Latitude & Longitude
All maps are really projections, showing a round Earth as flat.
Not a lie, just s t r e t c h i n g the truth.
In space, there is
no such thing as
“up” or “down”!
Where do
latitudes
originate?
• Angles
NORTH or
SOUTH of
Equator.
• Create
parallel
lines.
Where do
longitudes
originate?
• Angles
EAST or
WEST of
Prime
Meridian.
• Meet at
Poles,
widest at
Equator.
77) A Fossil called
Asfaltomylos
patagonicus was
discovered near
point F on the
map. State the
latitude and
longitude to the
nearest degree.
Include the
correct units
and compass
directions in
your answer. [1]
44oS & 67oW
40oN, 50oE
All Longitudes in NY are West
Prime Meridian
Which New York State location has a
latitude of approximately 42°North?
(1) Jamestown
(3) Oswego
(2) Plattsburgh
(4) New York City
Near which city in New York State may this road sign
be found?
(HINT: pg 3 of the Earth Science Reference Tables)
Massena, NY
What is the approximate location of the
Canary Islands hot spot?
(1) 32° S 18° W
(3) 32° N 18° W
(2) 32° S 18° E
(4) 32° N 18° E
Mr. Pearl is vacationing on Slide Mountain.
What is his latitude and longitude?
(1) 42° 0’ N, 74º 27’ W
(2) 41° 55’ N, 74º 30’ W
(3) 42° 10’ N, 75º 5’ W
(4) 42° 1’ N, 74º 35’ W
Which location is closest to Dub Set
(White Plains, NY)?
(1) 41° N latitude, 74º W longitude
(2) 42º N latitude, 74º W longitude
(3) 43º N latitude, 76º W longitude
(4) 44º N latitude, 75º W longitude
Latitudes and Longitudes
from Space
From which New York State location would
Polaris be observed to have an altitude closest
to 43° above the northern horizon?
(1) Binghamton
(3) Watertown
(2) Utica
(4) New York City
How can we determine longitude?
• Earth constantly rotates,
Let’s calculate its rate…
• The sun only faces one side of the
Earth at a time (12 noon), hours
change East or West of the sun.
• Longitudes can be
determined from time.
(And time from longitudes!)
West is earlier (AM), and east
is later (PM)!
Earlier
(not yet noon)
Later
(past noon)
If it is 12 PM
(noon) at 0o,
what time is it
at 180o on the
other side of
the Earth?
12 PM (Noon)
12 AM
(Midnight)!
The world map above marks location A, in Angola.
If it is 3 PM there, what time is it by the star in Rio de
Janeiro, Brazil
1) 11 AM
3) 7 PM
2) 12 PM (noon)
4) 6 PM
As Earth rotates (from West to East), the sun
APPEARS to move through the sky from East
to West!
West
East
Where does the sun rise & set?
In fact, everything APPEARS to move through the
sky from East to West in circular paths!
Everything appears to move
except…
POLARIS
(The North Star)
Polaris is the last star in Ursa Minor
(The Little Dipper).
Ursa Major (The Big Dipper) helps point
you to Polaris.
Polaris is over
the North pole.
It ALWAYS
points you
north. (If you
are north of
the Equator!)
The height of Polaris in the sky is
equal to your latitude.
(ONLY NORTH of the Equator!)
The diagram shows an
observer on Earth
viewing the star
Polaris.
What is this observer’s
latitude?
(1) 38° N
(3) 52° N
(2) 38° S
(4) 52° S
The altitude of Polaris =
latitude North of
Equator!
o Angle
Polaris is at 90
0o Angle
30
o No N
Equator
New
North
Orleans
Pole
= 0=o latitude
90
= 30
What happens to height of Polaris as
you move toward the North pole?
How about if you move
SOUTH from the pole?
Where would you see Polaris if standing AT the
North Pole?
Polaris appears to be
at a 0o angle to a
person
Polarisat
is the
at aEquator
90o
(0oabove
latitude).
angle
the
North Pole. The
North pole is 90o
North latitude.
Which diagram best represents the view of Polaris to an
observer located at the Earth’s Equator?
Isolines
Mr. Pearl has the unfortunate task
of grading a student’s isomap.
There is at least one mistake on
the map though. Where is it?
Practice isolines with this link!
Topographic Maps
Simple
• Distance
• Legend
(w/ directional)
• Contour
Interval
• Sea level
• Slope
(or Gradient)
• Rivers
(& their
direction)
When is it a hill and
when is it a hole in
the ground?
100
300
300
100
When is it steep?
What is the
CONTOUR
INTERVAL of
this map?
The topographic map of an
island below measures
elevations in meters and has
a scale of 1cm = 2 km
(1) 40 m
(2) 10 m
(3) 0 m
(4) 20 m
Which point on this map has
an elevation of 73 m?
A
Elevations are in meters.
What is
the
elevation
of points:
A 70m
B 20m
D 10m
C 30m
E -10m (between 0m & -20m!)
The diagram shows a portion of a
topographic map. Based upon what
you see the value of Point A must be
(1) Greater than Point B
(2) Equal to Point B
(3) Less than Point B
(4) There is not enough information provided
What is the value of
Point A if the contour
interval is 25 m?
(1) 125 m
(2) 100 m
C
(3) 75 m
(4) 65 m
How about Point C?
60 m (51 – 74 m)
In which compass direction does
the water flow in Long Creek?
What is the elevation at point A
K
N
MB?
. 78
15 m
10 m
10 m
20 m
50 m
Which direction does Copper Creek flow?
How do you know?
. 78
The topographic map below shows a lake and two rivers.
In which direction does each of the rivers flow?
(1) The Sapphire River and the Garnet River both flow east.
(2) The Sapphire River and the Garnet River both flow west.
(3) The Sapphire River flows east and the Garnet River flows west.
(4) The Sapphire River flows west and the Garnet River flows east.
The air-pressure field
map represents a
high-pressure system
over the central
United States. Isobars
show the air pressure
in millibars (mb).
Areas of equal pressure may be found at locations
(1) A and C
(3) C and D
(2) B and E
(4) D and E
The small map identifies the
New York State region shown
in the topographic map.
What is the elevation
of point A on the
topographic map?
(1) 1,700 ft
(2) 1,600 ft
(3) 1,650 ft
(4) 1,550 ft
What is a possible elevation, in
meters, of point X?
(1) 55
(3) 68
(2) 57
(4) 70
The topographic map below shows
two hills labeled A and B. The
tributary streams labeled X and Y
have the same volume of water.
Which statement is best supported by the map?
(1) Hill A is higher than hill B.
(2) Stream X flows faster than stream Y.
(3) Hill B is higher than hill A.
(4) Stream Y flows faster than stream X.
Profiles
Review Profiling and
Contours at this Link!
The map shows sea-level air
pressure in millibars for a portion of
the eastern coast of North America.
The air pressure recorded at point D was most likely
(1)1014 mb
(2) 1012 mb
(3) 1010 mb
(4) 1006 mb
Topographic
maps are
contour maps
of elevations
(height)
above sea
level.
The map below is Topographic.
70
65
60
55
Elevations are in meters.
Point X is what elevation (in meters)?
(1) 55
(3) 68
(2) 57
(4) 70
The air-pressure field
map shows a High
pressure system over
the central U.S. Isobars
show the air pressure in
millibars (mb).
Areas of equal pressure may be found at locations
(1) A and C
(3) C and D
(2) B and E
(4) D and E
The map here is a topographic map measuring
elevations in feet.
What is the CONTOUR
INTERVAL of this map?
(1) 7000 ft
(2) 500 ft
(3) 7500 ft
(4) 100 ft
The map here is a topographic map This means
it is a contour map of the land.
What is the CONTOUR
INTERVAL of this map?
(1) 7000 ft
(2) 500 ft
(3) 7500 ft
(4) 100 ft
Which city in New
York State is
Cayuta Creek
nearest?
Elmira or Ithaca
http://www.worldatlas.com/aatlas/latitude_and_longitude_finder.htm
The temperature field map represents
surface air temperatures within a park. The
location of a lake within the park is indicated.
Which graph best represents the temperature
profile along a straight line from point A to point
B?
Which # is in the steepest location?
2
4
3
1
The approximate latitude of Utica, New York,
is…
(1) 43°05' N
(3) 75°15' E
(2) 43°05' S
(4) 75°15' W
The map of the world above indicates Longitudes and three
important reference Latitude lines for the planet Earth.
What is the time difference between two locations on
this map that are separated by 75o of Latitude?
Longitude?
1) 0 hours
2) 3 hours
3) 5 hours
4) 7 hours
The world map above marks location A, in The Democratic
Republic of Congo. If it is 3 PM there, what time is it by
the star in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
1) 11 AM
3) 7 PM
2) 12 PM (noon)
4) 6 PM
What is the
elevation of
Point Y?
7550 ft.
(7501 – 7599 ft)
The map indicates total rain and
snowfall amounts in different parts of
New York State.
Identify the New York landscape region that
has the greatest average yearly
amount of precipitation.
Match the correct topographic profile with the correct topographic map.
6
1
4
3
2
5
Which New York State Landscape Region is
located at approximately 43o10’ N & 78oW?
1) Taconic Mountains
2) Manhattan Prong
3) Erie-Ontario Lowlands
4) Allegheny Plateau
The four streams shown
on the topographic maps
have the same volume
between X and Y. The
distance from X to Y is also
the same. All the maps are
drawn to the same scale
and have the same
contour interval. Which
map shows the stream
with the greatest velocity
between points X and Y?
Toward which direction
does the Green River flow?
(1) northeast
What evidence can be used
to determine that the land
(2) southeast
surface in the northeast
corner of the map is
(3) northwest
relatively flat?
(1)
rapidly flowing river
(4) asouthwest
(3) the dark contour line labeled 300
(2) a large region covered by water (4) the absence of many contour lines
The topographic map below shows part of a stream.
In which general direction is
the stream flowing?
(1) northeast
(2) northwest
(3) southeast
(4) southwest
In which direction
does the Tenaya
Stream flow?
(1) South east
(2) South west
(3) North east
(4) West
N
Which area on the
map appears to have
the LARGEST change
over the SMALLEST
area?
(1) South of Point C
(2) East of Point X
(3) North of Point A
(4) West of Point Y
N
The diagram below shows an observer on Earth
measuring the altitude of Polaris.
What is the latitude of this observer?
(1) 90° N
(3) 43° N
(2) 66.5° N
(4) 23.5° N
If I am at White Plains, NY (410 N latitude)
and I walk to the North, Polaris will appear to
1) Get higher in the sky
2) Get lower in the sky
3) Move to the East
4) Approach the Prime Meridian