The purpose of this experiment was to create a terrain, and then design and apply our own coordinate system to map the terrain. The underlying goal of the assignment was to force us to be able to conceptually capture topographic and locational data by creating a grid system and applying it in the field.
Methods
For the creation of the terrain, we used snow to form a miniature model of hilly topography in a raised flowerbed. We molded snow into various geographical features, such as valleys, hills, lakes, and cliffs. The wooden sides of the raised flowerbed provided an excellent base for sea level; however, there was not enough snow to make the majority of the terrain above sea level, so we decided we would lower the sea level by a yet to be determined amount later on. We measured our flowerbed and found it to be 110 cm by 230 cm. Given the amount of time we had, we determined that breaking the area into 10 cm x 10 cm grid cells would be the most efficient method of data collection. We collected the x, y, and z coordinates at each vertex, with the southwest corner as our point of origin. In areas we felt the topography was not being accurately depicted, we collected additional data.
Results/Conclusion
This assignment was an excellent precursor to actually going out in the field and collecting data. It required us to examine the terrain we created and find a way in which to map it, without the use of GPS and other advanced methods. Since this is my first time mapping an area, it challenged my visual/spatial thinking, and required me to learn how to apply a grid system to natural features. We also learned the importance of planning ahead, the difficulties that can arise while working in the field, and the effect that could have on data collection, as we had built our snow terrain on one day, and came back the next to have it substantially altered by the rain.
As we completed the collection of our data points, we realized how coarse our map was going to be. By using a 10 cm by 10 cm grid cell, we were unable to completely capture some of our features. To rectify this, we collected additional data points.
Images:
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| Snow Terrain in flower bed (Day 1) |
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| Beginning of Grid Cell Creation (Day 2) |
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| Completion of grid cells over flowerbed terrain (Day 2) |
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| Data point collection (Day 2) |
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