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CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION TO MAP READING

MAPS, CONVENTIONAL SIGNS, SCALE AND GRID SYSTEMS

Definition of Map

1. A map represents selected natural and manmade features of the whole or part of the earth's surface
on a sheet of paper. It has a definite scale and correct relative geographical positions and elevations.
Symbols, colour differences and contours on map help to show the physical features i.e. mountains, valleys
and plains. Maps show important natural and cultural features such as relief, vegetation, water bodies,
cultivated land, settlements, and transportation networks, etc. These maps are prepared and published by
the National Mapping Organisation of each country. The science of making maps is called as Cartography.
For example, the Survey of India prepares the topographical maps in India for the entire country. A map,
however, has one major limitation that it cannot show everything that exists on the ground.

Conventional Signs

2. Conventional signs are symbols used to represent certain artificial or natural features/objects on the
map. Some common types of conventional signs are listed as follows in Figure - 1

(a) Roads-metalled with Km-stone.

(b) Roads-unmetalled with Km-stone.

(c) Cart track, camel track, mule path.

(d) Footpath, road in bed of stream, Level crossing.

(e) Bridges with pier sand without, Causeway, Ford.

(f) Stream-Approx water course, canal River banks,

shelving, steep 10 to 20 feet,, over 20 feet.

(g) River beds-dry, with stream, With island and rocks.

(h) Tidal river-shoal-submerged rocks.

(i) Wells-lined and unlined, spring, Tanks- perennial

and dry.

(j) Kaeaz - in, flow and dry, swamp, Reeds.

(k) Embankments, road or rail, tank cutting tunnel.

(l) Broken ground, camping ground, Vineontrellis.

(m) Railways, broad gauge, Double, Single (Station),

under construction.
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(n) Railways other Gauges, double, Single (milestone)

and under Construction.

(o) Light railway or tramway, Telegraphline.

(p) Circuit house, Dak, Travellers, Bungalow, Rest

House.

(q) Inspection bungalow, Police station, Buddhist

Kyaung.

(r) Post office, telegraph office, Combined office.

(s) Forest-reserved, state and protected.

(t) Spaced names, Administrative, Locality, tribal.

(u) Villages: open, walled, ruined, Deserted antiquities.

(v) Huts, permanent and temporary, Fort, Tower

chhatvi.

(w) Church, Mosque, Temple, Pagoda, Idgah, tomb.

(x) Dams, masonry and Earthwork-work.

(y) Grass high and low cane, Bamboo plantation.

(z) Palms, Areca, palmyra, Other conifer, other trees,

scrub.

(aa) Contours, Form lines, Rocky slopes.

(ab) Cliffs-sand features.

(ac) Moraine, Glacier, Screen.

(ad) Boundary demarcated; International.

(ae) Boundary demarcated; Province or state.

(af) Boundary un-demarcated; International, province or

state.

(ag) Boundary; district or Tribal.

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(ah) Boundary; Sub Divisional, Tehsil, Taluka or

township forest.

(aj) Boundary pillars, surveyed, not found.

(ak) Graves, oil wells, Mine-Battle field with year.

(al) Heights triangulated, Bench Mark.

- 200, BM200

SCALES AND GRID SYSTEMS

Scale

3. Scales help us work out distance to our destination and therefore how long it will take us to get there.
The smaller the area a map covers, the larger the scale will be. So if you have a map on a square meter of
paper and the scale of the map is 1:50,000 and another map on the same size paper with a scale of 1:25,000,
the area covered by the first map will be 4 times the area covered by the second map. Every map will carry a
scale, not just the value of say 1:50,000, but also a depiction of that scale.

Definition

4. Scale is the proportion which the distances

between the two points on the map that relates to the
distance between two points on the ground. Everything
on the map must be reduced and the extent to which the
size is reduced makes the scale of the map.

Methods of Expressing a Scale

5. There are two methods of expressing a scale:-

(a) In Words. 1 inch to 1 mile, it means that 1 inch on the map represents 1 mile on the
ground.

(b) As a Representative Fraction (RF). This is the scale expressed in the form of a fraction.
If the scale of a map is given as 1/100000 this means that one unit of the map represents 100000 of
the same unit on the ground. It could mean that one centimetre on the map represents 100000 cm on
the ground.

Scale Line

6. Below the scale is the scale line by means of

which distance on the map can be measured. In this scale
2 cm on map is equal to 1 km on ground. An example of
s shown.

Definition of Grid and Grid Lines

7. The Grid is a systematic pattern on Earth by laying a vertical and horizontal grid over the Earth's
layout. The vertical lines are called the longitude and the horizontal lines are known as the latitude.
Combinations of these lines are known as Grid Lines.

Purpose

8. The purpose of Grid Lines is to make possible giving and reading Grid References and to facilitate
measurement of bearings.
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Method of Grid Reference

9. In giving a Grid Reference following rules should be

remembered:-

(a) A reference must always contain an even

number of figures, normally it contains six figures.
(b) EASTING lines are the black colour vertical
lines.
(c) NORTHING lines are the black colour
horizontal lines.
(d) Always count along the EASTING lines first
from the WEST to EAST and then NORTHING from
SOUTH to NORTH.
(e) Grid References are of different types viz.
Four Figure, Six Figure, Eight Figure and Ten Figure.
(f) Mostly Six Figure Grid Reference is used.
(g) For six figure Grid Reference the third and the Sixth figure represent the divisions of 1000
meters square to the nearest 10th part, so they have to be estimated and for these figures a slight
latitude is allowed.
(h) If a general Grid Reference is to be given or there is only one such object in one square e.g.
bridge, temple, road junction then its identity and four figure grid reference would suffice.

10. Example

(a) As we already said when giving a four figured grid

reference, always give the Easting number first and the
northings number second. In the diagram, the number 4 is in
square 28 across (on the horizontal) and square 54 up (on the
vertical) and therefore, the four-

(b) The other number in the square above would get the
following grid:- 2755; 2855; 2754; 2854.

(c) In order to be little more precise with your grid

references, you can give a 6 figure grid reference as shown in
diagram 5b.

(d) Here, we have taken the lower right square from the
previous diagram and divided it by 10 in each direction. The
circle is in the four-
more accurately it is 2 tenth across and 7 tenths up with in that
enlarged grid square, therefore the six-figure ma
references of 257522.

Topographical Forms and Technical Terms

11. Topographical. forms are names used to describe geographical features which occur on the
ground. The following are more commonly used:-

S No Topographical Forms Samples

(a) Basin: An area of fairly level ground
surrounded by hills or the area drained by a
river or its distributaries.
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(b) Col or saddle: A narrow ridge of high land

joining up to higher hills.

(c) Crest: A highest part of hill or mountain range.

It is that line on the range of hills or mountains
from which the ground slopes down in opposite
direction.

(d) Dead Ground: Ground which because of

undulations or hills is not visible to the
observer.

(e) Knoll: A small isolated hill.

(f) Plateau: A table land, an elevated region of

considerable extent generally of same level.

(g) Ridge: A line along a hill or range of hills or

mountains from which water flows in opposite
directions.

(h) Spur: A piece of high ground jutting out of

range of hills into lower ground.

(i) Watershed: The line separating the water

flowing in two different rivers systems, the edge
of a river basin.

(j) Defile: Any feature whether natural or artificial

which could cause a body of troops to contract DEFILE
its front. An example of a natural defile is
mountain pass while bridge is an example of an
artificial defile.

(k) Escarpment: The steep hill side formed by a

ESCARPMENT
sudden drop in the general ground level usually
from a plateau.

(l) Bearing: The angle formed by a line joining two

points and the North and South line. Bearings
are always measured clockwise.
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(m) Bench Mark: A permanent mark usually cut

into a wall recording exact height for future
reference. It is marked as BM with height on
Ordnance Survey Maps.

(n) Gradient: The slope of a hill expressed as a

fraction.

(o) Spot Height: A point on a map whose height

has been determined by Survey methods.
These are usually shown as block dot with a
number giving exact height above sea level in
meters.

(p) Trigonometric Point: A point fixed during the

triangulation at the beginning of a survey,
marked on Ordnance Survey Maps by a small
triangle with the height.

(q) Contours: A line drawn on the map joining up

all points of equal height above sea level.

(r) Grid Lines: Lines running parallel to and at

right angle to a North and south or East and
West, Grid North is the direction of the North
South grid lines on a map.

(s) Magnetic Variation: The difference between

True North and Magnetic North.

(t) Horizontal Equivalent: The distance

measured on the map between adjacent
contour lines. It varies according to the nature
of the relief.
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Relief, Contours and Gradients

12. Relief means the shape of the ground in a vertical plane.

Representation of a relief on a map means showing of heights and shape
of the ground above or below or datum which is normally sea level. Thus
it shows the broad features and relative heights of highlands and low lands
which are portrayed on the map. Relief is shown with means of hachure,
shading, form lines, layer tints, contours, spot heights, trig heights, bench
marks and relative heights.

13. Contour is an imaginary line drawn on map showing

same height from mean sea level. If you walk along a contour
line you neither gain nor loose elevation. The Contours have
following characteristics:-

(a) Contours accurately show height, shape and

slope of the ground.
(b) Contours are shown generally in brown.
(c) Height is marked on every fifth contour.
(d) Contour lines vary in appearance.
(e) These lines never touch or cross each other.

14. Slope means a surface of which one end or side is at a higher level than another. Contour lines
represent to slope that is, closer the contour lines are, the steeper is the slope of the hill. If representation of
slopes the contour lines are far apart, the slope down is gradual. The slopes are of two types, convex and
concave. A convex slope is the one which bulges outwards and concave slope is the one which curves inwards.

15. Gradient is the slope of the ground expressed as the angle the ground makes with the horizontal A
gradient of 1 in 15 means that in a horizontal. The horizontal equivalent is obtained by measuring on the map
and vertical interval by subtracting the contour heights. You may often need to know just how steep a piece
of ground is, whether a road is too steep for a certain type of vehicle to negotiate. The gradient can be worked
out quickly from a contoured map. The rise or fall of a slope can be expressed in following two ways:-

(a) In an Angle or Degree of Slope.

(b) The tangent of the Angle or Gradient.

CARDINAL POINTS AND TYPES OF NORTH

16. Cardinal Points. North, South, East and West are known as the cardinal points. If the North point is
taken as zero degrees, East will be 900, South will be 1800, and the West point forms an angle of 2700. In
addition to four Cardinal Points and four intermediate four major directions, there are eight minor directions.
The names and degrees are as under:-
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(a) North North East - 22 & ½ Degrees

(b) East North East - 67 & ½ Degrees
(c) East South East - 112 & ½ Degrees
(d) South South East - 157 & ½ Degrees
(e) South South West - 202 & ½ Degrees
(f) West South West - 247 & ½ Degrees
(g) West North West - 292 & ½ Degrees
(h) North North West - 337 & ½ Degrees

17. Types of North There are three types of North :-

(a) True North. The direction of North Pole from the

observer.
(b) Grid North. North as per the Grid on map.
(c) Magnetic North. It is the point to which a
magnetic needle points, when freely suspended.

Magnetic Variation and Grid Convergence

18. True North is Constant. Magnetic North is the

point to which the compass needle points. The needle does not
point directly to True North, but a little West or East of True North.
The point towards which the needle swings is known as Magnetic
North and the difference between True North and Magnetic North
is called Magnetic Variation. The amount of the Magnetic Variation
depends upon two factors, time and place as at Fig below.

Magnetic Variation

19. Time. The Variation is not constant but is, gradually changing and even the change each year is not
constant but the difference being negligible it is taken to be constant. On the top margin of a map will be found
a statement giving the Magnetic Variation. To bring this up-to-date, the year of issue of the map must be noted
and for every year that has passed since then the applicable change annually subtracted or added from the
figure given as applicable.

20. Place. The amount of the Magnetic Variation also changes in different parts of the world and indeed
in different parts of the country.

Grid Convergence

21. The angular difference between Grid and True North is called the Angle of Convergence or the Grid
Convergence.

CONCLUSION

22. Knowledge about Cardinal points and types of North is the first step towards learning map reading.
This knowledge is necessary not only with respect to maintaining direction during navigation; but also comes
handy in our other daily activities. A good navigator has the ability to quickly orient himself as per the cardinal
directions almost naturally; this helps in getting a sense of direction and helps to find out our own position
subsequently.