Map and Compass Notes:
Mendocino County Map:North West Corner: 40.00°N 124.0°W North East Corner: 40.00°N 122.8°W
South West Corner: 38.75°N 124.0°W South East Corner: 38.75°N 122.8°W
Latitude is a north-south measurement of degrees from the Equator. As you can see above, the Latitude of Mendocino County runs
from 38.75°N at the southern boarder, up to 40.00°N at the northern border.
Longitude is an east-west measurment of degrees. The Longitude of Mendocino County runs from 122.8°W at the eastern boarder, to 124.0°W at the coast.
LAT/LON measurements are given in DEGREES(°) - MINUTES(') - Seconds(")
1° is divided by 60 minutes, and each minute is divided by 60 seconds.
38.5° may also be refered to as:
38° 30'
38° 30.5' is the same as:
38° 30' 30"
Practical Comparisons:
Distance is given by the difference in coordinates:
1 Degree covers about 60 miles, so
1 Minute covers about 1 Mile, and
1 Second covers about 1/60th of a mile, or about 30 yards.
For those of you who wish finer measurements, throughout Mendocino County,
one second of Latitue(N/S) covers about 100 feet, and
one second of Longitude(E/W) covers about 80 feet. You can check this for yourself.
Take out a GPS and pace it off. This is also good practice for you to get a feel for
what the numbers mean.
Without a Compass
At Night: North = Polaris, points to TRUE NORTH. The end 2 stars of the
cup of the Big Dipper form a line that passes very close to the North Star.
Daytime: South = The Sun at 12 noon. Point the hour hand on a watch to the Sun. South is 1/2 way between the hour hand and 12 on the dial.
Magnetic Declination: Mendocino County +15°E
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Compass vs. MapYour compass does NOT point to True North. The North needle will point 15° to the right, or East of True North. Your map IS aligned to True North. So subtract or add that 15° when refering between your map and your compass.Convert MAP bearing to COMPASS bearing: SUBTRACT 15° Convert COMPASS bearing to MAP bearing: ADD 15° |
Topog Maps: Elevation Contour Lines
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