Landform Maps
The portrayal of landscape has been one of the greatest endeavors of cartographers since mapping of the earth began. The quality and quantity of maps that show the earth's topographic surface and landforms continue to increase as the technology of earth imaging and data processing becomes more sophisticated. Maps designed specifically to show landforms provide an instant reference to the spatial relationships and origin of earth's surface features.
- About Landform Maps
- Landform Maps of Wisconsin
- Recent Developments in Landform Mapping
- Landcover and Landform Maps
- Wisconsin Landscape Map
- Obtaining More Information and Ordering Landform Maps
About Landform Maps
Landform maps are compiled from a variety of maps and mapping data, including geologic, soils, and topographic maps, and aerial photography. They typically employ shading as a means of conveying relief or illustrating topography that would cast shadows when the sun is at a particular angle. To enhance the appearance of relief and bring out the variations in surface elevation, many landform maps exaggerate the height of actual relief. While topographic and other maps provide the baseline data from which landform maps are made, they omit a certain amount of surface information because they are graphical, rather than pictorial, representations.
There are no established standards in the production of landform maps. Yet they can be a very instructive means of conveying information about the nature and history of the earth's surface. Cartographers use shading, perspective, scale, and color in various combinations to produce a particular effect or emphasis of landscape features.
Landform Maps of Wisconsin
One of the best known landform maps of Wisconsin was published in 1971 by the Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey (WGNHS). The WGNHS commissioned Prof. David Woodward of the UW-Madison Department of Geography (then a graduate student) to produce a shaded relief map of the state. Using geologic, soils, and USGS 1:250,000-scale topographic base maps, Woodward produced a map that depicts the major landforms and regional surficial characteristics of Wisconsin (276 Kb). This map is available from the WGNHS separately or as part of a series of maps that depict various geographic resources of the state. Its format is 8 1/2" x 11" can be purchased for $.25 plus postage. (Quantity discounts are available.) The map is also available in larger format, at the 1:1,000,000-scale, with or without county boundaries.
The WGNHS also publishes maps on the Pleistocene, or surficial, geology of the state. These geologic maps emphasize the landforms and landscapes that have resulted from glaciation of the region during the Pleistocene epoch. While surface relief is not shaded as in other landform maps, the influence of glaciation on the development of Wisconsin landforms is readily apparent. The WGNHS publishes a large, 1:500,000-scale wall map entitled "Glacial Deposits of Wisconsin: Sand and Gravel Resource Potential" (Hadley and Pelham, 1976), and a smaller, page-sized map depicting many of the same major landscape features "Ice Age Deposits of Wisconsin" (299 Kb) (Thwaites, 1960).
A shaded relief map of Wisconsin was published by the USGS in 1968, and is available for sale by the WGNHS. This map is produced in three-colors at a scale of 1:500,000.
Raven Images also produces a 1:500,000 scale map of Wisconsin. This map was published in 1997 and is 43 inches by 47 inches. Contact Raven Maps & Images for more details.
Recent Developments in Landform Mapping
Recent developments in landscape/landform mapping center on the use of digital elevation data to generate views of the earth's surface that accurately depict topographic relief. The USGS has pioneered much of this work, resulting in the publication of "Landforms of the Conterminous United States" (USGS Map I-2206, 1991). This map represents a matrix of twelve million individual terrain height data points compiled in a Digital Elevation Model (DEM) based on 1:250,000-scale topographic maps of the United States. The map is published at a scale of 1:3,500,000 and comes with an explanatory pamphlet. Surface relief is emphasized from simulated sunlight crossing the continent from west- northwest to east-southeast at angle 25 degrees above the horizon.
Landcover and Landform Maps
Another development in the portrayal of Wisconsin landscapes focuses on the integration of ecological and surficial data to present a picture of the natural landscape regions of the state. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) published a map entitled Natural Divisions of Wisconsin (F.D. Hole, and C.E. Germain, 1994), that depicts the major ecological and soil regions of the state. While this map does not depict landforms per se, the relationship between natural vegetation zones, topography and surficial geology is explicitly stated. The Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey (WGNHS) also has a number of landcover related maps.
Wisconsin Landscape Map
This map shows the elevation of Wisconsin through the use of color and shaded relief; the relief gives the map an almost three-dimensional, textural feel by simulating the appearance of sunlight and shadow. Wisconsin Geological and Natural History Survey staff developed the map from available digital information about elevation derived from the U.S. Geological Survey topographic quadrangle maps. The map is priced at $0.25 it comes rolled or folded. See their List of Publications page for ordering information.
Obtaining More Information and Ordering Landform Maps
Landform maps can be ordered from several distribution outlets, which can also provide you with information about specific map products. The WGNHS distributes select USGS maps as well as its own publications. The USGS landform map of the United States can be ordered from the USGS Map Distribution office. For information about the Natural Divisions of Wisconsin map, contact the DNR.
Return to Top