Oceanography Map skills – Practice Sheet
A. Location using Latitude and Longitude. Determine the latitude and longitude of the
following locations:
Where is this?
Answer
Location
Latitude
Longitude
The buoy just north of Pt Pinos
36˚ 38.9’N
121˚ 56.7’W
The buoy just off shore of Cypress Point
36˚ 35.0’N
121˚ 59.1’W
The Pt Santa Cruz lighthouse
36˚ 57.1’N
122˚ 1.6’W
The southern most corner of the “Naval
36˚ 48.6’N
121˚ 53.8’W
operating area” in the northeastern portion
of Monterey Bay (the pink dashed lines).
The western most corner of the “Naval
36˚ 54.3’N
121˚ 59.9’W
operating area.”
Name the geographical feature at the following locations.
Using these coordinates:
Latitude
Longitude
36˚ 46.0’N
121˚59.3’W
36˚ 37.7’N
121˚ 54.8’W
36˚ 58.1’N
121˚ 56.3’W
Describe this Location:
The “R” in the words “MonteRey Canyon”
The “L” in the words “Lovers Point”
The “Q” in the words “SoQuel Cove”
B. Direction using Bearings. A bearing is a direction. Bearings are always described by
an angle measured clockwise from true north.
What is the bearing…
From here
To here
The answer
The center of the northerly
The center of the southerly compass 158˚
compass rose
rose
The center of the southerly
The center of the northerly compass 338˚
compass rose
rose
The Cypress Point buoy
The Pt Pinos buoy
27˚
The Pt Pinos buoy
The Cypress Point buoy
207˚
36˚ 40’N 122˚ 0’W
36˚ 50’N 121˚ 50’W
39˚
36˚ 50’N 121˚ 50’W
36˚ 40’N 122˚ 0’W
219˚
In this section, you are given a bearing on the Pt Pinos buoy and need to figure out where
you are along the Monterey Bay coast. This assumes you can see the Pt Pinos buoy from
all these places. The bearing is from the coast line to the buoy.
Bearing to Pt Pinos buoy
Your location on the Monterey Bay coastline
259˚
Indian Head Beach
228˚
Salinas River mouth
220˚
Moss Landing stacks
Triangulation is a way of determining position. It involves taking bearings on two objects
and drawing two very light lines on the map. Your position is at the intersection of the
two lines.
Bearing 1
Bearing 2
Location
60˚ on the Moss Landing
194˚ on the Cypress Point
The north star of the
stacks
buoy
southerly compass rose
91˚ on the Salinas River
157˚ on the Pt Pinos buoy
36˚ 45’N 122˚ 0.0’W
mouth
90˚ on Mulligan Hill (close 13˚ on the Pt Santa Cruz
36˚ 45’N 122˚ 5.0’W
to the Salinas River mouth) lighthouse
192˚ on the Pt Pinos buoy
92˚ on the Salinas River
36˚ 45’N 121˚ 55’W
mouth
C. Distance using Scales. Use the bar scale to determine the distance between the points
given below.
Point 1
Point 2
Distance
Cypress Pt buoy
Pt Pinos buoy
4 nautical miles
Pt Pinos buoy
Lovers Point
2 nautical miles
Pt Santa Cruz lighthouse
Pt Pinos buoy
18 nautical miles
Moss Landing stacks
Salinas River mouth
3.5 nautical miles
Center of one compass rose Center of other compass rose ~10.5 nautical miles
Fractional Scales
A
B
E
D
C
Which of these maps has the largest scale? The
smallest scale? Which two have the same scale?
Answers on next page.
Largest = B, Smallest = C, Same = A&D
D. Contour lines describe
topography (above sea level)
and bathymetry (below sea
level). Each contour line is a line
of constant elevation (above sea
level) or depth (below sea level).
On the diagram at left, please
identify and label steep
bathymetry, shallowly-sloped
bathymetry, a NW-trending
ridge, a submarine canyon, and a
seamount.
The answers are shown below
left.
E. Profiles
1. On the graph paper on the next page, please prepare a profile along the line A-A’.
Check with instructor for answer.
All of these questions refer to the map on the next page.
2. What is the contour interval from
20 to 100 meters?
3. What is the contour interval from
100 to 300 meters?
4. What seafloor features does the
bathymetric map show?
5. Where is the steepest bathymetry?
6. Where is the gentlest bathymetry?
20 meters
50 meters
Two submarine canyons joining into
one submarine canyon.
Where the contour lines are closest
together.
Where the contour lines are farthest
apart, like in the NE corner of the map.