Chapter Three Vocabulary
EARTH’S MODELS
Read the vocabulary word and definition. Rewrite the definition IN YOUR OWN
WORDS and draw a picture that illustrates the vocabulary word.
CARTOGRAPHER: ONE WHO MAKES MAPS
CONTOUR INTERVAL: THE DIFFERENCE IN ELEVATION BETWEEN TWO
CONSECUTIVE CONTOUR LINES.
CONTOUR LINES: LINES ON A TOPOGRAPHIC MAP SHOWING ELEVATION
OF LAND ABOVE OR BELOW SEA LEVEL, ALL POINTS CONNECTED BY A
LINE HAVING THE SAME ELEVATION
EQUATOR: THE IMAGINARY LINE DIVIDING EARTH’S SURFACE INTO
NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN HEMISPHERES; ESTABLISHES 0° LATITUDE
FALSE-COLOR IMAGE: A COMPUTER IMAGE THAT ASSIGNS DISTINCTIVE
COLORS TO DIFFERENT WAVELENGTHS OF LIGHT REFLECTED FROM A
DISTANT OBJECT, DELINEATING SURFACE FEATURES; USED FREQUENTLY
IN SATELLITE IMAGES OF EARTH FROM SPACE
HEMISPHERE: AN EQUAL DIVISION OF EARTH’S SURFACE INTO
NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN HALVES OR EASTERN AND WESTERN HALVES
LATITUDE: EAST-WEST LINES PARALLEL TO THE EQUATOR USED TO
MEASURE DISTANCE IN DEGREES NORTH AND SOUTH, FROM 0° AT THE
EQUATER TO 90° NORTH AND SOUTH AT THE POLES.
LONGITUDE: NORTH-SOUTH LINES RUNNING BETWEEN THE POLES, USED
TO MEASURE DISTANCE IN DEGREES EAST AND WEST OF THE PRIME
MERIDIAN, FROM 0° AT THE PRIME MERIDIAN TO 180° EAST AND WEST.
MAGNETIC DECLINATION: THE ANGLE BY WHICH THE COMPASS NEEDLE
VARIES FROM TRUE NORTH; MAGNETIC VARIATION
MAP: A FLAT, TWO-DIMENSIONAL REPRESENTATION OF EARTH’S
SURFACE AND FEATURES
PRIME MERIDIAN: THE IMAGINARY LINE DIVIDING EARTH’S SURFACE
INTO EASTERN AND WESTERN HEMISPHERES, ESTABLISHED AS 0°AT
GREENWHICH, ENGLAND; THE STARTING POINT FOR STANDARD TIME
ZONES
PROJECTION: A REPRESENTATION OF THE SPHERICAL EARTH ON THE
FLAT PLANE OF A MAP
RADAR: A METHOD OF DETECTING DISTANT OBJECTS AND RECORDING
THEIR FEATURES AND PROPERTIES BY ANALYSIS OF ELECTROMAGNETIC
WAVES REFLECTED FROM THEIR SURFACES
SLOPE: THE STEEPNESS OF A LANDSCAPE, CALCULATED AS THE CHANGE
IN ELEVATION DIVIDED BY THE DISTANCE COVERED
TOPOGRAPHIC MAP: A MAP THAT USES CONTOUR LINES AND SYMBOLS
TO SHOW THE SURFACE FEATURES OF A PARTICULAR AREA, INCLUDING
NATURAL FEATURES LIKE MOUNTAINS, VALLEYS, BODIES OF WATER, AS
WELL AS HUMAN-MADE FEATURES LIKE BRIDGES, BUILDINGS, AND
ROADS
TOPOGRAPHY: ALL NATURAL AND HUMAN-MADE SURFACE FEATURES OF
A PARTICULAR AREA