Name: ___________________________
Lab 10: Topographic survey
MATERIALS NEEDED: Notebook, ruler. You will be provided with: compass, Abney levels, meter tapes.
QUESTION 1: SURVEYING A TOPOGRAPHIC CROSS-SECTION
1. Beginning at the water margin of the White River, survey a topographic cross-section from the water's edge outward to the general flood plain surface, toward the steep incline leading to the footpath on the upper river terrace.
The transect might be about 50-100 m long. Pay special attention to capturing the subtle undulations of the area close to the bank, within the first 20 m or so (this is called "ridge and swale" topography).
2. Draw a detailed sketch of the area surveyed. Mark your transect with its azimuth and draw a North arrow (for information on declination, see Lab 4). Note the localization of the other teams transects.
QUESTION 2: DRAWING THE TOPOGRAPHIC CROSS-SECTION
1. Using graph paper, ruler, and protractor, draw your topographic cross-section.
i) To convert your distance and angle readings into an elevation that you can plot on the graph paper, you can use either the protractor or the following trigonometric function:
opposite = tan a x adjacent
ii) Do not forget to start your measurements for each change in position along the transect.
2. Incorporate a vertical exaggeration and calculate the Representative Fraction (RF).
3. Note the locations along your profile of all features noted in the field, including the water's edge and the sites of any topographic features of importance.
QUESTION 2: LATITUDE AND LONGITUDE
1.Using the Indianapolis West Quadrangle map provided, give the latitude and longitude of each of the two following features: Highland country club and WAJC radio tower.
| Latitude | Longitude | |
| Highland Country Club | ||
| WAJC Radio Tower |
2. Give the azimuth and compass direction from the Country club to the Radio tower.
3. Using the graphic scale on the map, calculate the area of Indianapolis represented on this map in km2.
4. Recalculate the area obtained in Question 3 in mi2.