Your Week 4 lab consists of two parts: the Topographical Map exercise and the Landforms exercise. Here is what you need to complete the Topographical Maps component.
These two items are crucial resources for the successful completion of the exercise. Review them before you begin, and refer to them again as directed when you are working through the lab.
Introduction to Contour Lines.pdf
Legend of Topographic Map Symbols.pdf
Here is the information you need in order to find the most appropriate map for you to work with.
Topo maps on the USGS websiteMarch2021.docx
Topo map search help: In running through the map download instructions I sometimes had trouble getting the green index lines for the 7.5 minute maps to appear. If the lines don’t appear (and you are zoomed in far enough) first try switching the Map Indices from 7.5 Minute to All and back to 7.5 Minute. If the green lines don’t appear, search for your city in the Address/Place box at the top. Search results should appear on the left.
And here are the actual questions to answer as you study your map (once you obtain it).
Topo map assignment OUG version.docx
Important note: If you are working from a downloaded topographic map please remember that when zooming in and out to view the map the scale changes. To measure the size of the map you need to figure out the magnification of the map that produces the intended scale.
Coaching Points
The most important coaching point is that last comment up above: If you are using a digital download, when measuring the dimensions of the map area it is very, very important to properly scale the map. In that set of questions, the first one is about the scale. Use that to figure out what the size of the map area would be if zoomed in to make that the scale of the image on the screen.
Beyond that, have fun. I personally very much enjoy scanning over topographic maps as it gives me a sense of what an area looks like. And for the last question, look around – is there something particularly unique on the map that you can identify?
Part 2
Earth’s Surface Features – Landforms
Having had an introduction to topographic maps and how the shape of the land is represented on them, we can now take a close look at the different types of landforms there are and how some of them are visible on your map.
Read the introductory material about different landforms and physiographic settings. Then complete and submit the Landforms assignment
The USDA GlossaryOfLandforms.pdf mentioned in the Assignment
Coaching points
A few items to keep in mind: Chose the group of landforms that is most applicable to the area you live in and then answer the questions about every landform in that list. Use the Glossary that we supply to understand each landform. And these are natural landforms, not human-created features. Therefore, for example, a “pothole” is not something in a road but in a river.
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