Laboratory Manual for Introductory Geology 4e

EXERCISE 9.6
Name:
Course:
Survival of the Fittest (Those Who Can Read a Topographic Map) (continued)
Section:
Date:
Your route to safety on Survivor Island.
Leg #
Direction of leg
(in degrees)
Length of
leg (in miles)
Leg #
1 11
2 12
3 13
4 14
5 15
6 16
7 17
8 18
9 19
10 20
Total distance
Direction of leg
(in degrees)
Length of
leg (in miles)
(b) How many days will the trip take?
(c) Will you have to stop for water?
If so, on what day do you get to the well?
(d) How many days will it take to get from the well to the lighthouse?
(e) Where is the highest point on the island? Give its elevation as precisely as you can.
(f) What is the elevation of the lowest point in Sinking Feeling Basin?
(g) Which is the steepest side of Deadman’s Mountain?
9.5 Topographic Profiles
Topographic maps provide what is called a map view of an area—what the topography
looks like from above. It is often useful to visualize what that area would look
like in the third dimension as well. This section shows how to create a simple profile
using an appropriate vertical scale.
9.5.1 Drawing a Topographic Profile
One benefit of using a topographic map is that it is easy to construct an accurate
topographic profile, a cross-sectional view of the topography along a particular line.
GIS software, such as MICRODEM or Google Earth, can draw the profile for you from
digital data, but to learn what a profile can and cannot do, it is best to draw profiles
by hand. Following the steps outlined below will create the profile that you will use
in Exercise 9.7 to analyze a real-life project involving cell phone tower placement.
FIGURE 9.8 shows the area for which a profile is needed.
9.5 TOPOGRAPHIC PROFILES
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