Topographic signs - the alphabet of the map

For the designation on maps of geographical objects and the most important elements of the terrain, conditional topographical signs are used. These are graphic images of a certain size, shape and color, which practically do not differ on the maps of different countries. This is the alphabet of the map, without which it is impossible to learn to navigate the terrain.

Topographical signs convey the location, size, shape, interconnections of various objects of the terrain, as well as the most important quantitative and qualitative indicators. Depending on the nature of the displayed elements, they are divided into large-scale and extra-scale ones. The first are used to identify objects whose dimensions can be determined from the map (large lakes, territories of settlements, forests, etc.). With the help of the second, local objects, small in size and not expressed on a map scale (springs, tower structures, wells and much more) are shown.

In addition, the conventional signs of topographic maps are divided into four types: area, linear, point and explanatory.

Areas denote settlements, forests, marshes, arable land and other local items that occupy significant areas. These signs consist of contours and an explanatory designation that fills the contours (this can be a background color, a hatching or a grid of identical icons). All area conventional signs are large-scale.

Linear topographical signs are used to depict roads, small rivers and streams, oil and gas pipelines, communications and other objects, in which only the length is displayed on a scale. A special category of linear signs are isolines connecting points with equal elevation, depth, or other values. These include horizontals, which are designed to depict the terrain. Most linear marks are extrascripts.

The dot signs are also extracurricular and are intended for depicting individual buildings (bridges, churches, towers, apartment houses, power stations), wells and other point objects.

Explanatory topographical signs give additional information about the objects to be charted. This direction of the river, the characteristics of the forest, the width of roads and bridges, the names of settlements, mountain ranges and peaks, rivers, lakes and the like.

To improve readability, maps are printed in colors, so the image of the terrain is divided into separate elements. Colors of conventional signs are the same on maps of all scales and, as a rule, correspond to the actual coloring of objects in the warm season. On all maps, various structures, structures, dirt roads, communications, borders, etc. are depicted in black. Brown shows the relief and its characteristics, as well as sands and takyrs. Blue - the color of water and all hydrographic objects, as well as related signatures. The turquoise color is used to indicate the area of the water spaces, and the green color is used to represent the vegetation. The borders of states are indicated by violet color, orange roads are covered with roads, neighborhoods of settlements with high density of construction (at a scale of 1: 25000 and 1: 50000) and cities of large size (at a scale of 1: 100000).

The completeness of the display of geographical objects on the map depends on the characteristics of the territory and on the selected scale. Large-scale maps are more detailed, they show individual objects (for example, houses), while on small-scale maps objects are combined into one whole (for example, a block or an entire city).

Having learned to read topographic signs, you can not only successfully navigate in any terrain, but also use the map as an aid in work, study and many other areas of activity.