Eyes in the sky: reading a satellite image.Satellite images are everywhere! They pop up on the Internet, on television, and even on dashboard navigational systems of new cars. But are such images of Earth accurate? Take a look, for instance, at this satellite image (top) of the Arctic's ice-choked seas. It is a composite--made up of different parts. The overlapping images in this map were photo-graphed during the early 1990s by satellites over Earth. Since clouds often block the view from space, some of the photos were taken in winter, others in summer. Labels are often added to satellite maps, like this one, to help users recognize locations. The second map (bottom) is a political map. Cartographers Cartography is the study of map making and cartographers are map makers. Before 1400
Coordinate system by which the position or location of any place on the Earth's surface can be determined and described. Latitude is a measurement of location north or south of the Equator. , and scale. Used together, satellite and political maps provide a fuller picture of an area. Study these two maps of the Arctic, then answer the questions. Questions 1. What is the capital of Iceland? 2. A greater percentage of which landmass land·mass n. A large unbroken area of land. landmass Noun a large continuous area of land landmass is covered by ice: Greenland or Iceland? 3. Is St. Lawrence Island St. Lawrence Island is located west of mainland Alaska in the Bering Sea, just south of the Bering Strait, at about 64° North 170° 28' West. It is part of Alaska, but closer to Russia than to the Alaskan mainland. St. located north or south of the Arctic Circle Arctic Circle, imaginary circle on the surface of the earth at 66 1-2°N latitude, i.e., 23 1-2° south of the North Pole. It marks the northernmost point at which the sun can be seen at the winter solstice (about Dec. ? 4. On which map can you see the Arctic's ice-choked seas? 5. Which country controls Svalbard? 6. Which map gives the North Pole's latitude? 7. Which U.S. state is located in the Arctic? 8. In which general direction would you trek from the North Pole to Franz Josef Land Franz Josef Land (frăns jō`zəf, fränts yō`zĕf), Rus. Zemlya Frantsa Iosifa, archipelago, c.8,000 sq mi (20,720 sq km), in the Arctic Ocean N of Novaya Zemlya, Russia. ? 9. Which country's Arctic territory spans from 30[degrees] E to 170[degrees] W? 10. Why might the captain of an Arctic icebreaker icebreaker, ship of special hull design and wide beam, with relatively flat bottom, designed to force its way through ice. When the icebreaker charges into the ice at full speed, its sharply inclined bow, meeting the edge of the ice, rises upon it, and the weight of find the satellite image both useful and misleading? ANSWERS Look to the line above each question mark. Then multiply together the two numbers in that line that are closest to the question mark. 1. Reykjavik 2. Greenland 3. south 4. satellite image 5. Norway 6. political map [90[degrees] N] 7. Alaska 8. south 9. Russia 10. useful: it shows general ice coverage; misleading: it is a composite image made up of images from both summer and winter months; also, it is dated (from the 1990s). |
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