Preview - Maps and Mapmaking

Maps and Mapmaking

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Maps and Mapmaking (30:00)

Item# 3329
©1989

This program shows how topographical and hydrographical maps are made, how the requisite information is gathered, measurements made and verified, the handwork completed. It also explains the conventions of mapmaking from the early 17th century, through the 19th-century establishment of the tradition that puts North at the top, through the contemporary extremes of maps—the detailed thematic map, and the view of Earth from space. (30 minutes)

Segments in this Video - (8)

1. Topographical Maps (03:12)

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Topographical maps are made from aerial photographs marked with "control points" which are searched out and measured on the ground and matched with the same points on the photo.

2. Topographers at Work (03:53)

Topographers fill in a map's fine details. They visit locations to inventory objects unseen in photos. Transparent sheets are created for each color, grid, and legend and printed on a press.

3. Map History and Hydrographical Maps (03:19)

The Netherlands was an early training center for cartographers. Early charts were mapped by ships. Hydrographical maps chart the ocean floor. Echo sounders bounce sound waves off the ocean floor.

4. Making Hydrographical Maps (02:54)

Data collected from ships is marked on graph paper. Hydrographical maps are made much the same way as topographical maps. Old seafaring maps are hard to read because of their orientation.

5. Willem Blaeu (03:12)

Willem Blaeu is an early sea chart maker. He establishes a major mapmaking business in Amsterdam. He begins his Atlas Major but dies before it is completed.

6. Maps Come of Age (03:05)

Blaeu's son Johannes completes the Atlas and prints the first full chart of the world. World charts become instrumental in pinpointing missile targets in the modern world.

7. Specific Use of Maps (02:31)

Modern maps are specialized to show traffic patterns, water levels, and aid city planning. Years ago, maps were integral in charting new lands and establishing trade routes.

8. Map Making in the Modern World (04:37)

Early seafaring maps were kept secret to protect little-known trade routes. Today there are electronic maps. Maps have not changed much, but map-making techniques have changed drastically.