Grnd-71 Terrain and Installations

Major Terrain Features

Hills

Ridges

Valleys

Saddles

Depressions

Hill

A point or small area of high ground. When you are on a hilltop, the ground slopes down in all directions.

Ridge

A line of high ground with height variations along its crest. The ridge is not simply a line of hills; all points of the ridge crest are higher than the ground on both sides of the ridge.

Valley

Reasonably level ground bordered on the sides by higher ground. A valley may or may not contain a stream course. A valley generally has manoeuvre room within its confines.

Saddle

A dip or low point along the crest of a ridge. A saddle is not necessarily the lower ground between two hilltops; it may be a break along an otherwise level ridge crest.

Depression

A low point or hole in the ground, surrounded on all sides by higher ground.

Minor Terrain Features

Draw

Spur

Cliff

Supplementary Terrain Features

Cut

Fill

Draw

Similar to a valley, except that it normally is a less developed stream course in which there is generally no level ground.

Caused by flash floods and can be found on flat terrain but are more often found along the sides of ridges.

Spur

Spur-a usually short, continuously sloping line of higher ground, normally jutting out from the side of a ridge.

Cliff

Cliff-a vertical or near-vertical slope. A cliff may be shown on a map by contour lines being close together, touching, or by a ticked "carrying" contour line. The ticks always point toward lower ground.

Cuts

A man-made feature resulting from cutting through raised ground, usually to form a level bed for a road or railroad track.

Fills

A man-made feature resulting from filling a low area, usually to form a level bed for a road or railroad track.

Hand method for remembering terrain features

Types of vegetation

Temperate deciduous forest

Coniferous forest

Jungle

Desert

Arctic

Grass or Open Area

Types of drainage

Rivers, lakes, delta, dams, swamps, creeks, ponds, culverts, canals, irrigation, reservoirs.

Three general ways to describe roads

Size (width, # of Lanes)

Surface

Interchanges, junctions, and intersections

Examples of describing road size

Highway

4 lane road

2 lane road

Single lane road

Trail (vehicle or foot)

Examples of describing road surface

Concrete

Asphalt

Gravel

Dirt

Examples of intersections

Traffic circle

Crossroad

Interchange

Examples of intersections

Junction

T- junction

Installation

An installation is a building or place that provides a particular service or is used for a particular industry, are either military or civilian structures.

Examples of installations

Airfields & Airports

Civil Industrial Complexes (Refineries, power plants, factories)

Dams

Military Headquarters

Field Hospitals

Tented camps

Recognising tented camp

A tented camp can usually be easily picked out by its organization and straight lines. Usually arranged in straight rows of tents within a compound area.

Usually designated parking area

In formation vice sporadic

Larger tent for mess and supplies

Command centre (tent size varies)

Recognising field hospital

Hospital can either be joining tent or mobile building structures for isolation and access routes

Generally in cross/X shape formation