Geography 101 by Sam

Maps of the earth are divided into a whole bunch of lines called longitude and latitude. Longitude is the lines going sideways around the globe. The main line of longitude around the globe is called the equator, also known as the world’s belt. The equator is like a big line that divides the world in half, running west to east. Latitude is the exact opposite of longitude. The main line of latitude around the world is called the prime meridian. The prime meridian is also like a big line that goes around the world, but this one goes north to south not west to east.

Mapmakers measure distance in degrees. The equator is zero degrees longitude, and the prime meridian is zero degrees latitude. On a map there are numbers, just like on a graph, and there is actually a point on the world which is 0,0 degrees. The spot is just under an island called Sao Tome and Principe in Africa. The equator and the prime meridian divide the world into four hemispheres Northern hemisphere, Western hemisphere, Southern hemisphere and the Eastern hemisphere.

On a map, the cardinal points show directions. When drawing a compos on a map, north is always up, south is always down, east is always to the right and west is always to the left. Scale shows distance on a map. The scale could be one centimetre equals one kilometre. On a map scales are usually shown using centimetres or inches.

The earth is divided into twenty four different time zones. On some maps there are lines showing the ranges of each time zone. A very good example of this is, two places in Mexico. One is called Puerto Vallarta and right next to it is a newer city called Nuevo Vallarta. They are right next to each other, but and Puerto Vallarta and Nuevo Vallarta are one hour apart.

A map legend tells you what the symbols on a map mean. For example, a red line might mean symbolize a highway and a yellow line might symbolize a side road.