UNIT 1: PLANET EARTH

Teacher: Begoña Cristellys

2. THE MOVEMENT OF THE EARTH: ROTATION.
 The Earth moves all the time.
A. Rotation: the Earth rotates on its own axis.
• Earth spins on its own axis in a west-to-east direction.
• It takes 24h to complete one rotation (one solar day).

 The Earth’s rotation has three

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consequences:
① It causes the alternation of
day and night.
2. THE MOVEMENT OF THE EARTH: ROTATION.
② The Sun’s apparent movement. The Sun appears in
the East (dawn-amanecer) and disappears in the west
(dusk-anochecer). This movement of the Sun enables
us to identify the cardinal points, the basic points of
reference: north, south, east and west.

Compass
rose
2. THE MOVEMENT OF THE EARTH: TIME ZONES.
③ The existence of the hours of the day: the
knowledge of the Earth’s rotation allows us to divide
the solar day into 24 equal parts, know as hours.
 We divide the Earth into 24 imaginary zones that
correspond to an hour of the Earth’s rotation. These are
call time zones and we use them to measure time.
 Some countries adjust the boundaries of time zones so
that they match political frontiers (Spain, China).
 Our point of reference is the Prime or Greenwich Meridian at Oº.
 As we go east through each time zone, we set the clock forward by one hour.
 As we go west through each time zone, we set the clock back by one hour.
 The meridian 180º longitude is opposite the Prime Meridian. This
meridian is called International Date Line. We put the date forward or
back by a day whem we cross this line.
2. THE MOVEMENT OF THE EARTH: REVOLUTION.
B. Revolution: The Earth revolves around the Sun.
 At the same time the Earth rotates on its own axis, it also moves
around the Sun in an elliptical orbit.
 It takes 365 days and 6h to complete a one revolution (one solar
year).
 As each year has 365 days, the remaining six hours are saved, and
every four years there is a leap year (año bisiesto), which means an
extra day is added to the month of February.
2. THE MOVEMENT OF THE EARTH: REVOLUTION.
 The consequences of the Earth’s revolution and its tilted axis
of rotation:
① The seasons: as the Earth revolves around the Sun, the angle of the
Sun rays as they reach the Earth’s surface changes. As a result, the
two hemispheres receive more or less heat from the Sun gives rise
to (dando lugar a) the seasons: spring, summer, autumn and winter.
② The equinoxes and solstices: or the changing length of day and
night.
 The variation in the length of day and nigth results from the location o the
circle of illumination or the line separating nigth and day in relation to the
Earth’s axis.
 At the spring and autumn equinoxes (21st march and 23rd september), the
circle of illumination coincides with the Earth’s axis – day and nigth last the
same length of all around the world.
 At the summer and winter solstices (21st june and 21st december), the line of
illumination advances or withdraws (se retira) in relation to the Earth’s axis –
the length of day and night is different in each hemisphere.
2. THE MOVEMENT OF THE EARTH: REVOLUTION (SOLSTICES
AND EQUINOXES).
2. THE MOVEMENT OF THE EARTH: REVOLUTION (SOLSTICES
AND EQUINOXES).
③ The existence of thermal zones: the tilt of the Earth’s axis of
rotation influences the worl’d climate zones. This is because the
angle of the solar rays that strike the Earth change at different
times of the year. Consequently, different parts of the Earth’s
surface receive varying amounts of solar energy.
3. HOW DO WE REPRESENT THE EARTH?: A.GLOBES & MAPS.
 The Earth is spherical, but
is not a perfect sphere
because is flat at the
poles. We call this shape
a geiod.

 Globes are accurate representations of

the Earth because they have a similar
shape to our planet.
3. HOW DO WE REPRESENT THE EARTH?: GLOBES & MAPS.
 MAPS: are representations af all, or part, of the Earth on a flat surface.

 Maps distort the Earth’s surface because they are representations of a

three-dimensional object on a flat surface. For a large area the map is
very distorted, but the map it much less distorted for a smaller one.

 The study and practice of making maps is called cartography.

We use a technique called

map projection to make
maps. This is done use
surface geometry. If you
make cuts along certain
lines, you produce a flat
surface.
TYPES OF MAPS PROJECTIONS:

a) Cylindrical
projection.

b) Conic
projection

c) Flat
projection
 Types of maps projections:
① A cylindrical projection. The common way to represent a
rectangular map of the world. On these maps, there is very little
distortion in equatorial areas, but a lot around the poles. There
are two main types of cylindrical projections:
a) Peters projection:
 It shows the scale of landmass accurately, but it changes some
shapes.
 It is equivalent. It represent surfaces with the same proportions that
they really have.
 It is equidistant. This map projection mantains the scale of distance
between places.
b) Mercator projection:
 It shows the shapes of landmasses accurately, but the further we
move away from the Equator, the more the proportion is
distorted.
 It is conformal. It shows the shape and contours of continents and
oceans without any distortion.
 It is equidistant. This map projection mantains the scale of
distance between places.
 Types of maps projections:
② A conic projection. We can only show part of the Earth. On these
maps, the distortion is minimal at the point where the cone intersect
the globe but increases as we moved away from that point.

③ A flat projection.This is a good way to represent the poles.

3. HOW DO WE REPRESENT THE EARTH?:
B. THE MAIN FEATURES OF A MAP.
 3. HOW DO WE REPRESENT THE EARTH?:
C. TYPES OF MAPS.

1. Physical maps: give us information on relief, and

show features such as rivers (Topographic maps also
include details such as place names and roads.)
Physical maps on a physical map, you can see what earth's surface might look like
from space. Physical maps show the landforms and bodies of water found in particular
areas. Colors are often used to show elevations. On the map above, for example,
brown indicates higher, more mountainous areas. Green shows areas that are relatively
flat.
2. Thematic maps: give information on a particular
subject, such as climate or population.
3. Political maps: give information on political organisation,
such an international or regional frontiers.
4. Historical maps: shows
information about past events
and where they occurred.
 4. THE GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES.
Cartographers devised a geographic grid, formed by imaginary lines
(parallels and meridians), to help us to locate an exact spot on the Earth’s
surface (geographic coordinates).
A.Parallels and meridians:
Parallels are imaginary circles running in an east-west direction (lines of
latitude).
 The main of this lines is the Equator
(Oº). It divides the Earth into two
hemispheres: the northern
hemisphere and the souther
hemisphere.

 Other important parallels are the

Artic Circle, the Tropic of Cancer,
the Tropic of Capricorn and the
Antartic Circle.
4. THE GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES.
 Meridians are imaginary semicircles running in north-
south direcction from the North Pole to the South Pole
(lines of longitude).
 The Prime Meridian (Oº) is also called the Greenwhic
Meridian.
 This line divided the Earth into two hemispheres: the
western hemisphere and the eastern hemisphere.
4. THE GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES.
B. Latitude and longitude:

Latitude is the distance from any point to the Equator.

• It indicates if a location is north (N) or south (S) of the Equator.

• Parallels show latitude.

• Its values go from Oº at the Equator to 90º N at the Nort Pole and
90ºS at the South Pole
4. THE GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES.

 Longitude is the distance of any point from Prime Meridian Oº in

Greenwich.
 It indicates if a point is east (E) or west (W) of meridian Oº.
 Meridians show longitude
 Its values go from Oº at Greenwhich meridian to 180º E or 180º W
4. THE GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES.
4. THE GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES.
C. How do we locate a place on a map?:

Using the parallels and meridians it is possible to locate any point on a map by
calculating its latitude and its longitude. The coordinates of latitude and longitude
indicates the exact location of a place, its geographic coordinates.

 Geographic coordinates are expressed in degrees, minutes and seconds

(90º10’40”). We must also add its location in the northern or southern hemisphere
(latitude - parallel), or in the eastern or western hemisphere (longitude - meridians).

We put latitude befote longuitude when be give the geographic coordinates: 22º
S, 43º W.
4. THE GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES.
D. How to read latitude and longitude?:

1. Star reading latitude

N
Latitude of point P
is 30 degrees north
(30ºN)

S
2. After that, read longitude

Longuitude of point P W E
is 60 degrees east
(60ºE)
4. THE GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES.
E. Determining latitude and longitude coordinates on a map:

1.Locate the latitude and longitude markers:

The numbers
along the edges of
the map are called
“graticules.”

Latitude is indicated on a map by a series of evenly-spaced horizontal lines running

from one side of the map to the other, while longitude is indicated by a series of
evenly-spaced vertical lines running from top to bottom. Look for numbers along the
edges of the map giving coordinates for each line.
 4. THE GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES.
 Depending on the scale of your map, the graticules may mark fractions of
degrees rather than whole degrees. For instance, there may be a graticule
marked at every minute within a degree instead of every degree (e.g., 32°0′,
32°1′, and so on).

 The map should also indicate where the latitude and longitude depicted are
relative to the Equator and Prime Meridian, respectively (e.g., North or South, East
or West). Or you should locate the Prime Meridian and the Equator and decide
what cardinal points correspond correspond to the point you are locating.

2. Use a ruler to mark the latitude of your point.

Take a ruler and a pencil

and mark a level
horizontal line from your
point to the nearest east
or west edge of the map.
 4. THE GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES.
3. Draw another line to mark the longitude of the point.

Starting from the same

point, use the ruler and
pencil to draw a straight
vertical line to the
nearest north or south
edge of the map.

3. Estimate the latitude and longitude of your point using the graticules.

Look at where your latitude

and longitude lines intersect
the coordinate lines on the
edge of the map, and
estimate the coordinates by
their position relative to the
closest graticules.

 Depending on the scale of the map, you may be able to estimate the coordinates
of your point down to the second.
 4. THE GEOGRAPHIC COORDINATES.
5. Put your measurements together to determine the coordinates.

Look at the numbers

you got for the
latitude and
longitude of your
point, and put them
together .

 Geographic coordinates are the place where the latitude and longitude lines
converge on a single point. Look at the numbers you got for the latitude and
longitude of your point, and put them together.
5. HOW DO WE USE SCALE ON A MAP? (PAGES: 16-17)
MAP SCALE:
 A map is a reduced representation of a real area.
 Scale indicates the difference between the size of an area on
a map and its size in the real world.