Geography Project

Part 1

School: Primus Public School

City: Bengaluru
Academic Year: 2023 – 2024
Subject: Geography

Amaresh
9A ICSE
Index
Preface
This project explains:
a. The uses of Maps
b. Reading and using statement of scale, graphic scale and
scale shown by representative fraction method.
c. Drawing and recognizing forms of important contours viz.
valleys, ridges, types of slopes, conical hill, plateau, and
cliff.

I would like to thank the principal of my school, Vineetha

Ma’am for giving me this opportunity to complete this project.

I would also like to thank my Geography teacher, Helen ma’am

for giving me insight on this project and teaching me. In
addition, I want to thank my parents and my friends for helping
me with other aspects in this project.
Types of Maps

There are many diverse types of maps that we may use in our
daily life. Maps show certain characteristics or features of a
place on a 2D projection. It shows a scaled down
representation of where things are on Earth. Maps usually have
scales to represent how many units on the map is how far in
real life. Keys represent certain landmarks that are common on
the map. A map may use many distinct colours for representing
each feature.
There are about nine different kinds of maps explained in this
project.

1. Political Map
2. Physical Map
3. Topographic Map
4. Climate Map
5. Road Map
6. Thematic Map
7. Navigational Chart Map
8. Time Zone Maps
9. Geological Map
Political Map
Maps that show different Countries, States, Cities and Towns
are called political maps. They show the boundaries between
these denoted by lines. It may also include major water bodies
with blue colour. These maps separate different regions that
are administered by different bodies. They can be large or
small, covering many countries, a country’s states, etc.

Physical Map
A physical map focuses on the geography of a region. It shows
features like mountains, rivers, lakes. It can even show the
different elevations of places denoted by different colours.
Sometimes it can also show the borders of major areas. Blue
colour is marked for water bodies. For terrain usually, green is
marked for lower elevations and brown for higher elevations.
Physical maps usually have a key in which places on the map
are marked with this. The key denotes different colours for
different features. One other important feature is the scale. The
scale shows the approximate distance on the map is to in real
life (ex: 1cm on the map: 1000km in real life).
The political map of India showing the
different states.

The physical map of India

Topographic Map
A topographic map specifically shows the different elevations of
a region denoted by contour lines. They are spaced at regular
intervals to show elevation changes. Colour shades can also be
shown along with the lines to show elevation. It depicts the 3-
dimensional terrain in a 2-dimensional paper. Topography
maps are commonly used in geography, geology, surveying,
educational aspects, military aspects and for exploration.

Climate Map
A climate map shows the climate of a region. It may show
temperature, humidity, or precipitation. Different colours given
by a key explain the factors mentioned above. Typically, shades
of blue are denoted for cold, and shades of red are denoted for
hot. The map legend may also denote show each climate zone
with its distinct colours.

Road Map
It is the most common type of map used. They show major and
minor highways. They can also show airports and ports. They
can also show other features like points of interests such as
parks, hotels, grounds, and monuments. You can use road maps
Thematic Map
Thematic maps focus on a single theme of an area, ex:
population density, rainfall, or average annual income. They
may also portray other natural and man-made features in the
background. It shows the spatial distribution of the information
obtained, helping you to look for patterns or related
information easily.

Navigational Chart Map

These maps show the shoreline and the depth of the seafloor at
that location. Sailors and other watercraft users use these types
of maps. They show information such as depth contours, tidal
elevations, tidal streamlines, and waypoints.

Time Zone Maps

Time zone maps show the standard time of one place at each
time zone. Travellers use it to see what time it is at the place to
where they are travelling to. The countries in each time zone
share the same time. 15 degrees of longitude makes up 1 hour.
There are twenty-four time zones on Earth. Each time zone is
denoted by its distinct colours.
Geological Map
Geological Maps show features of distribution of rocks, soil,
and sediment on Earth. It can also show different rock types. It
is used in geology, engineering, mining, and archaeology.
Scale
A scale is the ratio of the distance on the map to the distance
on Earth. They help us relate the distances on the map to the
distance on Earth. The three main common scales are the
written scale, graphic scale, or a fractional scale.

Written Scale
A written scale uses words to describe the ratio of the distance
on the map to Earth. For example, it can be represented as: 1
Centimetre on the map is equal to 100km on Earth.
Graphic Scale
Graphic scales are represented by bars much like a ruler that
show the physical distance on the map is equivalent to on
Earth. To read this scale, two points on a map are kept for
consideration. The distance between these two points is
measured with a ruler. The ruler then is applied on the graphic
scale, showing the distance it would be on Earth.
Fractional Scale
A fractional scale is represented either by a fraction or a ratio. It
tells how much distance on the map is equivalent to the
distance on Earth using the same unit. For example, if 1 cm on
the map is equivalent to 1,000,000 cm on Earth, it is
represented as, 1/1,000,000cm or 1:1,000,000cm.
1 cm is equal to 100 km

1:1,000,000cm

Contour lines
Contour lines are a mix of straight lines and curves that
describe the area, topography, or any quantitative factors. They
are usually drawn on 2 dimensional surfaces to indicate the
height of a region. Contour maps may include a key. Contour
lines can be coloured to denote the different elevations it is
present at.

How to draw Contour lines

Contour lines describe the elevation of a place based on the
difference between two markings. The key denotes the
elevation between two contour points. The closer the distance
between the two contour lines, the greater the slope between
those two points on the contour lines.

Identifying Types of slopes

Gentle slope
It has a great distance between the two lines denoting a steady
undulating surface. It may be very easy to walk on that slope.
Steep slope
The contour lines are very close together indicating a great
elevation between two points on the slope. The slope is great
and very difficult or impossible to traverse across.

Concave slope
The lines would be placed closely on the top of the terrain and
widely spaced on the bottom. This means that the slope on the
top is greater on the bottom. The slope slowly increases as you
go higher.

Convex slope
The lines would be widely placed on the top and closely placed
on the bottom. The slope on the top is less than the slope on
the bottom. The slope slowly decreases in altitude.

Conical hill
There is a constant slope. The contour lines are arranged in a
usually in a spherical shape. It is like a small hill in the middle of
an area.
Ridge
A ridge is a sloping line of high ground. When standing on the
centre of a ridge, there is usually low grounds in 3 directions
and a high ground. One direction has varying degrees of slopes.
The contour lines tend to be a U or a V shape.

Depression
Depression is a low point on the ground or a sinkhole in the
Earth. It is represented as a circle as a contour line on the map
with tick marks pointing towards the lower area.

Cliff
A cliff is an extremely sloping hill. It may be almost vertical. The
contour lines depicting the cliff, are very compact and
sometimes touching. There may be tick marks given, indicating
the side of the low land.

Plateau
It is a raised flat land with land on all sides. The plateau must be
at least 500m above the rest of the land. The contour lines
would be closer on the edge of the plateau than in the middle.
The middle would depict a flat land with having less or even
none of the contour lines.
Bibliography

Important types of Maps:

https://www.spatialpost.com/map/
https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/map/
https://www.edrawsoft.com/what-is-political-map.html
https://www.edrawsoft.com/what-is-physical-map.html
https://www.edrawsoft.com/what-is-topographic-map.html
https://www.maptive.com/thematic-map-examples/

Scales:
https://education.nationalgeographic.org/resource/map-scale/
https://www.spatialpost.com/what-are-contour-lines/
#:~:text=The%20types%200f%20contoury20lines,thinner
%20lines%20between%20Index%20Lines.

Identifying different contours:

https://www.bushwalking101.org/interpreting-map-features/
Geography Project
Part 2

School: Primus Public School

City: Bengaluru
Academic Year: 2023 – 2024
Subject: Geography

Amaresh
9A ICSE
Preface
This project explains the natural region of the world known as
“The Mediterranean Climate”.

Acknowledgment
I would like to thank the principal of my school, Vineetha
Ma’am for giving me this opportunity to complete this project.

I would also like to thank my Geography teacher, Helen ma’am

for giving me insight on this project and teaching me. In
addition, I want to thank my parents and my friends for helping
me with other aspects in this project.
Index
 Mediterranean region
Features
This region is characterized by hot dry summers and humid
winters. There can sometimes be sudden heavy rain in this
region. The Mediterranean region is usually hilly.

Area
The Mediterranean climate comes from the name of the
Mediterranean Sea. This is because most of the Mediterranean
region is surrounding that sea. These are regions of southern
Europe and Northern Africa. Mediterranean climates are found
in the 40 degrees North and 31 degrees South to the Equator
on the western side of the continents.
Some areas include Coastal California around San Francisco,
Central Chile and South and Southwestern Australia.

Climate
The Mediterranean climate is characterized by mild wet winters
and warm to hot, dry summers. The average annual
precipitation is between 35 and 90 cm. Due to the cooling
effect of the major water bodies present, the climate is not
extreme. Heavy rainfall happens only a few days in a week with
great sunshine intervals in between. Coastal winds from the
Mediterranean Sea may come as hot or cool depending on the
climate. During its warmest month, the temperature would be
above 22 degrees Celsius. During its coldest months, the
temperatures may vary between 18 to -3 degrees Celsius.
Natural Vegetation
The vegetation present in these regions is naturally xerophytic
(drought tolerant) due to the climate of the region. They must
endure heat, dry air, and lengthy droughts.
Evergreen shrubs are the most common type of vegetation in
these regions. These include species such as olive trees,
rosemary, and lavender.
Deciduous shrubs also are present in the Mediterranean
landscape.
The climate is not suitable for grass because most of the rainfall
occurs during winter, where grass grows slowly but the grasses
that are present may be tough and slender and not suitable for
animal rearing.
In the Mediterranean forests, normally the trees are low and
even stunted with big trunks and thin leathery leaves. They
have a wide-spread root system in search of water. There are
many evergreen coniferous trees present. They have tall
straight stems with needle like leaves. Some examples can be of
the red spruce, California redwood, red pine, and Sugar pine.
Wildlife
There 300 types of mammals that are present in the
Mediterranean region along with 38 which are endemic to the
region. Most of the mammal species are small.
There are 534 birds in which 63 of those species are endemic.
There are 299 species of reptiles in which 5 are freshwater and
4 are marine. Almost 40% of these species are endemic to the
region.
The fishes have the greatest biodiversity with 712 species of
fish. It is estimated that 7% of the world’s fish occur in the
Mediterranean Sea.
The amphibians have the least biodiversity with 109 species.
Though variety of species is less, it has the greatest endemism
with almost of 50% (54 species).
The number of species for the invertebrates cannot be known
as new species are discovered every year. For insects, the
biodiversity is estimated at 150,000 species. There are also a
large number of butterflies and dragonflies found in the region.
Humanity in the Mediterranean region
Around 480 million people across 22 countries live around the
Mediterranean region. This region is particularly important for
shipping. About one third of all the world’s merchant ships
cross this sea every year. It is one of the busiest trade routes in
the world. 250 million people reside in the coastal regions.
The agriculture is irrigated due to the scarcity of water in the
region.
The food that people eat comes from what they produce in the
Mediterranean region.
Olives have been growing in the Persian region for thousands of
years. 95% of the world’s olives are grown in this region. This
has led to olive products such as olive oil, staple for cooking.
Wheat has been growing in the Eastern Mediterranean region
for almost 10,000 years. Bread is very important to the cuisines
of the region due to this.
Wine is the drink of choice for many people in the
Mediterranean region. This is because grapes grow well in this
region. It has been growing here for almost 8000 years. Nearly
40% of the world’s production of wine comes from this region.
Bibliography
https://ec.europa.eu/environment/nature/natura2000/
biogeog_regions/mediterranean/index_en.htm
https://www.mediterraneangardensociety.org/
climate.html#:~:text=It%20is%20generally%20accepted
%20that,and%20around%20the%20Mediterranean%20Basin.
https://prepp.in/news/e-492-mediterranean-climate-
geography-notes
https://www.cepf.net/our-work/biodiversity-hotspots/
mediterranean-basin/species
https://www.eea.europa.eu/soer/2015/countries/
mediterranean#:~:text=The%20Mediterranean%20Sea
%20region%20%E2%80%94%20the,%3A%20Africa%2C%20Asia
%20and%20Europe.
https://nomadparadise.com/mediterranean-food/