Topo Maps (its 3am help 😭)

Topo sheets- Large scale maps that show both natural and man made features.

Contour line- a contour line is an imaginary line that connects points having the same height above mean sea level.

Lines running vertically- Eastings

Lines running horizontally- Northings

Eastings and northings cross each other and form- grid square

South west gird, bottom left corner- reference point/starting point

Four figure grid reference-

EENN

Six figure grid reference-

EEENNN

The difference in height between two adjacent contours is called contour interval or verification interval or VI.

The distance between any two adjacent contours is called horizontal equivalent or HE.

Horizontal equivalent tells if a slope is steep or gentle.

Contour lines are drawn at fixed vertical intervals that do not change. The VI depends on-

  1. The scale of the map

  2. The range of elevation in the area of the map

On a topographical map, every fifth line is accentuated. This is called- Contour Index

contour lines do not intersect each other. They could meet or touch, but never cross.

Contours drawn near=steep slope

Contours drawn far apart=gentle slope

Contours drawn at regular intervals=uniform slope

A conical hill is a low elevation hill of the shape of a cone with uniform steepness on all sides. Almost like concentric circles.

Settlements-

Groups of houses in villages and towns where people live.

Factors affecting growth of settlements-

  1. Settlements grow in flat areas where the land is cultivable. The do not grow on steep hillsides and marshy lands.

  2. Settlements grow in places where water is available in plenty for both agricultural and domestic purposes. Settlements therefore also grow on the confluence of rivers and on the banks of rivers,

  3. Settlements also through on plateaus because of flat land of the plateau and availability of land for cultivation.

  4. They develop and grow in places where the climate is suitable or pleasant to live it,