8 in -- 800 mi
What is the highest value a line of longitude will have?
180 degrees
Which of the following statements best characterizes the aspect of a map?
Aspect is the location of the center of a map projection.
If you wanted to provide a rough estimate of surface parking available within 500 meters of the Pepsi Center, noted by a placemark of the same name, which of the Denver placemarks would provide the best possible scale for your analysis?
Denver 4
Based on the data in the African Rain folder, which of the following locations had the highest rainfall on June 12, 2012?
Freetown, Sierra Leone
Part B - Understanding Remote Sensing (RS)
Geographic data is often collected using remote sensing, which can then be processed using a GIS.
Part D - Further Exploring the Different Map Scale Types
If a map has a written scale of "1 cm = 500 m," and you are using this map to plan a trip with a total distance of 22 cm on the map, then your total distance on the ground will be 11,000 m. If a map has a representative fraction of "1:64,000," and you are planning a hike that would total 7 inches on the map, then your hike will be 448,000 inches on the ground.
Part A - Introduction to Map Scales Which of the following statements about using a map scale to calculate distance is true?
If two maps are the same size, but one has a 1:100 scale and the other has a 1:100,000, the second one maps a larger area of Earth's surface.
What was the impact of the Martellus map on the voyages of Christopher Columbus?
It convinced Columbus that China was much closer that it really was.
Why is the Waldseemüller map significant historically?
It is the first map to incorporate the name "America."
What is the significance of Greenwich, England, in the context of latitude and longitude?
It is the historically agreed-upon starting point for longitude.
Which of the following best describes latitude?
Latitude is used to measure distance north and south of the 0 degree line.
Part C - Geographic Information Systems (GIS)
Many people, not just scientists and geographers, use GIS on a regular basis. Because GIS can be used to statistically analyze geographic data, it is useful for a wide variety of disciplines, not just for cartographers and geographers to generate beautiful maps. GIS is capable of handling a variety of different data types, including temperatures, remote sensing imagery, addresses, and more.
Part A - Basics of the Global Positioning System (GPS)
Mapping areas where natural resources occur Recording mountain heights Determining an exact location Charting the distance covered when walking your dog.
How were maps an important tool for European powers during the 1500s?
Maps allowed European powers to chart discoveries in the New World, and then to compete with each other for control.
Which of the following locations on the Chief Mountain Quadrangle overlay has the steepest contour gradient?
North face of Yellow Mountain.
How did the first maps following the voyages of Columbus portray the New World?
The Americas were shown without a complete west coast.
Which of the following is TRUE concerning GPS technology?
The technology is freely available to the public.
If you found it necessary to have an even smaller scale perspective of Denver than is provided in the Denver 1 through Denver 5 placemarks, which of the following actions would you perform?
Zoom out from the Denver 1 placemark.
What is the graticule?
a name given to the system of lines used to locate points on Earth's surface
Which map projection class has longitude lines appearing as straight lines that diverge away from the North or South Pole and latitude lines appearing as arcs?
conic projection
Which map projection class has longitude lines appearing as straight, equally spaced parallel lines and latitude lines appearing as parallel lines that intersect the meridians at right angles?
cylindrical projection
Radar remote sensing is associated with wavelengths much shorter than those of visible light.
false
Which of the following is essential for GPS to function?
highly accurate clocks
One difference between any two different map projections must always be ________.
how the geographic grid is arranged
Which map projection is torn, or cut, in order to reduce shape distortion in specific parts of the map?
interrupted projection
A geographic information systems allows a link between data and a(n) ________.
map
Map projections are mainly derived ________.
mathematically
Which of the following is NOT a form of remote sensing?
measurement by thermometer
Which map projection class has longitude lines appearing as lines radiating from a central point and latitude lines appearing as concentric circles or ovals?
planar projection
What is the starting location (0 degree location) used for lines of longitude?
prime meridian
Which map projection class has longitude lines that curve in and converge, or nearly converge, at the poles and latitude lines appearing as parallel lines?
pseudocylindrical/oval projection
The type of remote sensing which penetrates clouds at night for accurate terrain representation is ________.
radar
Classes of map projections are based on the __________.
shape of the projection surface
A major advantage in using remote sensing is the ability to obtain precision measurements of Earth's surface.
true
On a Mercator projection, the North Pole would be represented by a line as long as the Equator.
true
