Vertical Exaggeration

A true profile for A to B on the map below would look like Profile One.

With a true profile, the vertical and horizontal scales are the same With a true profile, the vertical and horizontal scales are the same. However, as a result it is difficult to see the differences in slope. Hence, it is often useful to exaggerate the profile vertically by using a different vertical scale from the horizontal scale.

For instance, using a vertical scale of 1cm represents 0 For instance, using a vertical scale of 1cm represents 0.1km (100m) for the same map, yields Profile Two. Clearly, it is much easier to see the changes in slope along the profile.

How do you find the scales? the vertical scale is the scale on the vertical axis of the cross section. the horizontal scale is the scale of the map the map from which the cross section was drawn. - both the VS and HS must use the same units, ie m's or km's.

Inquiry 1. Why use VE? 2. How do you calculate VE? 3. How do you express the VE answer? 4. What does the number mean?

How to calculate VE? Interpret the vertical scale and find what one cm represents in metres eg 1/20 Find the map scale (this is called the horizontal scale) eg 1:100,000 and convert this into metres = 1/1000 VE = VS/HS, so, 1/20 divided by 1/1000 Invert the denominator (because to divide fractions you invert then multiply) 1/20 x 1000/1 = 50

What does the answer mean? To accurately interpret a cross-sectional profile we need to determine how much exaggeration has occurred. To do this we measure how much the vertical axis has been exaggerated compared with its actual shape. This is called vertical exaggeration. It means that the cross sectional profile has been exaggerated 50 times. This allows Geographers to see a side on Profile of the key cultural and natural features from a map.

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