B. PURPOSE

Development of proficiency in reading and interpreting topographic maps.

Material Provided
Extracts from topographic maps of Jamaica at 1:10,000 and 1:50,000 scales

Introduction
A topographic map is a two-dimensional representation of a three-dimensional land surface. It shows the relief (topographic variation) of a land surface. The other features depicted on the topographic maps include water bodies, vegetation, political boundaries, names of specific locations, roads, railway lines, transmission lines, bench marks, canals, pipelines, airports, ports, and buildings.
Topographic maps are a valuable tool in land-use planning, engineering studies, geological studies, forestry, soils, watershed management, and all types of environmental studies. It provides a medium (or a base map) to record various types of data for display and analysis.
Latitude and Longitude
Latitude lines are parallel to the Equator and measure distance north and south of the equator; also called parallels.
Longitude lines pass through the North and South Poles. They measure distances east and west of the Prime Meridian, which passes through Greenwich.
Latitude and Longitude are expressed in degrees, minutes, and seconds.
1^o = 60' 1' = 60''

Any point on the Earth's surface can be represented as an intersection of a line of latitude and a line of longitude.
Since Jamaica is north of the Equator and west of the Prime Meridian, all latitudes on the island are north and all longitudes are west.
Kingston: Lat. = 180^o 0' N ; Long.= 76^o 48' W.
Grid Reference
See 1:50,000 (Metric Edition) topographic maps of Jamaica, 1982 edition.