Topic: Modern map creation technologies and how to interpret them

Target group

First‑grade student of a high school and technical high school (basic level)

Core curriculum

I. Geographic information sources, geoinformation technologies and methods of spatial data presentation: observations, measurements, maps, photographs, satellite images, numerical data as well as graphic and cartographic data for their presentation.

Student:

6). demonstrates the usefulness of photographs and satellite photos to obtain information about the geographical environment and interprets their content;

7). determines the geographical coordinates by GPS receiver;

8). gives examples of the use of GIS tools to analyze spatial diversity of the geographical environment.

General aim of education

The student will learn about modern ways to create maps.

Key competences

• communication in the mother tongue;

• communication in foreign languages;

• digital competence;

• learning to learn.

Criteria for success
The student will learn:

• discuss what modern navigation systems are used for;

• interpret modern maps and aerial photos;

• explain what meaning GIS has in modern geography.

Methods/techniques

• expository

  • talk.

• activating

  • discussion.

• exposing

  • exposition.

• programmed

  • with computer;

  • with e‑textbook.

• practical

  • exercices concerned.

Forms of work

• individual activity;

• activity in pairs;

• activity in groups;

• collective activity.

Teaching aids

• e‑textbook;

• interactive whiteboard, tablets/computers;

• physical map of the world;

• Mindmup application;

• Google Earth;

• Bing Maps service;

• Geoportal service;

• geographical atlases;

• projector.

Lesson plan overview

Before classes

• Students get acquainted with the content of the abstract. They prepare to work on the lesson in such a way to be able to summarize the material read in their own words and solve the tasks themselves.

Introduction

• The teacher informs students about the goals of the lesson.

• The teacher displays exercise no. 1 (puzzle) on the interactive whiteboard. The resulting image is a part of the aerial photograph.

Realization

• The teacher asks students to work in pairs using the geographical atlas to find the Vistula Spit and tell as much information as possible from the map of their choice. Students write them on self‑adhesive sheets.

• The teacher launches the Mindmup app. He asks subsequent couples to write on the mental map information read from the geographical atlas, but the information provided can not be repeated. The information is saved in blue.

• The teacher launches the Bing Maps website and selects the area of the Vistula Spit. The entire class team analyzes the information contained in this application. Then, selected people save the data that did not appear before, another color on the mental map.

• The teacher launches the Google Maps application on the interactive whiteboard and the students re‑analyze and select the information together so that no content read from the map will be repeated. They add them on the mental map with a different color.

• Using the extensive mental map, the teacher initiates a discussion about precision in modern ways of presenting areas on Earth.

• The teacher asks the students the question: „Where do we get such accurate cartographic knowledge?” And then presents the educational film „Satellite imaging of the Earth by the Landsat system” on the e‑textbooks page (see the link to the lesson). After the broadcast, the teacher asks the students for an answer..

• The next point is a talk. The teacher asks the students questions: „Do you know what the Global Positioning System is? How does GPS work and what purpose does it have?”. Corrects and complements students' answers.

• The teacher discusses how to use GPS, launches the application on the mobile phone and presents it to the students. Then, he presents the film „Orientation in the field” in the abstract.

• The teacher asks the students to reunite. He recommends that, based on the information contained in the abstract and other materials available on the Internet, they explain what GIS is and what is applicable. The selected couple discuss the issue on the class forum. Other students can complement the statement of colleagues.

• The teacher presents the possibilities of the Geoportal website. It informs students that they will use it while doing homework.

Summary

• Students exercise interactive exercises to summarize the lesson.

• The teacher summarizes the students' work, makes the assessment, taking into account the contribution and abilities of the students.

Homework

• Using the Geoportal service, compare the area of the Tri‑City shown on the topographic maps posted there, on a general geographical map and on satellite and aerial photographs transformed into an orthophotomap. List the most important differences between these forms of Tri‑City presentation.

The following terms and recordings will be used during this lesson

Terms

Texts and recordings

Modern map creation technologies and how to interpret them

Before beginning the lesson, put together the puzzle showing an aerial photograph.

Long ago, cartographers only put what they themselves could see on their maps. In later times, they were aided by measuring instruments and photography. Shortly afterwards, mapping was made much easier by aerial photographs. Today, photographs taken in space show the entire surface of the Earth with great accuracy, and each one of us can make use of satellite navigation.

Aerial photographs are pictures of the Earth's surface taken from balloons, planes, helicopters, gliders, hang gliders, kites and drones. On the basis of these professional aerial photographs and measurements carried out by surveyors, cartographers develop topographic maps.

The history of satellite images is much shorter than the history of aerial photographs. In 1946, the first image of the Earth's surface in history was taken from space. A camera fitted on a V‑2 rocket photographed the New Mexico desert. In 1960, the American meteorological satellite TIROS‑1 was launched into Earth's orbit, where it took the first blurry satellite image of a small part of the Earth. Twelve years later, in 1972, the first artificial satellite specially designed to survey the Earth was put into action. It was named Landsat 1. The most recent in this series – Landsat 8, has been functioning since February 2013. The devices mounted on these satellites have taken millions of pictures, which have been used in cartography, agriculture, geology, forestry, administration, transport, education and the millitary, as well as in many other fields. Currently, dozens of scientific, commercial, meteorological, military and spy satellites are taking satellite images of every corner of the Earth with ever higher resolution.

To understand where we draw our exact knowledge of cartography from, watch the film available on e‑podreczniki.pl.

After processing the acquired satellite images or aerial photographs, an orthophotomap is created, that is, a photographic map combined with a co‑ordinate system in the appropriate cartographic projection. It is characterised by a lack of terrain distortion and a uniform scale for the whole region represented in the image.

There are currently several satellite navigation systems in operation. The oldest and most popular among them is the Global Positioning System (GPS), whose range covers the whole globe. GPS' task is to provide users with information about their location. The system relies on the work of 31 satellites orbiting the Earth, of which at least 28 are constantly active, and at least 4 are always visible from anywhere on the planet. These satellites orbit at a height of 20 183 km. GPS works by measuring the time it takes for a radio signal to reach the receivers of the four closest satellites. The GPS system was created, and is maintained and managed by the US Department of Defense. It is publicly available and free.
The Russians created an alternative navigation system to GPS called GLONASS. It transmits two types of signal: military and civillian. The system comprises of 24 satellites and a terrestrial control station.
The European Space Agency (ESA) is currently working on the navigation system Galileo, which will comprise of 30 satellites.

Watch the film in the internet which shows how GPS works.

Geographical Information Systems (GIS) are information systems which allow interactive, multi‑level, highly detailed images of the Earth's surface, and data linked to it, to be shown. When creating these systems, advanced information technologies were used.

With their help, a variety of spacial data is being collected, processed and imaged (visualised). These systems, among others, make it easier for local and state administration, in addition to other types of services (for example firefighters, the police, forest services, meteorological services, etc), to make important decisions. Besides this, they are used in many branches of the economy and in the work of scientists.
One example of such a system is the Wrocław Spacial Information System, thanks to which very useful maps have been created on the basis of data collected.

Based on the knowledge you have gained during the lesson, complete the exercises below.