Reading and understanding direction on maps

The Compass Rose A compass rose is a picture on a map that shows which way is north. Sometimes, this is just an arrow with an N to show which way is north Sometimes, the compass rose is more complicated and can show up to 16 directions

Categories of Directions There are at least three different categories of directions: Cardinal, Ordinal, and Tertiary directions

Cardinal directions N Divide the circle in half vertically, and again, horizontally. Label the four directions These four directions are the most important directions, with north being the very most important of all. North (most important) South (second-most important) West and East (tied for third-most important) W E S

Ordinal Directions N S W E Divide each quadrant in half and label the new directions. These ordinal directions are the secondary directions. They are named by the directions on each side; The more important name comes first, followed by the less important name. NW NE SW SE

Tertiary Directions Finally, divide the wedges in half again and label the new directions. The names of the labels work in the same way as for ordinal directions. More important name first, followed by the less important name. N S W E NE NW SE SW NNE NNW WNW ENE ESE WSW SSW SSE

Compass Bearings 360˚ Compass bearings are the numbers that correspond to the angle of each directions as measured clockwise in relation to north. The direction “east” is at a 90 degree angle from the direction “north”, so the bearing is 90 degrees, or 090 The direction “west” is at a 270 degree angle from north (remember it is measured clockwise), so the bearing is 270 degrees, or 270. Calculate the bearing of each of the directions listed. 22.5˚ 337.5˚ N S W E NE NW SE SW NNE ENE ESE SSE SSW WSW WNW NNW 45˚ 315˚ 292.5˚ 67.5˚ 270˚ 90˚ 112.5˚ 247.5˚ 225˚ 135˚ 202.5˚ 157.5˚ 180˚