Project 1: Coordinates and Projections Geography 121 Project 1: Coordinates and Projections Greg Seroka, John Warner, Justine Kivlin

Introduction We will: Define all concepts first Then present step-by-step instructions to completing project 1

Introduction Map projections Coordinate Systems 3D --> 2D Distortion Coordinate Systems Based on map projections Geographic UTM State Plane

Geographic Coordinate System Indicates positions on a sphere in terms of angels. Angle measurements: Latitude (parallels): Measures positions north and south of the Equator. Ranges between 0° and 90° N and 0° and -90° S. Longitude (meridians): Measures positions east and west of the Prime Meridian. Ranges between 0° and 180° in the eastern hemisphere and 0° and -180° in the western hemisphere. Has no error.

UTM Coordinate System UTM stands for Universal Transverse Mercator. UTM is a plane coordinate system that uses meters to measure an area or to locate a specific place on a map. It is based upon the Transverse Mercator Projection. Meridians are the lines of tangency. The maximum positioning error is 1 part in 2,500. nationalatlas.gov

UTM Zones UTM breaks the world up into 60 zones that run form north to south. Each zone has its own coordinate space and projections. Projection distortion is minimized toward the center of each zone.

State Plane Coordinate System A series of planes, or coordinate systems, over the entire U.S. in 122 different regions Used by land surveyors for its accuracy; saves times and money More useful for measuring small distances than the other coordinate systems

Coordinate System Comparison Projections are widely used to look at large regions of the world and see a more accurate picture of the 3-D earth on a 2-D picture. minimizes distortion of each zone within the system Projected coordinate systems: Advantage: Easy to calculate distances and directions Disadvantage: Introduce positioning errors UTM -> Transverse Mercator State Plane Transverse Mercator for North-South regions Lambert Conic Conformal for East-West regions Non-projected coordinate systems Geographic Coordinate System

Mercator and Lambert projections Mercator projection left, and Lambert right.

Conclusion Goal: Minimize distortion Maximize accuracy Best map for measuring/studying a specific location on Earth Minimize distortion Maximize accuracy

Step-by-Step Guide to Project 1

Geographic Coordinates To find the geographic coordinates of your hometown: Go to http://www.maps-gps-info.com/cool-map-tools.html In the first Latitude/Longitude Finder section: Type in your hometown Select the state from the drop down menu Click on the “Lookup” button This will give you the coordinates in degrees-minutes-seconds. Example: Burke, VA Latitude:    N 38° 47’ 36’’ Longitude: W 77° 16’ 18’’ To convert to decimal degrees, use http://www.fcc.gov/mb/audio/bickel/DDDMMSS-decimal.html Latitude:    N 38.793333° Longitude: W 76.711667°

World map projection To create your world map projection that highlights the location of your home town: Go to http://projections.mgis.psu.edu/ Select map projection (we used Mercator) Leave Central Meridian at 0.0 Define map extent (for Burke, VA, we used 60°N, 0°S, -110°W, -40°E) Under “Plot a Location”, input your home latitude and longitude and place name in decimal degrees Click “redraw the map”

UTM Coordinates To convert the geographic coordinates to UTM coordinates: Go to http://jeeep.com/details/coord In the “Degree Minute Second” section, Choose WGS-84 (NAD-83) as the map datum. Enter your hometown’s latitude and longitude coordinates. Click submit This will convert the geographic coordinates into UTM coordinates, which are in meters, and provide you with the UTM zone. Example: Burke, VA Easting: 302,710m Northing: 4,296,294m Zone: 18

State Plane Coordinates To convert the geographic coordinates to state plane coordinates: Go to http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/spc_getpc.prl Choose NAD-83 (SPCS83) as the map datum. Enter your hometown’s latitude and longitude coordinates. Example: Burke, VA Latitude:    N 38° 47’ 36’’ enter as N384736.00000 Longitude: W 77° 16’ 18’’ enter as W0771618.00000 Leave Zone blank Click Submit This will convert the geographic coordinates into State Plane Coordinates, which are in meters, and provide you with the SPC zone. Easting: 3,606,706.755 m Northing: 2,125,773.218 m Zone: 4501

More Instructions Access this presentation at www.personal.psu.edu/gns5000/geog121/project1.ppt For further instruction and sources on Project 1, go to http://www.geog.psu.edu/courses/geog121/projects/proj1_example.html