1)

Location
A location is the place where a particular point or object exists.

A location is the place where a particular point or object exists. Location is an important term in geography, and is
usually considered more precise than "place." A locality is a human settlement: city, town, village, or even archaeological
site.

A place's absolute location is its exact place on Earth, often given in terms of latitude and longitude.

For example, the Empire State Building is located at 40.7 degrees north (latitude), 74 degrees west (longitude). It sits at
the intersection of 33rd Street and Fifth Avenue in New York City, New York. That is the building’s absolute location.

Location can sometimes be expressed in relative terms. Relative location is a description of how a place is related to
other places. For example, the Empire State Building is 365 kilometers (227 miles) north of the White House in
Washington, D.C. It is also about 15 blocks from New York's Central Park. These are just two of the building's relative
locations.

Relative location can help analyze how two places are connected, whether by distance, culture, or even technology. The
city of Kiev, Ukraine, for example, is about 2,298 kilometers (1,428 miles) east of London, England. The U.S. cities of Key
West, Florida, and Anchorage, Alaska, are even further apart—6,436 kilometers (3,999 miles). However, Floridians and
Alaskans share the same language, national government, and geographic features. (They both have long ocean coasts
subject to heavy storms, for instance.). Culturally, Ukraine and England are much further apart than Florida and Alaska:
They speak different languages, have different government systems, and different geographic features. (Ukraine is
landlocked, for instance, while England is part of the island nation of the United Kingdom.)

Directions like north, south, east, and west help describe where one place is in relation to another. The "Wild West" is a
cultural location that vaguely refers to parts of the United States west of the Mississippi River. The Wild West, however,
rarely includes the states of Alaska and Hawaii, the westernmost states in the nation.

Coordinates of longitude and latitude help pinpoint the absolute location of a person, place, or thing. Knowing a location
is 0 degrees west (longitude) and 51 degrees north (latitude) tells you it’s probably near Greenwich, England, for
instance. Knowing the location is 0 degrees west and 51 degrees, 28 minutes, and 40 seconds north tells you the
location is the Royal Observatory, a building in Greenwich. At the Royal Observatory, directions like left, right, upstairs,
and downstairs give visitors even more precise locations.

Even absolute location is a form of relative location! Coordinates simply give a place's position relative to the Equator
(latitude) and prime meridian (longitude).

location
Signs often point in the general direction of a location.
Photograph by Paolo Bernabei, My Shot

Location, Location, Location

Traditionally, those are the three most important factors in buying and selling real estate.

GPS
A Global Positioning System, or GPS, uses satellites orbiting the Earth to relate absolute location.
2)
Unit 1.4: Spatial Thinking
Before you start your journey down the path to becoming a GIS user, it is important that we cover a few fundamental
concepts of space. As a GIS deals with spatial information often, an understanding of how space is represented and
measured will provide an important foundation for you to build upon.

There are three fundamental concepts of spatial analysis: space, location, and distance. We will cover each one of these
concepts in detail beginning with space.

Space can be measured in absolute, relatives, and cognitive terms.

Absolute space can be thought of as mathematical space. Absolute space involves the precise measurement of location
and space, such as an X, Y, and Z coordinate. Absolute space should provide an unambiguous description of space. For
example, all the information coded on the topographic map shown here, is stored and displayed as a representation of
absolute location in space. All locations and features are all described using precise measurements and calculations.
Topological space can be thought of as relative space. Relative space deals with the definition of one location based on
the location of another object. These topological relationships represent connectivity between features of the world. In
topological space, precise measurement of space is not as important as the relative description of spatial features. For
example, this is a map of the Washington, DC Metrorail. This map shows all of the routes that the Metrorail takes.
Notice that each stop is evenly spaced on this map. Do you think that each stop is truly evenly spaced in the real world?
No, of course not. As a writer of the Metrorail, are you concerned with how far apart the stops are, or the number of
stops before you exit the Metro? In the situation of being a passenger on the Metrorail, topological space is much more
important than absolute space as your only concern was getting from Point A to Point B is how many times to the doors
open before you get off, not how many miles you travel before you exit the Metro.
The third type of space is cognitive space. Cognitive space reflects people’s beliefs, experiences, and perceptions about
places. For example, this is a drawing of a university campus from a student’s memory. A freshman student, may know
the location of the dorms, the student union, and the dining hall, very well, but not know the rest of campus at all.
Conversely, a senior, who lives off campus, may know of the location of every parking lot very well, the locations of
many classrooms, locations of the student union, but not be familiar with the location of the dorms.

Now we will discuss the fundamental concepts of location.

Location can be described in four ways: absolute, relative, cognitive, and nominal. Let’s start with absolute location.

Absolute location is considered an unambiguous descriptor of the location, typically expressed as a coordinate, such as
latitude and longitude. An absolute location cannot be confused with any other location on earth.

Next is relative location.

Relative location is expressed as both the concept of the site, and a situation. Let’s discuss what that means.
Site refers to the physical attributes of the location, for example, the terrain, soil, vegetation, water source, built
environment, and so on. The situation refers to the location of a place relative to other places and human activities. In
this map we see Wakulla Springs, located 20 minutes from Tallahassee Florida. This State Park is often visited by
residents of the state capital during the summer.

Now we move on to cognitive location.

Cognitive location refers to the personal cognitive images of places and regions compiled from personal knowledge,
experiences, and impressions. For instance, Wakulla Springs was considered an important fishing ground and source of
food for the native inhabitants. Now, the same source of water is seen as a recreational area. So while this is the same
physical location, it is perceived differently based on how it is experienced.
  
The last way in which we think of location is nominal location. A nominal location is a location that you remember being
at when you heard about an event that took place at a different location. For instance, many people remember where
they were when they heard the news of the 9/11 attacks. Even though they may not have been near the attacks, the
personal memory of the attacks is linked to the location the person was at when they heard the news. Therefore, the
location where they heard the news is the nominal location that is linked to the distant location where the event took
place.

It is important to note that the systems of measuring representing location for instance absolute, relative, nominal are
cultural systems which are embedded in different cultures and worldviews and become inscribed in landscapes. Each
culture will have influence on the way in which space is described and perceived.

The third fundamental concept of spatial analysis is distance.

Distance is described in absolute, relative, and cognitive terms. Absolute distance is a physical unit of measure, for
instance, the number of miles between downtown Houston and downtown Toronto. Relative distance is calculated
measuring distance, using metrics such as time, effort, or cost. For instance, the distance of two cities may be 2000 miles
apart, which is an absolute description of distance, becomes the distance of two cities measured in tanks of gas, or
mileage charge. Last, let’s discuss the cognitive perception of distance. This refers to an individual’s perception of how
far things are part. For instance, to some, driving 200 miles between Houston and San Antonio Texas is a reasonable
drive. However, for others, a 200 mile drive may seem like a very, very far distance to travel if they are not used to
traveling such a distance regularly.

Lastly, you should be familiar with the first law of geography. Waldo Tobler, professor emeritus at University of
California Santa Barbara, Department of geography stated, “everything is related to everything else, but near things are
more related to each other”. This is widely considered the first law of geography and speaks to the idea that space, and
relative and cognitive relationships featured in the space have an influence on the development and interaction of those
features.
3)
Geographers can describe the location of a place in one of two ways: absolute and relative. Both are descriptives of
where a geographic location is. Let’s learn about the difference between absolute and relative location.

Absolute Location
Absolute location describes the location of a place based on a fixed point on earth. The most common way is to identify
the location using coordinates such as latitude and longitude. Lines of longitude and latitude crisscross the earth.

Latitude is used to mark the north-south position of a location on the Earth’s surface and ranges from 0 degrees at the
equator to 90 degrees at the North and South Poles.  There are 180 degrees of latitude and the distance between each
degree of latitude is roughly 69 miles (111 km).

An example of an absolute location using latitude and longitude is the United States Capitol which is located at 38° 53′
35″ N, 77° 00′ 32″ W.  Latitude is always written first and latitude and longitude are composed of degrees, minutes, and
seconds (DMS).
Absolute location can also refer to an address, the street address of the US State Capitol is First St SE in Washington, DC
20004.  In both instances, absolute location refers to a fixed point based on an abstract network of imaginary locations.  
(You might also be interested in reading about: Relative Direction Versus Compass Direction)
Relative Location
Relative location refers to the position of a place or entity based on its location with respect to other locations.  For
example, the location of the US Capitol is located about 38 miles southwest of Baltimore.  Relative location can be
expressed in terms of distance, travel time, or cost.
Relative location can also be used to provide geographic context.  For example, overview or locator maps show the
relative location of a place or entity based on a larger geographic view.  For example, the inset map below, shows the
relative location of the state of Texas within the United States.
Relative location, unlike absolute location is not a fixed reference.  In the map below, a person would describe the
relative location of Broad River, which flows through North Caroline and South Carolina, differently. A person living in
Hickory, North Carolina would describe the location of Broad river as flowing south and slightly west of them.  A person
in Charlotte, North Carolina would describe the river as flowing west of them.  A person living in Spartanburg, South
Carolina would describe the river as being located north and east of them.

4)
Location, Distance, and Direction on Maps

Location on Maps
Most maps allow us to specify the location of points on the Earth's surface using a coordinate system. For a two-
dimensional map, this coordinate system can use simple geometric relationships between the perpendicular axes on a
grid system to define spatial location. Figure 2b-1 illustrates how the location of a point can be defined on a coordinate
system.

Figure 2b-1: A grid coordinate system defines the location of points from the distance
traveled along two perpendicular axes from some stated origin. In the example above, the
two axes are labeled X and Y. The origin is located in the lower left hand corner. Unit
distance traveled along each axis from the origin is shown. In this coordinate system, the
value associated with the X-axis is given first, following by the value assigned from the Y-
axis. The location represented by the star has the coordinates 7 (X-axis), 4 (Y-axis).
 
Two types of coordinate systems are currently in general use in geography: the geographical coordinate system and
the rectangular (also called Cartesian) coordinate system.
 
Geographical Coordinate System
The geographical coordinate system measures location from only two values, despite the fact that the locations are
described for a three-dimensional surface. The two values used to define location are both measured relative to
the polar axis of the Earth. The two measures used in the geographic coordinate system are
called latitude and longitude.
Figure 2b-2: Lines of latitude or parallels are drawn parallel to the equator (shown in red)
as circles that span the Earth's surface. These parallels are measure in degrees (°). There
are 90 angular degrees of latitude from the equator to each of the poles. The equator has
an assigned value of 0°. Measurements of latitude are also defined as being either north
or south of equator to distinguish the hemisphere of their location. Lines
of longitude or meridians are circular arcs that meet at the poles. There are 180° of
longitude either side of a starting meridian which is known the Prime Meridian. The
Prime Meridian has a designated value of 0°. Measurements of longitude are also defined
as being either west or east of the Prime Meridian.
 
Latitude measures the north-south position of locations on the Earth's surface relative to a point found at the center of
the Earth (Figure 2b-2). This central point is also located on the Earth's rotational or polar axis. The equator is the
starting point for the measurement of latitude. The equator has a value of zero degrees. A line of latitude or parallel of
30° North has an angle that is 30° north of the plane represented by the equator (Figure 2b-3). The maximum value that
latitude can attain is either 90° North or South. These lines of latitude run parallel to the rotational axis of the Earth.

Figure 2b-3: Measurement of latitude and longitude relative to the equator and

the Prime Meridian and the Earth's rotational or polar axis.
 
Longitude measures the west-east position of locations on the Earth's surface relative to a circular arc called the Prime
Meridian (Figure 2b-2). The position of the Prime Meridian was determined by international agreement to be in-line
with the location of the former astronomical observatory at Greenwich, England. Because the Earth's circumference is
similar to circle, it was decided to measure longitude in degrees. The number of degrees found in a circle is 360. The
Prime Meridian has a value of zero degrees. A line of longitude or meridian of 45° West has an angle that is 45° west of
the plane represented by the Prime Meridian (Figure 2b-3). The maximum value that a meridian of longitude can have is
180° which is the distance halfway around a circle. This meridian is called the International Date Line. Designations of
west and east are used to distinguish where a location is found relative to the Prime Meridian. For example, all of the
locations in North America have a longitude that is designated west.
 
Universal Transverse Mercator System (UTM)
Another commonly used method to describe location on the Earth is the Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) grid
system. This rectangular coordinate system is metric, incorporating the meter as its basic unit of
measurement. UTM also uses the Transverse Mercator projection system to model the Earth's spherical surface onto a
two-dimensional plane. The UTM system divides the world's surface into 60 - six degree longitude wide zones that run
north-south (Figure 2b-5). These zones start at the International Date Line and are successively numbered in an
eastward direction (Figure 2b-5). Each zone stretches from 84° North to 80° South (Figure 2b-4). In the center of each of
these zones is a central meridian. Location is measured in these zones from a false origin which is determined relative to
the intersection of the equator and the central meridian for each zone. For locations in the Northern Hemisphere, the
false origin is 500,000 meters west of the central meridian on the equator. Coordinate measurements of location in the
Northern Hemisphere using the UTM system are made relative to this point in meters in eastings (longitudinal distance)
and northings (latitudinal distance). The point defined by the intersection of 50° North and 9° West would have
a UTM coordinate of Zone 29, 500000 meters east (E), 5538630 meters north (N) (see Figures 2b-4 and 2b-5). In the
Southern Hemisphere, the origin is 10,000,000 meters south and 500,000 meters west of the equator and central
meridian, respectively. The location found at 50° South and 9° West would have a UTM coordinate of Zone 29, 500000
meters E, 4461369 meters N (remember that northing in the Southern Hemisphere is measured from 10,000,000 meters
south of the equator - see Figures 2b-4 and 2b-5).
 

Figure 2b-4: The following illustration describes the characteristics of the UTM zone "29"

found between 12 to 6° West longitude. Note that the zone has been split into two
halves. The half on the left represents the area found in the Northern Hemisphere. The
Southern Hemisphere is located on the right. The blue line represents the central
meridian for this zone. Locations measurements for this zone are calculated relative to a
false origin. In the Northern Hemisphere, this origin is located 500,000 meters west of the
equator. The Southern Hemisphere UTM measurements are determined relative to a
origin located at 10,000,000 meters south and 500,000 meters west of the equator and
central meridian, respectively.
 
The UTM system has been modified to make measurements less confusing. In this modification, the six degree wide
zones are divided into smaller pieces or quadrilaterals that are eight degrees of latitude tall. Each of these rows is
labeled, starting at 80° South, with the letters C to X consecutively with I and O being omitted (Figure 2b-5). The last row
X differs from the other rows and extends from 72 to 84° North latitude (twelve degrees tall). Each of the quadrilaterals
or grid zones are identified by their number/letter designation. In total, 1200 quadrilaterals are defined in
the UTM system.
The quadrilateral system allows us to further define location using the UTM system. For the location 50° North and 9°
West, the UTM coordinate can now be expressed as Grid Zone 29U, 500000 meters E, 5538630 meters N.
Figure 2b-5: The UTM system also uses a grid system to break the Earth up into 1200
quadrilaterals. To keep the illustration manageable, most of these zones have been
excluded. Designation of each quadrilaterals is accomplished with a number-letter
system. Along the horizontal bottom, the six degree longitude wide zones are numbered,
starting at 180° West longitude, from 1 to 60. The twenty vertical rows are assigned
letters C to X with I and O excluded. The letter, C, begins at 80° South latitude. Note that
the rows are 8 degrees of latitude wide, except for the last row X which is 12 degrees
wide. According to the reference system, the bright green quadrilateral has the grid
reference 29V (note that in this system west-east coordinate is given first, followed by the
south-north coordinate). This grid zone is found between 56 and 64° North latitude and 6
and 12° West longitude.
 
Each UTM quadrilateral is further subdivided into a number of 100,000 by 100,000 meter zones. These subdivisions are
coded by a system of letter combinations where the same two-letter combination is not repeated within 18 degrees of
latitude and longitude. Within each of the 100,000 meter squares one can specify location to one-meter accuracy using a
5 digit eastings and northings reference system.
The UTM grid system is displayed on all United States Geological Survey (USGS) and National Topographic Series (NTS)
of Canada maps. On USGS 7.5-minute quadrangle maps (1:24,000 scale), 15-minute quadrangle maps (1:50,000,
1:62,500, and standard-edition 1:63,360 scales), and Canadian 1:50,000 maps the UTM grid lines are drawn at intervals
of 1,000 meters, and are shown either with blue ticks at the edge of the map or by full blue grid lines. On USGS maps at
1:100,000 and 1:250,000 scale and Canadian 1:250,000 scale maps a full UTM grid is shown at intervals of 10,000
meters. Figure 2b-6 describes how the UTM grid system can be used to determine location on a 1:50,000 National
Topographic Series of Canada map.

Figure 2b-6: The top left hand corner the "Tofino" 1:50,000 National Topographic Series
of Canada map is shown above. The blue lines and associated numbers on the map
margin are used to determine location by way of the UTM grid system.
Abbreviated UTM 1,000-meter values or principle digits are shown by numbers on the
map margin that vary from 0 to 100 (100 is actually given the value 00). In each of the
corners of the map, two of the principle digits are expressed in their full UTM coordinate
form. On the image we can see 283000 m E. and 5458000 m N. The red dot is found in the
center of the grid defined by principle numbers 85 to 86 easting and 57 to 58 northing. A
more complete UTM grid reference for this location would be 285500 m E. and 5457500
m N. Information found on the map margin also tells us (not shown) that the area
displayed is in Grid Zone 10U and the 100,000 m squares BK and CK are located on this
map.
 
Distance on Maps
In section 2a, w e have learned that depicting the Earth's three-dimensional surface on a two-dimensional map creates a
number of distortions that involve distance, area, and direction. It is possible to create maps that are somewhat
equidistance. However, even these types of maps have some form of distance distortion. Equidistance maps can only
control distortion along either lines of latitude or lines of longitude. Distance is often correct on equidistance maps only
in the direction of latitude.
On a map that has a large scale, 1:125,000 or larger, distance distortion is usually insignificant. An example of a large-
scale map is a standard topographic map. On these maps measuring straight line distance is simple. Distance is first
measured on the map using a ruler. This measurement is then converted into a real world distance using the map's
scale. For example, if we measured a distance of 10 centimeters on a map that had a scale of 1:10,000, we would
multiply 10 (distance) by 10,000 (scale). Thus, the actual distance in the real world would be 100,000 centimeters.
Measuring distance along map features that are not straight is a little more difficult. One technique that can be
employed for this task is to use a number of straight-line segments. The accuracy of this method is dependent on the
number of straight-line segments used (Figure 2b-7). Another method for measuring curvilinear map distances is to use
a mechanical device called an opisometer. This device uses a small rotating wheel that records the distance traveled.
The recorded distance is measured by this device either in centimeters or inches.

Figure 2b-7: Measurement of distance on a map feature using straight-line segments.

 
Direction on Maps
Like distance, direction is difficult to measure on maps because of the distortion produced by projection systems.
However, this distortion is quite small on maps with scales larger than 1:125,000. Direction is usually measured relative
to the location of North or South Pole. Directions determined from these locations are said to be relative to True
North or True South. The magnetic poles can also be used to measure direction. However, these points on the Earth are
located in spatially different spots from the geographic North and South Pole. The North Magnetic Pole is located at
78.3° North, 104.0° West near Ellef Ringnes Island, Canada. In the Southern Hemisphere, the South Magnetic Pole is
located in Commonwealth Day, Antarctica and has a geographical location of 65° South, 139° East. The magnetic poles
are also not fixed overtime and shift their spatial position overtime.
Topographic maps normally have a declination diagram drawn on them (Figure 2b-8). On Northern Hemisphere maps,
declination diagrams describe the angular difference between Magnetic North and True North. On the map, the angle of
True North is parallel to the depicted lines of longitude. Declination diagrams also show the direction of Grid North. Grid
North is an angle that is parallel to the easting lines found on the Universal Transverse Mercator (UTM) grid
system (Figure 2b-8).
Figure 2b-8: This declination diagram describes the angular difference between Grid,
True, and Magnetic North. This illustration also shows how angles are measured relative
grid, true, and magnetic azimuth.
 
In the field, the direction of features is often determined by a magnetic compass which measures angles relative to
Magnetic North. Using the declination diagram found on a map, individuals can convert their field measures of magnetic
direction into directions that are relative to either Grid or True North. Compass directions can be described by using
either the azimuth system or the bearing system. The azimuth system calculates direction in degrees of a full circle. A
full circle has 360 degrees (Figure 2b-9). In the azimuth system, north has a direction of either the 0 or 360°. East and
west have an azimuth of 90° and 270°, respectively. Due south has an azimuth of 180°.

Figure 2b-9: Azimuth system for measuring direction is based on the 360 degrees found in
a full circle. The illustration shows the angles associated with the major cardinal points of
the compass. Note that angles are determined clockwise from north.
 
The bearing system divides direction into four quadrants of 90 degrees. In this system, north and south are the
dominant directions. Measurements are determined in degrees from one of these directions. The measurement of two
angles based on this system are described in Figure 2b-10.

Figure 2b-10: The bearing system uses four quadrants of 90 degrees to measure

direction. The illustration shows two direction measurements. These measurements are
made relative to either north or south. North and south are given the measurement 0
degrees. East and west have a value of 90 degrees. The first measurement (green) is
found in the north - east quadrant. As a result, its measurement is north 75 degrees to the
east or N75°E. The first measurement (orange) is found in the south - west quadrant. Its
measurement is south 15 degrees to the west or S15°W.
 
Global Positioning Systems
Determination of location in field conditions was once a difficult task. In most cases, it required the use of a topographic
map and landscape features to estimate location. However, technology has now made this task very simple. Global
Positioning Systems (GPS) can calculate one's location to an accuracy of about 30-meters (Figure 2b-11). These systems
consist of two parts: a GPS receiver and a network of many satellites. Radio transmissions from the satellites are
broadcasted continually. The GPS receiver picks up these broadcasts and through triangulation calculates the altitude
and spatial position of the receiving unit. A minimum of three satellite is required for triangulation.

Figure 2b-11: Handheld Global Positioning Systems (GPS). GPS receivers can determine

latitude, longitude, and elevation anywhere on or above the Earth's surface from signals
transmitted by a number of satellites. These units can also be used to determine
direction, distance traveled, and determine routes of travel in field situations.