erupting volcanoes on earth as seen from space points of ...€¦ · volcanic eruptions. around 550...
TRANSCRIPT
One of the most violent but beautiful reminders that we live on a geologically restless planet are volcanic eruptions. Around 550 volcanoes have erupted at least once in historic times, and around 50 or 60 are active each year. On any given day, as many as 10 volcanoes may be spewing ash or lava somewhere on Earth. Some volcanoes, such as Mount Etna in Italy, erupt almost constantly for years on end. Others, like Mount St. Helens, erupt rarely and sometimes extremely destructively. Like Etna and Mount St. Helens, many of the most dangerous and ex-plosive erupters are stratovolcanoes, which are made of layers of ash and lava from previous eruptions. They tend to be steep-sided cone-shaped volcanoes and often rise strikingly above the surrounding landscape.
Many of the stunning images of eruptions captured from space are of violent stratovolcanoes,
such as the one above of Kliuchevskoi, the most active volcano on Russia’s Kamchatka penin-
sula. The image above was taken by astronauts on the space shuttle Endeavour in 1994, as an
eruption was just getting underway. The ash plume reached as high as 50,000 feet.
Image: NASA
Erupting Volcanoes on Earth as Seen From Space
Submit Your Press Release to IMTA Submit an article / press release and email to [email protected] Newsletter is available on the IMTA Website—www.imtamaps.org
May / June 2012
Points of Interest:
Calendar—page 2
NASA Satellites.. page 3
New Members..page 4
IMTA (EAME) Confer-ence..page 5
News from ITMB..page 6
Esri Geospatial Tech-nology..page 8
Ordnance Survey.. page 10
World-wide Human Geography..page 17
ASPRS..page 18
Geography in the News..pages 21—22
Hema Maps..page 23
IMTA (EAME) Conference & Trade Exhibition 31 May—01 June (Dresden, Germany)
Brisbane International Geospatial Forum 08—11 July (Brisbane, Australia)
Esri International User Conference 23—27 July (San Diego, California USA)
IMTA (Americas) Conference & Member Showcase 09—11 September (Albuquerque, New Mexico USA)
Frankfurt Book Fair
10—14 October (Frankfurt, Germany)
The IMTA Newsletter is published
by the International Map Trade
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IMTA International President: Peter Lennon Dept. of Environment and Re-source Management Level 9 Landcentre GPO Box 2454 Brisbane, Qld 4001 AU Tel: 61 7 3896 3017 Fax: 61 7 3896 3697 [email protected]
IMTA Headquarters 23052-H Alicia Parkway, #602 Mission Viejo, CA 92692 USA Tel: 949/458-8200 Fax: 949/458-0300 [email protected] Sandy Hill, Executive Director Linda Hill, Program Director
IMTA (Americas) President: David Knipfer Mapping Specialists, Ltd. 3000 Cahill Main, Suite 220 Fitchburg, WI 53711 USA Tel: 608/274-4004 Fax: 608/274-9689 [email protected]
IMTA (EAME) Executive Director: Howard Hudson 17 Tetbury Drive Witney, Oxfordshire OX28 5GF UK Tel: +44 (0) 1993 74519
how-
Copyright 2012 by the Interna-tional Map Trade Association. Contents are fully protected by copyright and must not be re-produced in whole or part with-out approval in writing by the Association. Brief quotations are permitted with full attribution, including address.
Internet Home Page: www.imtamaps.org
Calendar of Events 2012
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Page 2 May / June 2012
IMTA (Asia Pacific) President: Brian Spier Sibiz PO Box 1694 Runaway Bay QLD 4216 AU Tel: +61 (0) 408 715782 Fax: +61 7 5537 8867
[email protected] IMTA (Asia Pacific) Executive Director: Noleen Zander PO Box 1112 147 Unley Road Unley, SA 5061 AU Tel: 61 8 8357 1777 Fax: 61 8 8357 3001 [email protected]
IMTA (EAME) President: Jon Bygate UK Tel: +44 (0) 1628 530018 Cell: +44 (0) 7814 581143 [email protected].
uk
Earth's net radiation, sometimes called net flux, is the balance be-tween incoming and outgoing energy at the top of the atmosphere. It is the total energy that is available to influence the climate. Energy comes in to the system when sunlight penetrates the top of the at-mosphere. Energy goes out in two ways: reflection by clouds, aero-sols, or the Earth's surface; and thermal radiation—heat emitted by the surface and the atmosphere, including clouds. The global aver-age net radiation must be close to zero over the span of a year or else the average temperature will rise or fall.
These maps show monthly net radiation in watts per square meter. Places where the amounts of incoming and out-going energy were in balance are yellow. Places where more energy was coming in than going out (positive net radiation) are red. Places where more energy was going out than coming in (negative net radiation) are blue-green. The measurements were made by the Clouds and the Earth's Radiant Energy System (CERES) sensors on
NASA’s Terra and Aqua satellites.
Over the course of a year, the most obvious pattern is seasonal changes in net radiation. Incoming sunlight in-creases in the hemisphere experiencing summer, which makes the energy imbalance strongly positive (more watts of energy coming in than going out). As the September equinox approaches, a zone of positive net radiation is nearly centered over the equator, and energy deficits lie over the poles. As the season changes into winter, the net radiation becomes negative across much of the Northern Hemisphere and positive in the Southern Hemisphere. The pattern reverses on the March equinox.
Averaged over the year, there is a net energy surplus at the equator and a net energy deficit at the poles. This equator-versus-pole energy imbalance is the fundamental driver of atmospheric and oceanic circulation. View, download, or analyze more of these data from NASA Earth Observations (NEO): Net Radiation
Colorless, odorless, and poisonous, carbon monoxide is one of the six major air pollutants regulated in the United States and in many other nations around the world. When carbon-based fuels, such as coal, wood, and oil, burn incompletely or inefficiently, they produce carbon monoxide. The gas is spread by winds and circulation pat-terns throughout the lower atmosphere (called the troposphere).
These maps show monthly averages of global concentrations of tro-pospheric carbon monoxide at an altitude of about 12,000 feet. The data were collected by the MOPITT (Measurements Of Pollution In
The Troposphere) sensor on NASA’s Terra satellite. Concentrations of carbon monoxide are expressed in parts per billion by volume (ppbv). A concentration of 1 ppbv means that for every billion molecules of gas in the measured volume, one of them is a carbon monoxide molecule. Yellow areas have little or no carbon monoxide, while pro-gressively higher concentrations are shown in orange and red. Places where the sensor didn’t collect data, perhaps due to clouds, are gray.
In different parts of the world and in different seasons, the amounts and sources of atmospheric carbon monoxide change. In Africa, for example, the seasonal shifts in carbon monoxide are tied to the widespread agricultural burn-ing that shifts north and south of the equator with the seasons. Fires are an important source of carbon monoxide pollution in other regions of the Southern Hemisphere, such as the Amazon and Southeast Asia.
In the United States, Europe, and eastern China, on the other hand, the highest carbon monoxide concentrations occur around urban areas as a result of vehicle and industrial emissions. Fires burning over large areas in North America and Russia in some years can be an important source. The MOPITT observations often show that pollu-tion emitted on one continent can travel across oceans to have a big impact on air quality on other continents.
Carbon monoxide is a trace gas in the atmosphere, and it does not have a direct effect on the global temperature, like methane and carbon dioxide do. However, carbon monoxide plays a major role in atmospheric chemistry, and it affects the ability of the atmosphere to cleanse itself of many other polluting gases. In combination with other pollut-ants and sunshine, it also takes part in the formation of lower-atmospheric (“bad”) ozone and urban smog. View, download, or analyze more of these data from NASA Earth Observations (NEO): Carbon Monoxide
Page 3
IMTA (Asia Pacific) New Members: Education & Cartography Illustration Nguyen, Thi Hong Loan, Director 45 Hang Chuoi, Pham Dinh Ho Street Hai Ba Trung District Hanoi, Vietnam Phone: +84 4 397 13947 Fax: +84 4 397 11404 [email protected] www.bandotranhanh.vn Business Categories: Publisher
Queensland Spatial Information Council (QSIC) Peter Gersekowski, Principal Advisor Level 9, Landcentre, 867 Main Street Woolloongabba, QLD 4102 Australia Phone: +61 7 3896 3774 Fax: +61 7 3227 7437 [email protected] [email protected] Business Categories: Government Organization
Silcar Communications Tarek Kadri, Project Manager Unit 5, 1 The Crescent Kingsgrove, NSW 2208 Australia Phone: +61 2 8577 1200 [email protected] Business Categories: Data Products, Consultant
Geocarto International Centre Ltd Mr. K.N. Au, Director 15-17, 2F Wah Ming Centre 421 Queen’s Road West Hong Kong, Republic of China Phone: 852 2546 4262 Fax: 852 2559 3419 [email protected] www.geocarto.com Business Categories: Customized Products / Services, Data Products, Distributor, GIS, Printing and Finishing Services, Publisher, Remote Sensing, Consultant, Retailer Online, Globes Manufacturer
IMTA (EAME) New Member:
Tracks4Africa (Ptd) Ltd Unit 8, Innovation Center 1, Meson Street Stellenbosch, Western Cape 7599 South Africa Phone: +27218808660 [email protected] http://www.tracks4africa.co.za Business Categories: Data Products, Electronic Media Publishers, Navigation / GPS, Publisher
IMTA New Members 2012
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IMTA (Americas) New Members:
Earthworx, LLC Dixie Brackett, President 4510 Turntable Road, Suite 120 Chattanooga, TN 37421 USA Phone: 423/593-6353 [email protected] http://www.earthworxllc.com Business Categories: GIS, Surveying Mapmonsters Brian Calder, Partner Nikola Zukanovic, Partner 978 Darwin Avenue Victoria, B.C. V8X 2X9 Canada Phone: 250/382-8483 [email protected] [email protected] Business Categories: Consultant, GIS
PetroLand Services L. Rae Connet, Managing Partner 13030 Inglewood Avenue, Suite 105 Hawthorne, CA 90278 USA Phone: 310/349-0051 [email protected] Business Categories: Consultant
Success Concepts International Karen Davis, Founder / President John Szal, Co-Founder 31 North Hawthorne Road West Brandywine, PA 19320 USA Phone: 610/842-9677 Fax: 610/383-5158 [email protected] [email protected] Business Categories: Customized Products / Services
Yukuskokon Joshua Keeley, Geologist 619 North Arthur Avenue Pocatello, ID 83204 USA Phone: 401/207-6744 Fax: 401/207-6744 [email protected] Business Categories: GIS, Computer Mapping
NEW TITLES ISSUED IN MARCH, 2012
Argentina Travel Reference Map 6th Ed. 2012 1:2,200,000 on waterproof paper ISBN 9781553411130 UPC 815534111371 $12.95cdn/us E8.95 7.99GBP – This edition of Argentina represents a significant updating of the road network. Argentina is aggressively redeveloping the country’s infrastruc-ture, investing in new schools, hospitals, and water supplies, as well as paving hundreds of kilometers of dirt highways annually. No map can be completely up to date as a result, as new segments of newly-paved roadway comes ‘on stream’ weekly; however, we’ve done our best to show off this fast-changing country
to good advantage. AVAILABLE
Canary Islands Travel Reference Map 1st
Ed. 2012 1:130,000 ISBN 9781553410881 UPC 815534108821 $12.95cdn/us E8.95 7.99GBP – Spain’s Canary Islands chain, off the coast of southern Morocco, are a well-established tourism haven for winter-weary Europeans. The Canaries are one of the largest travel destinations in the world; ideal for soaking up sunshine, engaging in water activities, or exploring. All the islands have been included on this map, as well as the ferry routes connecting the. Naturally, airports, roads, major resorts, towns, beaches, parks, hiking trails, and touristic attractions are in-cluded. Each island is shown at the same scale and with the same attention to detail. Several inset maps of ur-ban areas has been included, such as Santa Cruz de la Palma, Cancajos, Los Llanos de Aridane and Puerto Naos on La Palma, Santa Cruz on Tenerife, Las Palmas on Gran Canaria, Corralejo on Fuerteventura, Arricife on Lanzarote, and a couple of other towns that even I don’t know. This is an excellent travel friendly map, easy
to read and to use; printed on paper double-sided; AVAILABLE.
Guyana/Suriname/French Guiana Travel Reference Map 3rd
Ed. 2012 1:850,000 ISBN 9781553414025 UPC 815534140203 $12.95cdn/us E8.95 7.99GBP – The focus of this map is on Guyana, reflecting the changes coming about as a result of the growing assertiveness of Brasil, which has repaved the highway north from Manaus on the Amazon to the border with Guyana (at Bomfin). The Guyanese are improving the road to Georgetown, shortening travel times for goods in both directions by weeks. This new bridge also enables travel-ers to pass north and south much more easily. We have also re-done the inset map of Georgetown to bring it up to date. We have also changed the regional map on the reverse side, which used to cover all three Guianas countries, and replaced it by one concentrating on the other two countries. The most significant change we’ve made is to re-name Surinam to the country’s preferred name of Suriname. As we made relatively few changes to the artwork, and as Suriname/French Guiana is a separate map in our South America Series, it will continue as
a separate title. AVAILABLE
Madagascar Travel Reference Map 4th
Edition 2012 1:1,000,000 ISBN 9781553413042 UPC 815534130402 $12.95cdn/us E8.95 7.99GBP – This printing represents a dramatic improvement to our artwork for Madagas-car. The cover is the same, because we like the cute picture, but the map is now double-sided (north half/south half) at a much better scale than would be possible with a single-sided map. The island of Madagascar is one of those parts of the world I’ve never visited, to my regret. It is, however, a very popular map for us, with the previ-ous edition selling in less than two years. The country underwent a military coup a couple of years ago, which placed the country under sanctions from the OAU, the EU, and I suppose the UN, which probably affects them
economically; otherwise, life carries on much as usual. AVAILABLE
Yukon Travel Reference Map 6th
Edition 2012 1:1,000,000 ISBN 9781553418467 UPC 815534184689 $9.95cdn/us E7.95 6.99GBP – The Yukon is one of those idyllic travel destinations that never seems to change and offers visitors a unique travel experience. It is enormously popular – wide open spaces, pristine lakes, inter-esting small towns, excellent camping, easy access, all the ‘mod cons’ discretely covered by a traditional cover-ing. The travel season is limited to the summer months and is enormously popular. We’ve updated anything that we think needs attention. One difference is that the American and Canadian prices are now the same, but as the two currencies have been floating within pennies of each other for the past several years, this only makes sense.
AVAILABLE
News from Jack & Lan Joyce—ITMB Publishing Ltd.
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DeLorme inReach™
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YARMOUTH, Maine — March 14, 2012 — DeLorme and Alvarez & Associates, two service-disabled vet-eran owned small businesses, are partnering to pro-vide the award-winning DeLorme inReach™ to U.S. government customers under the NASA Solutions for Enterprise-Wide Procurement (SEWP) IV contract. The SEWP contract is a flexible contract vehicle that allows U.S. government organizations to rapidly re-ceive products and solutions that meet their mission needs.
For areas without traditional wireless service - which includes over 90 percent of the Earth's surface - in-Reach is an affordable satellite communicator offering two-way SOS and personal text messaging, delivery
confirmation, follow-me remote GPS tracking, and worldwide coverage via the Iridium network.
inReach was first-to-market with those capabilities, resulting in numerous awards from high-profile trade organizations and consumer publications, including the National Ma-rine Marketers Association, the Consumer Electronics Association, and Backpacker, Popular Science, Men's Journal, and Outside (magazines).
Those award-winning capabilities make inReach highly valuable to government clients. The two-way text messaging is especially crucial in SOS situations. U.S. government personnel or other in-distress users deployed to remote locations around the globe can describe their situation so that search-and-rescue authorities know what assets to de-ploy. They can also exchange updates with the response center, including sharing infor-mation on subsequent injuries or damage, changing weather conditions, and revised responder ETAs.
For free-form two-way messaging, inReach can be paired with either an Android smart-phone or a DeLorme Earthmate PN-60w handheld GPS receiver. It can also be used as a standalone device, allowing remote tracking and pre-programmed messages / SOS alerts to be sent via the device's pushbutton interface, with confirmation of delivery.
"This significant partnership with Alvarez & Associates provides a procurement vehicle for rapid deployment of inReach devices to support U.S. government operations all over the world," said Kevin Ryan, Vice President of Government Solutions for DeLorme. "The global two-way messaging, SOS alerting, and remote tracking capabilities of inReach will provide a reliable and vital communications solution for warfighters and other U.S. government personnel in remote and high-risk environments."
About DeLorme
DeLorme is a longtime leader in innovative mapping and GPS products, and most re-cently the company has earned numerous prestigious awards for its groundbreaking integration of GPS navigation and satellite communications. The ability to develop all the critical components necessary to compete in these fast-changing technologies dis-tinguishes DeLorme as a provider of unique solutions for both the commercial and gov-ernment markets. DeLorme is based in Yarmouth, ME, U.S.A., and is home to Eartha, the world’s largest revolving globe.
To learn more, visit www.delorme.com. For additional information and product im-
ages, go to www.delorme.com/media.
The KYF2 Compass Map is de-ployed using Esri Managed Ser-vices. Future plans include updat-ing and adding new datasets and offering dynamic map views and map services. As the map evolves, it will ultimately benefit farmers, educators, businesses, and other organizations by aggre-gating many sources of data about local and regional food sup-ply chains. Part of the USDA mission is to help build a national dialog about local food systems. To promote this dialog, Esri supports the Twit-ter campaign around the Com-pass and encourages those Twit-ter users involved with local food projects to include the hashtag #KYF2 when referring to the KYF2 initiative and talking about the KYF Compass and map. About Esri Since 1969, Esri has been giving customers around the world the power to think and plan geo-graphically. The market leader in GIS technology, Esri software is used in more than 300,000 or-ganizations worldwide including each of the 200 largest cities in the United States, most national governments, more than two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies, and more than 7,000 colleges and universities. Esri applications, running on more than one million desktops and thousands of web and enterprise servers, provide the backbone for the world's mapping and spatial analysis. Esri is the only vendor that provides complete technical solutions for desktop, mobile, server, and Internet platforms. Visit us at esri.com/news.
REDLANDS, Calif., March 26, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- As part of the US Department of Agri-culture's (USDA) ongoing com-mitment to support local and regional food systems, it re-cently released the KYF2 Compass Map. The interactive, web-based map provides information about these food systems and is a component of the Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food Compass, announced by agri-culture secretary Tom Vilsack and deputy secretary Kathleen Merrigan of the USDA. The map uses Esri's geo-graphic information system (GIS) technology and web map services designed and devel-oped by VSolvit LLC. (Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110425/LA88950LOGO) USDA originally launched the KYF2 initiative in 2009 to help revitalize rural communities by identifying the resources needed to grow, market, and distribute local food. The KYF2 Compass Map was created to carry that momentum forward by providing the public with a way to access information about where food is grown and the availability of local mar-kets. "USDA has shown how legacy GIS content can be rapidly organized to benefit broad groups of constituents," said Jack Dangermond, Esri presi-dent. "We are pleased that USDA has mapped local food systems and extended the use of government data to all stakeholders."
About VSolvit LLC VSolvit LLC (pronounced "We-Solve-It") is a leading provider of geospatial and information technology consulting services and solutions to the govern-ment and the private sector. VSolvit was recognized as the USDA Woman Owned Busi-ness of the Year in June 2011. VSolvit's SBA Certified 8(a)/SDB, 8(m)/WOSB status and availability of GSA schedules enables government agencies to have rapid access to geo-spatial expertise for geospa-tially enabling their organiza-tions. Please visit us at www.vsolvit.com. Copyright © 2012 Esri. All rights reserved. Esri, the Esri globe logo, GIS by Esri, esri.com, and @esri.com are trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of Esri in the United States, the European Community, or certain other jurisdictions. Other companies and products or services mentioned herein may be trademarks, service marks, or registered marks of their respective mark owners.
Esri Geospatial Technology Promotes Local Food Systems in US
Page 7
gramme, Ordnance Survey will develop two communities for the Accredited Consultants and Ac-credited Technical Specialists. The Accredited Consultants will be independent experts with a track record of providing external consultancy on strategic planning, design and implementation. The Accredited Technical Special-ists will be individuals with a track record of providing technical con-sultancy, including advice on Ord-nance Survey data and services, to end-use customers within live operations environments – both government and commercial cus-tomers. Community members will benefit from using the globally recognised Ordnance Survey name and logo, have the opportunity to add busi-ness contact details to the Ord-nance Survey website, have ac-cess to the established OS Insight programme, and access to exclu-sive community events, forums and online resources. James Brayshaw, Director of Sales and Market Development, comments: “These experts will work with Ordnance Survey pro-viding specialist advice and skills to all our markets. This could range from strategic government customers who access Ordnance Survey data via the Public Sector Mapping Agreement (PSMA) and One Scotland Mapping Agree-ment (OSMA), to new commercial companies looking to create inno-vative products and solve prob-lems using mapping data. “We have seen an explosion in the use of GI across the globe and we want to ensure that all our customers are using their map-ping data to its full potential. By collaborating with the best indus-
Geographic information (GI) experts across the globe are being given an exciting op-portunity to gain profes-sional recognition from Ord-nance Survey under a new accreditation scheme.
The new professional accredi-tation programme will create a specialist network of GI ex-perts who will work with the national mapping agency in supporting, and providing tech-nical advice to government, commercial and international customers. The global use of GI, and rec-ognition of the important role that accurate mapping data can play in supporting econo-mies, governments, commer-cial organisations and individu-als, is at an all time high. Today, Ordnance Survey data is being used extensively across the private and public sector to drive efficiencies and underpin decision making. In addition, GI is being used by new audiences, and the chal-lenge for Ordnance Survey and the industry is how best to foster new collaboration be-tween ‘non-traditional’ partners to drive the geospatial innova-tion agenda forward. The new professional accredi-tation programme will see Ord-nance Survey working more collaboratively with experts from around the world, provid-ing support, technical expertise and consultancy to a diverse range of customers in both traditional and non traditional markets. Under the new pro-
try experts, and sharing our strengths and skills, we aim to provide consultancy services that will deliver advice and solu-tions that our customers will value. “This is an exciting programme and I am confident that we can help Ordnance Survey custom-ers create new and innovative products and services, as well as using GI to deliver valuable efficiencies and savings. For more information on the new accredited programme, and how to join the scheme, please visit: www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk/accreditation
Head of Corporate Communica-tions—Rob Andrews [email protected]
Ordnance Survey Launches New Professional Accreditation
Page 8
Demo Provides Complete Solution Including Hardware and Software; Enables Faster Design of Applications with Graphical Displays CHANDLER, Ariz., Mar 27, 2012 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Microchip Technology Inc. /quotes/zigman/53421/quotes/nls/mchp MCHP -0.11% , a leading provider of microcontroller, analog and Flash-IP solutions, today announced the avail-ability of its Remote Control Demo Board, which integrates graphics, touch sensing, USB, and wireless communications (ZigBee® RF4CE). The board demonstrates a remote control populated with a PIC24FJ256DA210 MCU, 3.5” graphical TFT LCD display with resistive touch screen, capacitive touch keys with plastic overlay, MRF24J40 2.4 GHz transceiver and ZENA™ wireless adapter.
Many consumer products now feature colorful graphical displays and touch capability. And, RF-based remote controls are becoming more prevalent, as they provide bi-directional communication and work through walls (no line-of-sight communication is required). Microchip’s remote-control demo is in the form factor of a wireless remote control, but it can also be used as a reference design to build any type of application that requires a graphical display, touch sensing, USB and/or wireless capability.
The demo is supported by free source code that customers can use to customize for various graphical screens or touch-button scenarios. The MRF24J40 transceiver can be used with the 2.4 GHz RF4CE, ZigBee® or MiWi™ protocols, de-pending upon the wireless needs of the end application. The demo showcases how a vivid color display application can use a low-cost PIC24 MCU with integrated graphics driver, utilizing only the on-chip RAM to eliminate the cost of exter-nal memory.
“The Remote Control Demo Board was developed to help customers get to market quickly with Microchip’s graphics, mTouch™ sensing, USB and wireless solutions,” said Mitch Obolsky, vice president of Microchip’s MCU16 Division. “The demo comes populated with our low-cost graphics microcontroller and wireless transceiver to enable a cost-effective system solution.”
Packaging, Pricing, and Availability
The Remote Control Demo Board with ZENA wireless adapter (part # DM240315-2) can be purchased today, for $249.99. For further information, contact any Microchip sales representative or authorized worldwide distributor, or visit Microchip’s Web site at http://www.microchip.com/get/4MSM . To purchase products mentioned in this press release, go to microchipDIRECT or contact one of Microchip’s authorized distribution partners.
About Microchip Technology
Microchip Technology Inc. /quotes/zigman/53421/quotes/nls/mchp MCHP -0.11% is a leading provider of microcon-troller, analog and Flash-IP solutions, providing low-risk product development, lower total system cost and faster time to market for thousands of diverse customer applications worldwide. Headquartered in Chandler, Ariz., Microchip offers outstanding technical support along with dependable delivery and quality.
For more information, visit the Microchip Web site ( http://www.microchip.com/get/02H2 ).
Note: The Microchip name and logo, and PIC are registered trademarks of Microchip Technology Incorporated in the U.S.A., and other countries. MiWi, mTouch, and ZENA are trademarks of Microchip Technology Inc. in the U.S.A., and other countries. All other trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective companies.
High-res Photo available through editorial contact or Flickr (feel free to publish): http://www.microchip.com/get/37JK
Tags / Keywords: remote control demo board, remote control reference design, graphics, resistive touch
RSS Feed for Microchip Product News: http://www.microchip.com/get/VJG7
SOURCE: Microchip Technology Inc.
Microchip’s Remote Control Demo Board Integrates Graphics, Touch Sensing, USB,
and Wireless Connectivity
Page 9
Newest release offers many enhancements and features including the new Georeferencer tool
Toronto, ON, March 28, 2012 - Avenza Systems Inc., producers of the PDF Maps app for iOS and geospatial plugins for Adobe Creative Suite, including Geographic Imager for Adobe Photoshop, is pleased to announce the release of MAPublisher 8.7 for Adobe Illustrator. This release includes a number of enhancements to exist-ing features, such as Grids & Graticules, and some new ones, such as the Geo-referencer tool. The Grids & Graticules tool was redesigned to offer an almost endless level of cus-
tomization for index grids, graticules, and measured grids. Many new options are available including the ability to create a grid collection (multiple grids), intersects, align tick marks, and apply special formatting and styles to grid labels. "We're delighted to release MAPublisher 8.7 and to provide many new and sought-after features to the Adobe Illustrator cartographic and GIS environment,” said Ted Florence, President of Avenza. “We are excited to en-hance our tool lineup so that they better serve our users. The Georeferencer tool is the only one of its kind that exists in the Adobe Illustrator environment. The fact that MAPublisher users can now easily and effortlessly geo-reference their data in a graphics environment is an extremely powerful innovation,” he added. Enhancements and New Features of MAPublisher 8.7:
Grids & Graticules tool received major enhancements. Multiple grids can be created and layered to form a grid collection for a highly customized look – fine tune the look of grid lines, borders, tick marks, style label-ing and more. Save grid settings to configuration files and share them with others who can load them.
New Georeferencer tool provides the ability to give spatial properties to a non-referenced map by establish-ing a relationship between page locations in the document and world locations sourced from an online map service, another open document, or manual entry.
The Buffer Area tool has the new ability to buffer areas.
Redesigned the Label Features dialog box for easier label management.
Text Utilities has a new Merge text utility which provides the ability to merge multiple lines of text into a sin-gle text object.
More about MAPublisher for Illustrator
MAPublisher for Illustrator is powerful map production software for creating cartographic-quality maps from GIS data. Developed as a suite of plug-ins for Adobe Illustrator, MAPublisher leverages the superior graphics capa-bilities of this graphics design software for working with GIS data and producing high-quality maps with effi-ciency.
MAPublisher 8.7 for Illustrator is available free of charge to all MAPublisher customers with an active mainte-nance subscription and as an upgrade for non-maintenance users at US$599. New licenses are US$1399. MAPublisher FME Auto is available as an add-on to MAPublisher 8.7 at prices starting at US$399 per license. Academic, floating and volume pricing is also available. Prices include one year of full maintenance. Visit www.avenza.com/mapublisher for more details.
More about Avenza Systems Inc.
Avenza Systems Inc. is an award-winning, privately held corporation that provides cartographers and GIS pro-fessionals with powerful software tools for making better maps. In addition to software offerings for Mac and Windows users, Avenza offers value-added data sets, product training and consulting services as well as the PDF Maps app for purchasing and using maps on iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices, including GeoPDF and geospatial PDF files. Visit www.avenza.com for more details.
Avenza Releases MAPublisher 8.7 for Adobe Illustrator
Page 10
Frank Catalano is a regular Geek-Wire columnist, and is assisting this week while Todd Bishop is off. You can follow Frank on Twit-
ter@FrankCatalano.
___________________________ Google has released a special Cherry Blossom Season Street
View Guide to Japan.
The guide highlights some of the best Street View images found on Google Maps in Japan, including the most beautiful Cherry Blos-som images.
Using the guide it is possible to explore a number of Japanese cities. The Street Views for each city are organised into a number of categories, including 'sights', 'lodging', 'restaurants' and 'shopping'.
These categories include a num-ber of new Street View images taken inside shops, hotels and restaurants.
OpenStreetMap, which is run by the U.K.-based non-profit OpenStreetMap Foundation, is a self-described “free wiki world map” which operates much like Wikipedia. Volun-teers contribute geographic data, which is then free to use for street maps or other pur-poses.
Computerworld reports that one of the biggest volunteer forces behind OpenStreetMap is none other than Microsoft. It appears the motivation may not be completely altruistic. Not only does support of OpenStreetMap potentially weaken Google’s dominant grip on the market, but it’s re-ported that Bing also uses OpenStreetMap data for its mapping service.
Some of this relationship should come as little surprise. The founder of OpenStreet-Map and chair of its Founda-tion is Steve Coast, who was hired by Microsoft in late 2010 to work as principal architect for Bing Mobile. Computer-world cites reports, though, that in addition to Coast’s time, Microsoft’s Bing has contrib-uted “valuable map data” to the OpenStreetMap project.
And all that data — plus in-creased fees for Google Maps — has led several companies to switch. Apple this month began using OpenStreetMap for its iPhoto app on the iPad and iPhone.
A quick scan of OpenStreet-Map Foundation site doesn’t show Microsoft listed as a di-rect financial donor. But its other contributions appear to be paying off.
OpenStreetMap & Cherry Blossom Season Street View by Google
Page 11
makes the vast expanse of space seem less forbidding to know that similar geologic processes which have shaped our planet are active elsewhere."
The Io geologic map is unique from other USGS-published planetary geologic maps because surface features were character-ized using four distinct global im-age mosaics. Produced by the USGS, these image mosaics combine the best images from NASA’s Voyager 1 and 2 mis-sions (acquired in 1979) as well as the Galileo orbiter (1995-2003).
This uniqueness presented a par-ticular cartographic challenge. "Io has undergone major surface changes during the past few dec-ades due to its volcanic activity," notes Dr. Ken Tanaka, a USGS research geologist who coordi-nates the review and publication of planetary geologic maps. “Conveying information from mul-tiple image mosaics in a single map necessitated the use of unique and complementary map symbols, colors, and feature names."
In many cases, these maps show that, despite the many differences between bodies in our Solar Sys-tem, there are many notable simi-larities that link the evolution and fate of our planetary system to-gether.
The highly detailed, colorful map reveals a number of volcanic fea-tures, including: volcanic domes
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – More than 400 years after its discov-ery by Galileo, the innermost large moon of Jupiter – Io – can finally rest on its geologic laurels. A group of scientists led by Dr. David A. Williams of Arizona State University has produced the first global geo-logic map of the Jovian satel-lite. The map, which was pub-lished by the U. S. Geological Survey, technically illustrates the geologic character of some of the most unique and active volcanoes ever documented in the solar system.
Since its discovery in January 1610, Io has been the focus of repeated observation, first by Earth-based telescopes, and later by fly-by and orbiting spacecraft. These studies de-pict an otherworldly celestial body whose gravitational rela-tionships with Jupiter and sis-ter moons Europa and Gany-mede cause massive, rapid flexing of its surface and inte-rior. This flexing generates tremendous heat in Io's inte-rior, which is relieved through surface volcanism, resulting in 25 times more volcanic activity than occurs here on Earth.
"More than 130 years after the USGS first began producing quality geologic maps here on Earth, it is exciting to have the reach of our science extend across 400 million miles to this volcanically active moon of Jupiter," said USGS Director Marcia McNutt. "Somehow it
and depressions, lava flow fields, mountains, plume depos-its, and sulfur- and sulfur diox-ide-rich plains. Despite this geologic diversity, there is one particular feature that is com-mon to the Moon, Mars, and even Earth that is not depicted on the geologic map of Io — impact craters. "Io has no im-pact craters. It is the only object in the Solar System where we have not seen any impact cra-ters, testifying to Io's very active volcanic resurfacing," says pro-ject lead David Williams. The new geologic map of Io is just one of many cartographic products that help drive scien-tific thought. The production of these products has been a fo-cal point of research at the USGS Astrogeology Science Center since its inception in the early 1960s. "Remotely charac-terizing the surfaces of plane-tary bodies [such as Io] forces scientists to carefully consider and test hypotheses that ad-dress the evolution of an entire planet," says Dr. Ken Herken-hoff, Acting Director of the USGS Astrogeology Science Center. USGS began producing plane-tary maps in support of the Apollo moon landings, and con-tinues to help establish a framework for integrating and comparing past and future stud-ies of extraterrestrial surfaces. The project was funded by NASA through its Outer Planets Research and Planetary Geol-ogy and Geophysics Programs. The “Geologic Map of Io” (USGS Scientific Investi-gations Map 3168) is available online for downloading. An ani-mation called "Rotating Globe of Io Geology" is available online.
First Geologic Map of Jupiter’s Moon Io Details an Otherworldly...
Page 12
Enhancements and New fea-
tures of MAPublisher 8.7:
Grids & Graticules tool received major enhancements. Multiple grids can be created and layered to form a grid collection for a highly customized look – fine tune the look of grid lines, borders, tick marks, style labeling and more. Save grid settings to configuration files and share them with others who can load them.
New Georeferencer tool provides the ability to give spatial proper-ties to a non-referenced map by establishing a relationship be-tween page locations in the docu-ment and world locations sourced from an online map service, an-other open document, or manual entry.
The Buffer Area tool has the new ability to buffer areas.
Redesigned the Label Features dialog box for easier label man-agement.
Text Utilities has a new Merge text utility which provides the abil-ity to merge multiple lines of text into a single text object.
More about MAPublisher for
Illustrator
MAPublisher for Illustrator is pow-erful map production software for creating cartographic-quality maps from GIS data. Developed as a suite of plug-ins for Adobe Illustrator, MAPublisher leverages the superior graphics capabilities of this graphics design software for working with GIS data and producing high-quality maps with efficiency.
MAPublisher 8.7 for Illustrator is available free of charge to all MAPublisher customers with an active maintenance subscription and as an upgrade for non-
Newest release offers many enhancements and features including the new Georefer-encer tool Toronto, ON, March 28, 2012 - Avenza Systems Inc., produc-ers of the PDF Maps app for iOS and geospatial plugins for Adobe Creative Suite, includ-ing Geographic Imager for Adobe Photoshop, is pleased to announce the release of MAPublisher 8.7 for Adobe Illustrator. This release in-cludes a number of enhance-ments to existing features, such as Grids & Graticules, and some new ones, such as the Georeferencer tool.
The Grids & Graticules tool was redesigned to offer an almost endless level of cus-tomization for index grids, graticules, and measured grids. Many new options are available including the ability to create a grid collection (multiple grids), intersects, align tick marks, and apply special formatting and styles to grid labels.
"We're delighted to release MAPublisher 8.7 and to pro-vide many new and sought-after features to the Adobe Illustrator cartographic and GIS environment,” said Ted Florence, President of Avenza. “We are excited to enhance our tool lineup so that they bet-ter serve our users. The Geo-referencer tool is the only one of its kind that exists in the Adobe Illustrator environment. The fact that MAPublisher us-ers can now easily and effort-lessly georeference their data in a graphics environment is an extremely powerful innova-tion,” he added.
maintenance users at US$599. New licenses are US$1399. MAPublisher FME Auto is avail-able as an add-on to MAPub-lisher 8.7 at prices starting at US$399 per license. Academic, floating and volume pricing is also available. Prices include one year of full maintenance. Visit www.avenza.com/
mapublisher for more details.
More about Avenza Systems Inc. Avenza Systems Inc. is an award-winning, privately held corporation that provides car-tographers and GIS profession-als with powerful software tools for making better maps. In addi-tion to software offerings for Mac and Windows users, Avenza offers value-added data sets, product training and con-sulting services as well as the PDF Maps app for purchasing and using maps on iPhones, iPads and iPod Touch devices, including GeoPDF and geospa-tial PDF files. Visit our site at www.avenza.com for more details. For further information call: Tel: 416/487-5116
Avenza® Releases MAPublisher® 8.7 for Adobe® Illustrator®
Page 13
Self-driving cars are no longer just the stuff of science fiction. Increasingly, they're becoming a reality. For the last sev-eral years, Google (Nasdaq: GOOG) has been testing self-driving, autonomous vehicles in California -- and if they ever become mainstream, their promise is better controlled and less deadly roadways. "We want to improve people's lives by making driving safer, more enjoyable, and more efficient," Jay Nancarrow, a Google spokesperson, told TechNews-World. "Over 1.2 million people are killed in traffic worldwide every year, and we think autonomous technology can significantly reduce that number." Safety, in fact, is one of the major potential benefits of mass-produced self-driving cars. "It's a very attractive notion to move toward more autonomous technology because of the 30,000-plus deaths that we have on the roads each year," Frank Douma, a research fellow at the University of Minnesota's Humphrey School of Public Affairs, told TechNewsWorld. "Ninety-five percent of them are attributable at least in part to human error," he pointed out. "People will say they like to drive, but apparently they're not paying that much attention. If you remove the human error part, you can make great advances in safety." How They Work—Google currently has seven operational autonomous cars, and they incorporate an array of technolo-gies including programmed maps, radar, laser sensors and cameras. The cars go through a rigorous testing and devel-opment phase to make sure that all the equipment works and the cars can find their own way down the road. "Before any route is driven using our automated technology, we first drive the roads ourselves using equipment -- such as cameras, laser sensors and radar - that helps us create a detailed digital map of all of the features of the road," ex-plained Nancarrow. "By mapping things like lane markers and traffic signs, the software in the car becomes familiar with the environment and its characteristics in advance." Those early trips with driver assistance prepare the cars for tackling the same roads without assistance. "When we later drive a route without driver assistance, these same cameras, laser sensors, and radars help determine where other cars are and how fast they are moving," said Nancarrow. "The software controls acceleration and deceleration, and mounted cameras read and interpret traffic lights and other signs." Regulating Autonomy—Laws and regulations are only now catching up with new autonomous vehicle technologies. Nevada, for instance, recently became the first state to enact regulations governing the testing and use of self-driving cars on its roadways. "The department was approached by representatives from Google, and it was viewed as an oppor-tunity for economic development in an emerging industry," explained Tom Jacobs, chief public information officer for the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles. "Given Nevada's varied weather and terrain, the state is good testing ground." Sen. Alex Padilla has introduced a bill that would direct the California Highway Patrol to develop safety guidelines for the testing of self-driving cars. Though it's yet to be passed, it is a sign that California is trying to move in the same direction as Nevada. "We began our roughly 200,000 miles of testing our self-driving technology in California, and it's where we've covered the most ground," said Nancarrow. "It's also our home state. We would like to see self-driving vehicles progress to the next stage here. We're very fortunate to have found a supporter with a strong technical background in Sen. Padilla, and we look forward to working with him throughout this process."
Safe Passage—Drivers might be concerned about the safety of self-driving cars, but Nancarrow says that they are as safe -- if not more so -- than human-driven vehicles. "We've taken the safety of the public, our drivers and our equipment with the utmost seriousness since the start of the project," said Nancarrow. "Every car has two people inside: a specially trained safety driver who monitors road conditions and traffic, and a specially trained software operator who monitors the computer system." Those human drivers ensure that the robotic car in their care does not do anything too wild. "They can take over control easily and at any time -- similar to disengaging cruise control mode," said Nancarrow. "We also perform heavy software testing before releasing it into cars that will appear in traffic to minimize the number of errors in the software, and we enroll all safety drivers in a special driving school for training and certification." Google is continuing to develop new features and plans for its autonomous cars, which might soon become a reality for everyday consumers and not just techno-geeks. "We have been steadily developing and improving the technology for several years, adding functionality and increasing the consistency of the overall experience," said Nancarrow. "We plan to continue testing the cars in a variety of conditions, increasing the reliability of the technology." "We have been steadily developing and improving the technology for several years, adding functionality and increasing the consistency of the overall experience," said Nancarrow. "We plan to continue testing the cars in a variety of condi-tions, increasing the reliability of the technology."
Driving Into the Future: Autonomous Cars by Vivian Wagner (TechNewsWorld)
Page 14
We are pleased to announce the first World-Wide Human Geography Data Working Group meeting on 27-28 March 2012, hosted at the US Geological Survey (USGS) in Reston, Virginia. The Working Group is designed to build voluntary partnerships around human geography data and mapping focused on the general principle of making appropriate information available to promote human security. We have recognized the increasing need to build voluntary partnerships around human geography data and mapping and we will be concentrating on col-laboration across several critical theme areas: climate, communication, demographics, economy, education, eth-nicity, groups (civil, political, ideological), land use, language, medical/health, religion, significant events, and transportation. We will include presentations, panels, breakout sessions, and networking breaks where we’ll share ideas from around the world on establishing relationships for data preparedness. We ask that you please bring to the group your successes, innovative ideas, and challenges in Human Geogra-phy data requirements and data sources, and describe your existing gaps in data-poor locations. We will bring relevant presentations, interesting research, and colleagues experienced at establishing relationships within diffi-cult areas of the world. This meeting will concentrate on Collaboration and Partnerships:
Where do you go for Human Geography data you need for your area of interest?
What techniques have you used that can be generalized for other data-poor locations?
What innovation have you brought to a collaboration problem and how might your idea fit elsewhere?
Subsequent meetings will concentrate on innovative efforts in methodology, technologies, and dissemination. The agenda for this first meeting will be published in early March. Attendees and presenters already include rep-resentatives from the State Department, National Defense University, NGA, the United Nations, USGS, USAID, Census, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, OpenStreetMap and others from academia, government agencies, in-ternational organizations, NGOs, and private industry. Please join us. Website Registration is available now at https://WWHGD.org and we would be grateful if you could please reg-ister by March 20, 2012 so we have time to arrange logistics. If you have questions about any part of this, please contact Terri Ryan at 757.810.7681 or at [email protected], Tiffany Hill-Holland 202.701.3775 / [email protected], or Kevin Kurtz 757.561.4800 / [email protected], or Eric Rasmussen, MD, MDM, FACP 360.621.3592 / [email protected].
World-Wide Human Geography Data Working Group
Page 15
Todd Sweet and Caroline S. Stringer Lee Schwartz, PhD
NGA Human Geography Community of Practice Director, Office of the Geographer and Global Issues
Department of State
By a unanimous vote of the American Society for Photogrammetry and Re-mote Sensing (ASPRS) Board of Directors, the Society has issued a third reso-lution calling for immediate support and funding for the continuation of the Na-tion’s moderate resolution imaging program. Due to a technical failure in the Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus (ETM+) instrument on-board the Landsat 7 spacecraft in May 2003, and the recent decline of the Landsat 5 spacecraft, the continued collection of useful moderate-resolution, multispectral remote sensing data is now jeopardized.
Over 40 years of uninterrupted Landsat imagery has played a critical role in monitoring ongoing stresses on the Earth from population, industry, climate change, land use and other factors. The continued collection of moder-ate resolution imagery is needed to provide an effective means to intensively and systematically measure the Earth’s vital conditions as food and water and energy resources become ever more scarce.
In the resolution, ASPRS cites the policy change made in 2008 by the Department of the Interior (DOI)/U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) to distribute all current and historic Landsat imagery free of charge to users any-where in the world. This has resulted in an explosive growth in imagery utilization, especially the global monitor-ing land surface changes. In addition, the resolution points out the comprehensive strategy formulated by the White House in 2007 to ensure long-term stability for moderate resolution satellite land-imaging.
In 2011, the current Administration embraced and reinforced that strategy by seeking funding within the DOI/USGS budget to ensure its implementation. Congressional appropriators have not agreed with the Administra-tion's proposal to create and fund a separate DOI/USGS "Land Imaging" account and instead have provided $2 million for program development only with time in the year ahead for all interested parties to re-examine how to proceed with future missions.
The current ASPRS resolution outlines five points that ASPRS believes the U.S. Government must seriously consider:
1. The United States must commit to continue the collection of moderate-resolution land imagery and the free distribution of current and historic imagery.
2. The United States must establish and maintain a core operational capability to collect moderate-resolution land imagery through the procurement and launch of a series of U.S.-owned satellites, thus providing job oppor-tunities for highly skilled, technically trained Americans and sustaining U.S. technical leadership and expertise in remote sensing.
3. The United States must build, launch and operate lower cost smaller satellites, using those proven technolo-gies for our future operational land-imaging systems, and avoiding costly, one-of-a-kind imaging satellites.
4. The United States must pursue a strategy that includes collaboration with international partners, and with do-mestic and foreign commercial entities, to augment the core capability for meeting U.S. operational requirements and create opportunities for cost sharing and data interoperability.
5. The United States must ensure adequate funding is allocated to DOI, which will continue to partner with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) to meet U.S. civil land imaging needs.
“For the past nine years, ASPRS has pressed the U.S. Government on the importance of planning for data conti-nuity and a commitment to the establishment and maintenance of a core operational capability to collect moder-ate-resolution land imagery through the procurement and launch of a series of U.S.-owned satellites,” said ASPRS President Gary Florence. “ASPRS continues to believe the most efficient, sustainable and cost-effective way to ensure the continuous flow of Landsat or Landsat-like data is for the U.S. Government to invest in build-ing lower cost smaller satellites and to pursue international cost-sharing partners, starting with the European Space Agency, who have the same or very similar program objectives,” he emphasized.
American Society for Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing (ASPRS)
Page 21
________________________________________________________________________________________
All seminars run from 5.00 p.m. to 6.30 p.m. at the School of Geography and the Environment, unless indicated
otherwise below. For further information please contact Nick Millea.
The World for Rome to See: a New Approach to Agrippa's Cartographic Monument
Jesse Simon, University College, Oxford
5.00 p.m., Thursday 23 February 2012, SoGE, Oxford
About Ordnance Survey History - title to be confirmed.
Rachel Hewitt, Wolfson College, Oxford
5.00 p.m., Thursday 24 May 2012, SoGE, Oxford
About Modern European Topographic Mapping - title to be confirmed.
Alexander Kent, Canterbury Christ Church University
Thursday 14 June 2012, Bodleian's Book Storage Facility, Swindon
TOSCA Field Trip - Afternoon Visit to the Bodleian's Book Storage Facility at Swindon
(Space limited - for further details, please contact Nick Millea: [email protected] or +44 (0)1865 287119).
The Oxford Seminars in Cartography are supported by the Friends of TOSCA, ESRI (UK) Ltd, Oxford Cartogra-phers, the British Cartographic Society, the Charles Close Society, and the School of Geography and the Envi-ronment.
Copyright © 2006-2012, School of Geography and the Environment, South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3QY, United Kingdom. Tel: +44 (0)1865 285070.
General Enquiries | About this website | Privacy | Accessibility | Valid XHTML & CSS | Contact Webmaster Last modified: Friday, 02-Mar-2012 10:22:27 GMT. Title Images: Blue Marble. NASA Visible Earth.
The Oxford Seminars in Cartography 2012—19th Annual Series
Page 22
“
Page 18
THE TITANIC’S 100-YEAR-OLD TRAGEDY
April 15th marks the 100
th anniversary of the sinking of the luxury passenger ship Titanic. A memorial Titanic
cruise will leave Southampton, England, on April 8 to visit the site of the sinking. The cruise is sold out, with many of the tickets going to relatives of passengers and crew who were on the Titanic during the 1912 disaster. The cruise ship Balmoral will stop at the site of the Titanic for a memorial service.
Constructed by the British White Star Line in 1912 and called “The Ship of Dreams,” Titanic was the largest ship ever built at the time. At 882.5 feet (269 m.) in length, it was nearly as long as four city blocks and could carry 2,200 passengers.
On its maiden voyage, it departed Southampton, England, on the English Channel for New York City. Shortly before midnight on April 14, it struck an iceberg 1,300 miles (4,000 km.) northeast of New York and sank in just two hours and 40 minutes.
Titanic actually sank 400 miles (650 km.) south of Newfoundland. In attempting to set a transatlantic world re-cord time, Titanic’s captain chose a great circle route between England and New York City. Had the ship been 300 miles (483 km.) south of its route, it would have likely missed the iceberg field entirely.
Always the shortest distance between any two points on the earth’s surface, a great circle route can be demon-strated by stretching a rubber band between two places on a globe. Extended around the globe, a great circle bisects the earth.
Thus Titanic’s route went slightly northwestward toward Greenland, then southwestward along Newfoundland’s coast. This route, the shortest distance between London and New York, was necessary to save both fuel (coal) and time in Titanic’s quest for the speed record. This route is still used by modern ships and aircraft travelling between the United States and Europe.
During the first three-quarters of Titanic’s voyage, there was no threat of icebergs. The North Atlantic Drift, a northeastward extension of the Gulf Stream, brings warm water to the North Atlantic and bathes Europe in a temperate marine climate.
Along the western side of the Atlantic, however, cold waters of the Labrador Current flow southward, carrying icebergs from Greenland’s glaciers. The cold water and icebergs meet the North Atlantic Drift, generally east and southeast of St. John’s, Newfoundland. Along the Grand Banks located there, icebergs are often marooned in “iceberg fields” as the strong North Atlantic Drift shears off the southern end of the Labrador Current.
New research by two physicists at Texas State University suggests that an unusual set of phenomena also col-luded in the weeks preceding the disaster (Time, March 19, 2012). An alignment of the sun, earth and moon, called syzygy, combined with perihelion (when the earth is closest to the sun) apparently created unusual tidal ranges. These unusual tides may have re-floated icebergs that were “grounded” in Newfoundland’s shallow wa-ters and the icebergs converged in the shipping lands offshore.
Near midnight on April 14, a lookout on Titanic spotted an iceberg directly in the ship’s path. Even with attempts to avoid it, the massive ship sailing at full speed (23 knots, 41 km/hr) struck the iceberg with its starboard (right) side, puncturing a number of holes below the waterline.
The iceberg breached five of Titanic’s watertight compartments. Designed to withstand a breach of four compart-ments, but not five, the ship was doomed. Titanic began to sink bow-first with her nose in the water and her stern, or back, high in the air. She went down in near freezing temperatures.
Titanic did not have enough lifeboats to save everyone on the ship that fateful night. Sadly, in the confusion to load women and children first, many of the lifeboats left the ship only half full. As Titanic began to sink two miles (3.2 km.) to the bottom of the ocean, more than 1,500 of her passengers and crew were still aboard.
Geography in the News by Neal G. Lineback and Mandy Lineback Gritzner
Page 19
In 1985, Robert Ballard, whose lifelong dream was to find Titanic, located the enormous ship using an underwa-ter craft with cameras. He continued to survey Titanic’s wreckage in 1986, using a robot to explore her grand staircase, gym, and other rooms. He found chairs, bowls, and other objects on the seafloor.
While Ballard was careful not to disturb Titanic and her myriad reminders of the passengers and crew who died there, others have not been so reverent. To date, people have taken an approximate 6,000 items from the wreck, including dishes, lamps, a safe, a statue and pieces of the ship herself. Ballard advocates that the ship be left alone, though he does hope that some day cameras can be installed around Titanic so others can see her.
Even without cameras, however, the tragic story of “The Ship of Dreams,” will likely endure for many generations to come. And that is Geography in the News.
Co-authors are Neal Lineback, Appalachian State University Professor Emeritus of Geography, and Geographer
Mandy Lineback Gritzner. University News Director Jane Nicholson serves as technical editor.
Sources: GITN #425, “Titanic Sinks Again,” Dec. 29, 1997; Lemonick, Michael, Time Magazine, “How the Moon
Sank the Titanic,” March 19, 2012; http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngexplorer/0411/articles/
mainarticle.html; and http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-hampshire-16339616
Subjects: Human Geography, Physical Geography, Titanic, Great Circle, Icebergs, Robert Ballard, Transporta-tion, Oceans Places: North America, Europe, Atlantic Ocean, Southampton, English Channel, North Atlantic Drift, Labrador Current, Gulf Stream, Labrador
Geography in the News by Neal G. Lineback and Mandy Lineback Gritzner
Page 20
Map of the Month in April is the New Zealand Photo Atlas
Map of the Month 04/2012 is the New Zealand Photo Atlas. The atlas is a product of Hema Maps. At the last ICC the map won the second jury’s prize in the category “Atlases”. Get more information and zoom in on the
atlas pages at the ICA website! Category: ICA News 30 March 2012 Manuela Schmidt
Map of the Month 4/2012: New Zealand Photo Atlas At the 25th International Cartography Conference in Paris, France, the “New Zealand Photo Atlas” won the second jury’s prize in the category Atlases. The jury stated:
Publisher’s Description: This unique atlas is designed to take you on a stunning photographic tour of New Zealand, one that will provide the inspiration to break out your camera and to take advantage of your time on the road. Each atlas page is brought to life with images shot from a location nearby. Every photograph is numbered and pinpointed on the map, making it easy to see where each shot was taken so that you can go there and take photos of your own. Comprehensive captions will give you a feel for what to see and do while you’re visiting each area.
The Atlas captures some of the most photographic places in New Zealand and provides information on what to expect when you get there. Whether it’s an iconic New Zealand sight or a scene of hidden beauty just off the beaten track, we’ve showcased a range of images that will help you dream, plan and navigate your adventure.
The Atlas also contains pages of valuable photography tips by seasoned landscape photographer Jeff Drewitz. With good pointers for beginners through to advanced photographers, these tips will help you make the most of your time in New Zealand, a nation that makes an explorer out of every traveller and where untold natural treas-ures lie just over the horizon.
Number of pages: 128
Dimensions (mm): 246 x 279
Authors: Jeff Drewitz & Hema Maps Pty Ltd
Published by Hema Maps Pty Ltd
Date published: 10/2010
Language: English
More information: Hema Maps; General information on the Map of the Month
Fine integration of two media: photography and cartography.
Map of the Month in April is the New Zealand Photo Atlas
Page 21
Map of the Month in April is the New Zealand Photo Atlas
Map of the Month 04/2012 is the New Zealand Photo Atlas. The atlas is a product of Hema Maps. At the last ICC the map won the second jury’s prize in the category “Atlases”. Get more information and zoom in on the
atlas pages at the ICA website! Category: ICA News 30 March 2012 Manuela Schmidt
Map of the Month 4/2012: New Zealand Photo Atlas At the 25th International Cartography Conference in Paris, France, the “New Zealand Photo Atlas” won the second jury’s prize in the category Atlases. The jury stated:
Publisher’s Description: This unique atlas is designed to take you on a stunning photographic tour of New Zealand, one that will provide the inspiration to break out your camera and to take advantage of your time on the road. Each atlas page is brought to life with images shot from a location nearby. Every photograph is numbered and pinpointed on the map, making it easy to see where each shot was taken so that you can go there and take photos of your own. Comprehensive captions will give you a feel for what to see and do while you’re visiting each area.
The Atlas captures some of the most photographic places in New Zealand and provides information on what to expect when you get there. Whether it’s an iconic New Zealand sight or a scene of hidden beauty just off the beaten track, we’ve showcased a range of images that will help you dream, plan and navigate your adventure.
The Atlas also contains pages of valuable photography tips by seasoned landscape photographer Jeff Drewitz. With good pointers for beginners through to advanced photographers, these tips will help you make the most of your time in New Zealand, a nation that makes an explorer out of every traveller and where untold natural treas-ures lie just over the horizon.
Number of pages: 128
Dimensions (mm): 246 x 279
Authors: Jeff Drewitz & Hema Maps Pty Ltd
Published by Hema Maps Pty Ltd
Date published: 10/2010
Language: English
More information: Hema Maps; General information on the Map of the Month
Fine integration of two media: photography and cartography.
Map of the Month in April is the New Zealand Photo Atlas
Page 22