Map Reading Notes

WHAT IS A MAP
F A map is a diagram of the earth’s surface or part of the earth’s surface usually drawn
to scale on a flat piece of paper.
F Representation of the earth’s surface drawn down to scale on a flat piece of paper.

TYPES OF MAPS

Cartographers (people who draw maps) draw different types of maps depending on what they
want to show / represent on those maps. A type of map drawn is determined by the purpose
for which the map is drawn for.

i. Physical maps

These are maps which show natural features such as rivers, mountains, lakes, pans,
valleys, hills, etc. These landforms are also referred to as physical features or relief
features. Physical maps are usually used for land use planning and management (eg.
Flood control, planning for roads or rail way lines)

ii. Topographic maps

These maps show detailed physical features as well as human / man-made features
including settlements. The map would show features like houses, roads, rivers, dams,
mountains, etc.

iii. Weather maps

These maps are meant to show detailed weather conditions or weather forecasts of a place
for a given time period. The map is usually used by travellers, farmers, pilots etc. the
weather maps are sometimes referred to as synoptic charts.

iv. Climatic maps

These maps would show average weather conditions of places compiled over a long
period of time. The maps may show rainfall distribution over a country. These maps can
help one decides if the place would be suitable for farming activities or not looking at the
temperatures and rainfall amounts of the place shown by the map.

v. Political maps

These maps show political divisions of land into countries, districts, council wards, or
even towns and cities.
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 Map Reading Notes

CHARACTERISTICS OF A MAP

A proper map should have the following characteristics: title, Map key / legend, direction
and map scale.

i. Title

This is the heading of the map. It tells what the map is all about.

ii. Map key / Legend

Symbols are used to represent different real-life features on a flat sheet of paper when
drawing a map. A map key is a section of the map where all these symbols used in a map
are explained.

Example

iii. Direction

On a map, there is always an arrow (the North arrow), which shows the north direction of
the map. The arrow would usually point towards the top of the paper which would mean
South would be at the bottom of the page, East towards the right of the while West would
be towards the left of the page. If the map does not have the north arrow, always take the
top of the page to be North of that map. There are other directions in between these points
(inter-cardinal points) which may be used. These compass points are used to tell the
location of features / places in relation to others on a map.

Cardinal points

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 Map Reading Notes

Giving directions on a map

A place or feature can be located in relation to other places or features on a map using
direction. To locate a feature on a map using direction follow the steps bellow, using the
example stated.

“What is the direction of the school from the clinic?”

Step 1

Since the question says from the clinic, we go to the clinic to give the direction from
there.

Step 2

Draw cardinal points at the clinic [the centre of the cardinal points should be at the centre
of the clinic].

Step 3

Join the clinic and the school with a straight line

Step 4

Using your knowledge of directions determine the direction of the line joining the two
places, this would be the direction of the school form the clinic.

Bearings

Bearings can be used to give directions of places / features in relation to others on a map.
Bearings are more accurate than use of cardinal points when giving direction.

Bearings are angles measured in degrees ( 0) and are always measured in a clockwise
direction starting from the north line. Consider the following example on steps to follow:

“What is the bearing of B from A?”

Step 1

Since the question wants the bearing of B from A, we draw a straight vertical line (north
line) at A.

Step 2

Join the two points with a straight line.

Step 3

Use a protractor to measure the angle between the north line and the line joining the two
places. NB:Always measure in a clockwise direction.

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 Map Reading Notes

iv. Map scale

Maps are drawn on a small sheet of paper to represent very large areas of the earth’s
surface, but the real-life features on the earth’s surface are too big to fit on a map at their
exact sizes. A map scale is used to reduce the size of the real features to fit on a paper in
such a way that the actual size of the real features can still be determined. A scale can
therefore be defined as a relationship between the map distance and the actual ground
distance.

There are three types of map scales and these are: the statement scale, the ratio scale and
the linear scale.

a. Statement Scale
Words are used to describe the relationship between the map distance and the ground
distance. The map distance would be given in centimetres while the ground distance
would be in either metres or kilometres.
Examples
F One centimetre on the map represents one kilometre on the ground
F 1 centimetre represent 1 kilometre
F 1cm represents 1km

b. The Ratio / Representative Fraction Scale (R. F scale)

This scale uses a ratio or a fraction to show the relationship between the map distance
and the ground distance. Unlike the statement scale, no units are written on this type
of a scale BUT both the map and ground distances are in centimetres.
Examples
F 1:50 000 - this means 1 cm on the map represent 50 000cm on the
ground, or simplified, 1cm represents 500m or 0.5km on the ground.

F 1/100 000 ( ) - this means 1cm on the map represents 100 000cm on
the ground, or simplified, 1cm represents 1000m or 1km on the ground.

c. Linear Scale
This is a “ruler”-like line to show the relationship between the map distance and the
actual ground distance. The divisions on the line show the length of the map distance
while the numbers on the line show the length of the actual ground distance.
Example

To the right of the zero mark, we have each division representing 1km while to the
left of zero the 1km division is subdivided into ten equal divisions so that each of
these small divisions would represent 0.1km (or 100m).

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 Map Reading Notes

MEASURING DISTANCE
When measuring distances on a map, it is more accurate to use the linear scale
provided with the map. Both straight line and curved distances can be measured on a
map.
NB: When required to measure a distance between places / features on a map, always
start your measurement from the centre of the first feature to the centre of the second
feature.

a. Measuring straight line distances

Step 1
Place a straight edge of a paper across the two places/features (e.g Post Office (PO)
and School (Sch)). Mark and label ‘PO’ on the paper where the post office is and
‘Sch’ where the school is.
Step 2
Put the straight edged paper along the linear scale with the first mark (PO) at the zero
mark on the scale
Step 3
If the second mark (Sch), falls somewhere between whole numbers (e.g. between 3
and 4), then mark and label ‘Y’ on your paper where the last whole number covered
by your distance is (e.g. mark and label ‘Y’ where 3 is).
NB: this means the distance between PO and Sch is 3km and some distance less than
1km. [PO to Y = 3km]
Step4
To measure the remaining distance between ‘Y’ and ‘Sch’, use the subdivisions left of
the zero on the linear scale [the distance would be between 0.1km (100m) and 0.9km
(900m)] (e.g. 0.6km)
Step 5
The total distance between the post office and the school would be calculated as the
sum of distance between PO and Y and the distance between Y and Sch.
Total distance = (PO to Y) + (Y to Sch)
(e.g. 3 km + 0.6 km = 3.6km)

b. Measuring curved distances

Sometimes you may be required to measure curved distances such as the length of a
road, railway line, river etc.
It is worth noting that these curved distances are made up of small straight lines
joined together end to end.

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 Map Reading Notes

Consider the following line.

This is a curved line and it can be sub divided into small straight lines joined together
end to end to make a curved line as follows.

The curved line a-g is made up of small straight lines; a-b, b-c, c-d, d-e, e-f and f-g
joined together.

To measure the length of the curved distance from a to g follow the steps bellow.

Step 1
Put the straight edge of a paper along the first straight section of the line, mark and
label on your paper where it starts as ‘a’ and where it ends as ‘b’.
Step 2
Turn your paper along the next straight section of the curved line such that ‘b’ (which
is the last mark of the first straight section) becomes the first mark of the next straight
section and mark where this section ends as ‘c’.
Step 3
Repeat the process until the last straight section (f-g) is marked and labelled.
Step 4
Put the straight edged paper along the linear scale to measure the entire distance from
‘a’ to ‘g’ which would give the length of the curved distance that was measured.

DETERMINING HEIGHT ON A MAP

There are different ways of showing the height of features on a map. Map height is
always given in metres.

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 Map Reading Notes

i. Spot heights
A spot height is a dot / point / spot drawn on a map to tell the altitude (height
above sea level) of land at that particular place. A number written next to the
dot has no units but it represents the height of land at that place in metres.
ii. Trigonometric Stations
These are points represented on a map by triangles. Next to the triangle there
would be a number with no units (e.g. 1142.6) and another number combined
with alphabets/letters (e.g. BPQ 256). The number with no units represents the
altitude at that point and the other number with letters is the name of that
particular trig. station. I.e. this trig. Station is called BPQ256 and it is at an
altitude of 1142.6m.

iii. Contour lines

Contour lines/contours are lines drawn on a map to join places of the same
altitude. To determine the height of a feature, follow the contour that passes
across that feature (or the closest contour to that feature) to find the number
written on it. The number would appear on the contour and it has no units but
it tells the height of that place in metres.
If the contour you are following has no value on it, you can use other contours
next to it to determine its value.
NB: the height between any two consecutive contours on a map is called the
VERTICAL INTERVAL. The vertical interval would be the same throughout
that map for any given map.

CALCULATING MAP GRADIENT

Gradient refers to the sloppiness of land. It shows how the land rises across a given
horizontal distance.
Gradient can be presented in the form of a fraction with the numerator being the
height (land rising by 1m) and the numerator being the horizontal distance travelled in
order for that land to rise by 1m.
Example
1/1.5 this means for one to rise by 1 metre, you have to travel a horizontal
distance of 1.5 metres across that land.

Gradient can also be presented as a ratio

Example
1:5 this means the land rises by 1 metre for every 5 metres travelled across
the land.

Gradient can also be presented using words.

Example 23s4d5f6l-;=\
4

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 Map Reading Notes

1 in 3.56 this means the land rises by 1 metre for every 3.56 metres
travelled across the land.

How To Calculate Map Gradient

Gradient = (height of place A – height of place B)/Distance between the two places

Example
If trig. Station BPQ 256 (1142.6) and spot height (1056.6) are 5km apart, what is the
gradient between the two places?

G = (1142.6m – 1056.6m) / 5km

Step 1
Note that the heights are given in metres and the distance is given in kilometres,
therefore to work out the gradient change all the measurements into metres. To do so,
multiply the 5km by 1000 to get 5000m.

G = (1142.6 – 1056.6)/5000
= 86/5000

Step 2
Divide both the numerator and the denominator with the value of the numerator
G = (86÷86)/5000÷86) = 1/58.1
G = 1:58.1

CALCULATING AREA

Sometimes one may be required to calculate an area on a map, e.g. area of land cultivated, or
area of land covered by water, etc.

To calculate this area, it’s worth noting that topographic maps are usually drawn on a grid of
squares. In most cases, (depending on the scale used for the map), each squire covers an area
of 1km2.

The formula used to calculate area is Area=(full squares + (part squares divided by 2)1km2

Example

Calculate the area covered by the rough circle drawn.

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 Map Reading Notes

Step 1
Count all the full squares within the place (area of interest), the whole square should
be completely inside the place whose area is being calculated,
In this case, the full squares are those numbered 19, 20, and 24.
NB Square number 23 is not included as part of it is outside our area.
Therefore full squares = 3
Step 2
Count all the part squares, these are the squares that are not fully in the area we are
calculating, only part of the square is covered by the place whose area we are
calculating.
In this case, part squares will be squares numbered 8, 9, 10, 11, 18, 21, 22, 23, 25, 32,
33 and 35.
NB square 11 is included even though just a very small part of the square is in our
place of interest. Square 23 is also counted as a part square because a small part of
this square is outside our place of interest.
Therefore part squares = 12
Step 3
Use the formula to calculate the total area covered by our rough circle

Area = (3 + (12/2)1km2
= (3 + 6)1km2
= 9km2

LOCATING PLACES ON A TOPOGRAPHIC MAP

Grid Reference

A topographic map has vertical and horizontal lines drawn on it. These lines form a network
of squares called a grid.

The vertical lines are called Eastingsbecause their value increases as you move towards the
east or to the right hand side of the map.

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 Map Reading Notes

The horizontal lines are called Northings because their valueincreases as you move towards
the north or upward in the map.

To locate a place / feature using a Four Figure Grid Reference, follow the steps below

Step 1

Find the south west corner of the grid square where the feature is located

Step 2

Note the value of the easting (vertical line) i.e. 20

Step 3

Note the value of the northing (horizontal line) i.e. 37

Step4

To locate the features combine the two figures from the easting and the two figures from the
northing to have the four figures which show the location of the feature. i.e. 2037

NB: When grid referencing, the value of eastings is always written first then followed by the
value of northings.

To locate a place / feature using Six Figure Grid Reference, follow the steps below

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 Map Reading Notes

Step 1

Divide the grid square where the feature is located into ten equal parts along the easting and
along the northing.

Step 2

Follow the steps for using four figure grid reference.

Step 3

To get the third value of eastings, take the value of the easting that passes across the feature
from the smaller divisions you made i.e. 5. This means the feature is 5 steps from easting 20
and the final easting will be 205.

Step 4

To get the third value of the northings, take the value of the northing that passes across the
feature from the smaller divisions you made i.e. 8. This means the feature is 8 steps from
northing 37 and the final northing will be 378.

Step 5

To locate the feature combine the three figures from the easting and the three figures from the
northing to have the six figures which show the location of the feature. i.e. 205378

NB: When grid referencing, the value of eastings is always written first then followed by the
value of northings.

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 Map Reading Notes

Latitudes and longitudes

These are imaginary lines that run across the globe. Both lines are measured in degrees ( 0).

Latitudes

These are horizontal lines that cut across the globe from west to east. The major latitude is the
Equator which divides the earth into two halves, the Southern hemisphere and the northern
hemisphere. The equator is measured at zero degrees (00). All other latitudes above the
equator are in the northern hemisphere and their value increases as you move towards the
north (upwards) up to 900. All latitudes in the northern hemisphere are measured in degrees
North e.g. from 10N to 900N. All other latitudes below the equator are in the southern
hemisphere and their value increases as you move towards the south (downwards) up to 90 0.
All latitudes in the southern hemisphere are measured in degrees South e.g. from 1 0S to 900S.

Longitudes

These are vertical lines that cut across the globe from the North Pole to the South Pole. The
major Longitude is the Greenwich meridian which divides the earth into two halves, the
Eastern hemisphere and the Western hemisphere. The Greenwich meridian is measured at
zero degrees (0 0). All other longitudes to the left of the Greenwich meridian the Western
hemisphere and their value increases as you move towards the west (leftwards) up to 180 0.
All longitudes in the western hemisphere are measured in degrees West e.g. from 1 0W to
1800W. All longitudes to the right of the Greenwich meridian are in the Eastern hemisphere
and their value increases as you move towards the east (to the right) up to 180 0. All
longitudes in the eastern hemisphere are measured in degrees East e.g. from 1 0E to 1800E.

Locating places using latitudes and longitudes

To locate a place using latitudes and longitudes follow the steps below:

Step 1

Note the latitude closest to the place you are locating

Step 2

Note the longitude closest to the place you are locating.

Step 3

Write the location starting with the latitude followed by the longitude.

For example: Ghanzi in Botswana is located at 220S 220E.

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 Map Reading Notes

Describing Human Activities In Relation To Map Features

A map has different features, both man-made and natural, when looking at the distribution
and arrangement of these features on a map, one can describe different land use activities,
settlement patterns and services provided in a place.

Services provided

There are no services that can be seen directly from a map. The facilities seen on a map are
used to interpret what services are provided in a map.

For Example

Facilities seen on a map Services Provided

Road, railway line, airport, air Transport
strip, etc.
School Education
Clinic, hospital, health post, Health
Power station, power lines, Power supply
Dam, reservoirs, well, Water supply
boreholes, etc.
Sport fields, club, casino, Entertainment/recreation
Offices Administration
Police station, prison, army Security
barracks
Post office, telephone lines Communication
Hostels, staff quarters, hotel, Accommodation
motel, lodge, guest house

Economic Activities

Just like services, economic activities cannot be seen directly from the map but there are
some features on the map that can be used to interpret what activities are taking place on the
map.

For Example

Features seen on the map Economic Activities

Dip tank Pastoral farming
Mine name, prospecting trench, Mining
mine dump, quarry/excavation
Cultivation, orchard/plantation Arable farming
Game park, museums Tourism
Fish ponds Fishing

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 Map Reading Notes

Land Forms

All human activities are carried out on land and therefore the landforms will influence such
activities taking place. For example, some places are not inhabited because they are rocky /
hilly / mountainous or maybe because they have some seasonal marsh. Contours, or contour
lines, can be used to represent / show different landforms.

For Example

Landform Description Arrangement of Contours

Contours
A land that slowly Contours are far apart,
/gently rises up or there are spaces between
Gentle slope drops as you the contour lines, the far
move across it. apart they are the more
flat the land becomes.
A land that Contours are closer to
suddenly rises or each other. The spaces
Steep slope drops as you between them are very
move across it. small. The smaller the
space between the
contours, the steeper the
slope is.
A land that is very Contours are so close
Cliff steep its almost together they almost
vertical merge into one.
The lower part of Contours with a lower
the slope is gentle value have wider space
and it becomes between them and as you
Concave steeper as you move across to contours
slope move up the slope with larger value, the
spaces between them
become smaller.
The lower part of Contours with a lower
the slope is steep value have a small space
and it becomes between them and as you
Convex slope more gentle as move across to contours
you move up the with a larger value, the
slope spaces between them
become wider.
A small round 2 – 4 circular contours
hill, which is close to each other. Other
Knoll usually isolated contours close to them
will have a wider space
as compared to those of
the knoll

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 Map Reading Notes

An elevated hill Circular contours with

with even and the inner contours having
Rounded hill gentle slopes on higher values. The
each side. contours will be more in
number as compared to
those of a knoll.
An elevated hill Circular contours with
with steep slopes the inner contours having
on each side and higher values. The
have a narrower contours are closer
Conical hill summit as together as compared to
compared to a those of a rounded hill.
rounded hill. The contours will be
more in number as
compared to those of a
knoll
A narrow piece of Contours form a
high land. narrower shape, they are
Ridge closer together and the
contours towards the
centre have a higher
value.
Saddle A shallow Contours look like those
depression of two hills pushed close
between the to each other and have a
summits of two space between the centre
hills or peaks. contours
A long narrow Contours are V-shaped
Valley depression of land and pointed, the inner
between two contours haver lower
highlands. values. The V points
towards higher ground.
A narrow piece of Contours are more
Spur land rounded and the inner
contours have higher
values. The contours
point towards lower
ground.

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