Cartographic Tools

This page describes selected reference tools in the UNT Libraries Government Documents Department and on the Internet useful for mapping, map use, and navigation. For more resources, see also the U.S. Naval Observatory’s Astronomical Information Center.

• Almanacs and Ephemerides
• Gazetteers
• Distance and Time Calculators
• Glossaries
• Handbooks, Manuals, and Guides
• Teaching Packets

Almanacs and Ephemerides

Air Almanac (U.S. Naval Observatory)
Call No. D 213.7:[year]
Located in Government Documents Department, Willis Library Third Floor. 

Astronomical data required for air celestial navigation, which is required for long aircraft flights, especially over the ocean. The book provides the following data tabulated at 10-minute intervals to a precision of 1 arcminute: the Greenwich hour angle and declination of the Sun, Moon, and three navigational planets; the Greenwich hour angle of Aries; rise and set times of the Moon for a range of latitudes; and other data. Each edition also contains sky diagrams for each month; sunrise, sunset, and twilight tables; and positions of the navigational stars. The Air Almanac is available nine months in advance of its edition date. Starting with the 2008 volume, The Air Almanac is now produced solely on CD-ROM.

Astronomical Almanac (U.S. Naval Observatory)
Call No. D 213.8:[year]
Located in Government Documents Department, Willis Library Third Floor.  

Precise ephemerides of the Sun, Moon, planets, and satellites, data for eclipses, and other astronomical phenomena for a given year. A worldwide resource for fundamental astronomical data, this publication is a joint publication of the U.S. Nautical Almanac Office and Her Majesty’s Nautical Almanac Office in the UK, and contains data supplied by many scientists from around the world.

The Explanatory Supplement to the Astronomical Almanac is a detailed reference volume to The Astronomical Almanac. The last edition—the second—was in 1992. The Explanatory Supplement is available from University Science Books. There have been changes in the computational methods of The Astronomical Almanac since the second edition, including a series of resolutions passed by the IAU. Astronomers from around the world are assisting the almanac offices at USNO and HMNAO to prepare the next revision of the book.

Astronomical Applications: Data Services (U.S. Naval Observatory)

Predictions on sunrise and sunset, moonrise and moonset, phases and illumination of the moon, solar and lunar eclipses, positions of the sun and moon, dates of earth's seasons, and other phenomena.

Astronomical Phenomena (U.S. Naval Observatory)
Call No. D 213.8/3:[year]
Located in Government Documents Department, Willis Library Third Floor. 

This small, useful booklet contains general interest material from The Astronomical Almanac: the calendar, anniversaries and festivals, chronological eras and cycles, equinoxes and solstices, phases of the Moon, visibility and configurations of the planets, eclipses, equation of time and declination of the Sun, rising and setting of the Sun and Moon, position of Polaris. 

Celestial Navigation Data for Assumed Position and Time (U.S. Naval Observatory)

Provides all the astronomical information necessary to plot navigational lines of position from observations of the altitudes of celestial bodies. Simply fill in a form and click on the "Get data" button at the end of the form.

Earth and Moon Viewer (John Walker - Fourmilab)

Generate a map of the earth or moon showing current day and night regions, or a view of the earth or moon from any of various locations.

Heavens-Above (Chris Peat)

Provides information needed to observe satellites such as the International Space Station and the Space Shuttle, spectacular events such as the dazzlingly bright flares from Iridium satellites, and a wealth of other spaceflight and astronomical information. Provides the times of visibility as well as detailed star charts showing a satellite’s track through the heavens. All pages, including the graphics, are generated in real-time and customized for your location and time zone.

Inconstant Moon: The Moon at Perigee and Apogee (John Walker - Fourmilab)

Display the date, time, and distance of lunar perigees (i.e., when the moon is nearest to earth) and apogees (i.e., when the moon is farthest from earth) for a given year.

Lunar Limb Profile (U.S. Naval Observatory)

This circular (USNO Circular 141) contains selected lunar limb profiles designed for use in solar eclipse predictions. These profiles, used in accordance with provided criteria, allow the eclipse observer to predict the effect of lunar limb irregularities on the time of second and third contacts for any site along the eclipse path. The arguments of these profiles range in topocentric longitude from +6° to −6°; topocentric latitude is 0° because solar eclipses always occur near the nodes of the lunar orbit.

Water Level Tidal Predictions (U.S. National Ocean Service)

Calculate tidal predictions for more than 3000 tide stations on the U.S. coast.

Mercury Chaser's Calculator (John Walker - Fourmilab)

Display the date, time, and distance of the maximum elongations (i.e., angular distance from the sun as seen from earth) of Mercury for a given year.

Multiyear Interactive Computer Almanac (MICA) (U.S. Navy)

MICA, the Multiyear Interactive Computer Almanac, is a software system that provides high-precision astronomical data in tabular form for a wide variety of celestial objects, including celestial coordinates, sidereal time, lunar and planetary configurations and aspects, and rise/set times. MICA computes many of the astronomical quantities tabulated in the The Astronomical Almanac; however, MICA can compute this information for specific locations and specific times, thus eliminating the need for table look-ups and additional hand calculations. Designed for technical users who require high-precision astronomy data and understand general astronomy terms and concepts, as well as astronomical coordinate systems and time.

Nautical Almanac (U.S. Naval Observatory)
Call No. D 213.11:[year]
Located in Government Documents Department, Willis Library Third Floor. 

For over 150 years the United States Nautical Almanac Office has published The Nautical Almanac, first as part of the American Ephemeris and Nautical Almanac, and then on its own, to provide the US Navy with a convenient form of the astronomical data used for marine celestial navigation. This book is still the standard resource for marine celestial navigation for the U.S. Navy. The book contains the following data tabulated at hourly intervals to a precision of 0.1 arcminute: the Greenwich hour angle and declination of the Sun, Moon, and navigational planets; the Greenwich hour angle of Aries; positions of the navigational stars; rise and set times of the Sun and Moon for a range of latitudes; and other data. Each edition also contains a sight reduction table; sight reduction formulas; and various correction tables for sight reduction. There is a useful concise sight reduction form at the back of the book. The Nautical Almanac is available nine months in advance of its edition date. The Online Nautical Almanac from Navigator Light® generates Nautical Almanac-like daily pages.

Old Farmer's Almanac (Yankee Publishing Inc)

America's oldest source of weather, folklore, gardening and other information.

Phases of the Moon 2009–2049 (U.S. Naval Observatory)

This circular (USNO Circular 169) provides the times of the phases of the moon, expressed in Terrestrial Dynamical Time (TDT), for the years 2000–2049. The basis for this circular is the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) ephemeris designated DE200/LE200, which was also used for The Astronomical Almanac when the circular was published.

Solar System Live (John Walker - Fourmilab)

View the entire solar system, or just the inner planets (through the orbit of Mars). Controls allow you to set time and date, viewpoint, observing location, orbital elements to track an asteroid or comet, and a variety of other parameters.

Viewing Venus in Broad Daylight (John Walker - Fourmilab)

Use the Venus Elongation Explorer near the bottom of this page to calculate when Venus is at its greatest elongation (i.e., at the greatest angular distance from the sun as seen from earth) for any given year.

Your Sky (John Walker - Fourmilab)

Produce maps of the sky for any time and date, viewpoint, and observing location. If you enter the orbital elements of an asteroid or comet, Your Sky will compute its current position and plot it on the map. Each map is accompanied by an ephemeris for the sun, moon, planets, and any tracked asteroid or comet.

Gazetteers

These works identify the precise locations of physical and cultural features such as landforms, bodies of water, cities and towns, and buildings. They sometimes provide other descriptive information in addition to location.

U.S. Board on Geographic Names (U.S. Geological Survey)
Call No. I 19.120:G25
CD-ROM version located in Government Documents Reference Room.

The official repository of information about U.S. geographic names, including associated areas and Antarctica. The federally recognized name of each feature described in the data base is identified, and references are made to a feature's location by state, county, and geographic coordinates. Includes links to other U.S. and foreign geographic names information servers. A paper print-out of the Geographic Names Information System information for Texas is available on reserve in the Government Documents Reference Room. (Call No. I 19.16:1200-TX).

GEONet Names Server (National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency)

Database of foreign geographical feature names, including names of undersea features. The GEOnet Names Server (GNS) provides access to the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency database of foreign geographic feature names. This database is the official repository of foreign place-name decisions approved by the U.S. Board on Geographic Names.

Alexandria Digital Library Gazetteer (University of California, Santa Barbara)

This database contains data from the NGA Gazetteer, a set of countries and U.S. counties, a set of U.S. topographic map quadrangle footprints, a set of volcanoes, and a set of earthquake epicenters.

A Catalogue of Georeferenced Caravanserais/Khans (Old World Trade Routes Project)

Provides geographical coordinates and other details for inns and other facilities associated with trade routes in Asia, Europe and Africa from ancient times to the introduction of steam-engine technologies.

Columbia Gazetteer of the World (Columbia University Press)
Located at 2nd Floor Willis Library and UNT Dallas Campus, Call No. G103.5 .C645 1998

Provides location information as well as the historical, physical, and cultural context for thousands of places in the world.

Global Gazetteer (Falling Rain Genomics, Inc.)

Information on almost 3 million places outside the US. Provides coordinates, altitude, weather forecast, and a map showing the position of the town with respect to topography, borders, and bodies of water. Also lists nearby towns, with directions. Browse by country or by place. Alternate title: Directory of Cities and Towns in World.

The Fuzzy Gazetteer (Christian Kohlschütter )

This database enables you to find geographic features even when you do not know their exact names. Enter a name and get back a list of similar names, linked to their respective entries in the European Commission’s Digital Map Archive.

A Gazetteer of Texas (Portal to Texas History)

This 1902 publication includes information about the topography and drainage, climate, forests, exploration, settlement, population, industries, and land surveys in Texas. A 1904 edition is also available.

Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names^® (TGN) Online (The J. Paul Getty Trust)

Getty vocabulary databases contain terms, names, and other information about people, places, things, and concepts relating to art, architecture, and material culture. TGN is a structured vocabulary containing around 912,000 records, including 1.1 million names, place types, coordinates, and descriptive notes, focusing on places important for the study of art and architecture.

The JewishGen Communities Database and Jewish Gen ShtetlSeeker (JewishGen^®)

Search for towns and Jewish communities in central and eastern Europe, using the exact spelling or the Daitch-Mokotoff Soundex system. This database contains information on 2,000 Jewish communities in eastern and central Europe, together with Jewish population figures, historical town names and jurisdictions, and links to JewishGen resources.

maplandia.com (Google Maps)

Searchable world gazetteer based on Google Maps, the most comprehensive online satellite imagery available. More than 2,000,000 places all over the world are divided into many geographical categories according to continents, countries, and administrative regions.

North America Gazetteer (AllRefer.com)

Browse locations and types of landmarks in Canada, the United States, and Mexico. Provides name, latitude, longitude, and other brief facts and statistics.

U.S. Cities Gazetteer (HometownLocator^®)

HTL profiles for cities, towns, and ZIP Codes include census, demographic and income data, parks, schools, libraries, hospitals, airports, hotels, environmental conditions, local newspapers, media outlets, employment, maps, coordinates and aerial photos. Search by city, county, state, Area Code, or ZIP Code.

U.S. Gazetteer (U.S. Census Bureau)

Download 1990 and 2000 Census files with geocodes, names, and other basic geographic attributes for places, counties, county subdivisions, and ZIP Code Tabulation Areas (ZCTAs).

World Gazetteer (Stefan Helders)

For each city it gives the variant spellings of the name and the country, province, population, coordinates, population rank among all towns within the country; for each province it gives an alphabetical table of cities; for each country it gives a map and table of provinces with area and population, a map of cities, an alphabetical table of cities, and a table of top cities.

Distance and Time Calculators

These works calculate distances and time differences between places.

Distance Calculators

Canada Distance Guide (Cassidy's Online Transfer & Storage Ltd.)

Calculates the distance from one city in Canada to another, primarily for the purpose of moving household goods.

Elevations and Distances in the United States (U.S. Geological Survey)

Charts showing elevations of selected cities and mountains, geographic centers of selected areas, distance from extreme points to geographic centers, selected extreme distances, and lengths of selected U.S. boundaries.

Flight Route Calculator (Landings)

Calculates the distance between any two airports in the database that have coordinates. It can produce a map of the flight route and returns a link to enroute weather information. If airspeed is specified, it will also calculate flight times. If endurance (time the airplane can fly with a load of fuel) is specified along with airspeed, it will calculate the enroute airports so that you can reach every airport within the endurance time (no allowance for fuel reserve or headwinds is made).

Google Maps (Google)

Enter almost any two addresses or locations on earth and it will provide driving directions and calculate the mileage and approximate driving time.

Great Circle Mapper (Karl L. Swartz)

Displays a map depicting the great circle path (the shortest path on the surface of a sphere between two points on that sphere) between locations and computes the distance along that path. It can also display the area which is within a given range of a location.

How Far Is It? (Bali & Indonesia on the Net)

Finds the latitude and longitude of two places, then calculates the distance between them (as the crow flies). Also provides a map showing the two places.

Mileage and Distances (The Palm Beach Times)

Calculates the distance between U.S. cities from ZIP codes. Includes a mileage chart for Florida cities; map of distances between Orlando and selected U.S. cities; and a mile to meter converter.

Travel Distance Calculator and Map Between World Cities (Dan Gallagher)

Select two cities or two countries from drop down menus and get the coordinates for each location, and distance between them in miles and kilometers, and a map of the two locations. Also provides information about nearby airports, hotels, and landmarks.

Time Calculators

Approximate Sidereal Time (U.S. Naval Observatory)

Sidereal time is a system of timekeeping based on the rotation of the Earth with respect to the fixed stars in the sky. More specifically, it is the measure of the hour angle of the vernal equinox. If the hour angle is measured with respect to the true equinox, apparent sidereal time is being measured. If the hour angle is measured with respect to the mean equinox, mean sidereal time is being measured. When the measurements are made with respect to the meridian at Greenwich, the times are referred to as Greenwich mean sidereal time (GMST) and Greenwich apparent sidereal time (GAST). This page provides a simple algorithm for computing apparent sidereal time to an accuracy of about 0.1 second, equivalent to about 1.5 arcseconds on the sky.

Calendar Converter (John Walker - Fourmilab)

Allows you to interconvert dates in a variety of calendars, both civil and computer-related.

Daylight Time (U.S. Naval Observatory)

Explains the history of daylight saving time and provides the dates when daylight time begins and ends in various places in the U.S.

Swissinfo: Worldtime (Maintained by admin@swissinfo.net)

This guide attempts to list all of the world's countries, and many of its islands. Times consider Daylight Savings Time. Except for the Atlantic, Pacific and Caribbean Islands, islands are often included with either the sovereign country listing, or with the nearest continent.

timeanddate.com (Steffen Thorsen)

Includes a World Clock, customizable calendar, international meeting planner, and other various time calculators.

Universal Time (U.S. Naval Observatory)

History and correct usage of the terms "universal time" and "Greenwich Mean Time."

U.S. Time Zones (U.S. Naval Observatory)

Standard time in the U.S. and its territories is observed within nine time zones. Standard time within each time zone is an integral number of hours offset from a time scale called Universal Time, Coordinated (abbreviated UTC), maintained by a large number of very precise "atomic clocks" at laboratories around the world, including the U.S. Naval Observatory.

The World Clock (Steffen Thorsen)

Shows the current time in major cities all over the world. Also shows corresponding times in various cities and time zones for any time selected.

World Time Zone Map (U.S. Naval Observatory)

Map of standard time zones, compiled by H.M. Nautical Almanac Office.

WORLDTIME (HAB Software, Hamburg, Germany)

This interactive world atlas calculates local time as well as sunrise and sunset times for several hundred cities, and includes a database of public holidays around the world.

Glossaries

Dictionary of Abbreviations and Acronyms in Geographic Information Systems, Cartography, and Remote Sensing (UC Berkeley)

Hundreds of acronyms defined. Browsable by term.

Geology (Iverson Software)

Dictionary of geological terms arranged alphabetically and browsable by search engine. 

Geography Glossary (About.com)

Short definitions of key terms in geography. Links provide additional sources of related information.

GIS Dictionary (University of Edinburgh and Association for Geographic Information)

Online dictionary of terms which either relate directly to GIS or which GIS users may come across in the course of their work.

Glossary of Cartographic Terms (Perry-Castañeda Library - University of Texas at Austin)
Available at the Government Documents Service Desk under Call No. I 19.2:M 32/12/987.

Definitions excerpted from Maps for America, Third Edition. 

Online Dictionary and Glossary in Economic Geography (Günter Krumme - University of Washington)

Explains acronyms and other terms associated with economic geography. Includes lists of terms and concepts.

Handbooks, Manuals, and Guides

These works explain how to read and interpret maps and perform other map-related activities.

Astronomical and Atmospheric Phenomena (Ephemerides)

About Water Levels, Tides, and Currents (National Ocean Service)

Guide to how and why water levels and currents are measured, and how tides are analyzed and predicted.

Astronomical Information Center (U.S. Naval Observatory)

Background information on the sun and moon, time, calendars and historical events, computing astronomical phenomena, and related topics.

The International Celestial Reference System (U.S. Naval Observatory)

The International Celestial Reference System (ICRS) is now the basis for fundamental measurements of the positions and motions of celestial bodies. The ICRS defines standard constants, data, and algorithms for the processing and interpretation of precise astrometric observations, effectively establishing a space-fixed coordinate system on the sky.

History and Genealogy 

Astronomical Information Center (U.S. Naval Observatory)

Background information on the sun and moon, time, calendars and historical events, computing astronomical phenomena, and related topics.

Commemorative Naming in the United States (U.S. Geological Survey)
Call No. I 19.127:158-99

Describes the history of commemorative naming, summarizes U.S. policy, and explains how to submit a proposal for a commemorative name to the U.S. Board on Geographic Names.

Using Maps in Genealogy (U.S. Geological Survey)
Call No. I 19.2:G 29/28
Paper copy located in Government Documents Reference Section.

Explains how to use maps to help locate public and other records about your ancestors and to learn about changes in place names and boundaries. Includes an extensive bibliography.

Geographic Information Storage and Retrieval

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Poster (U.S. Geological Survey)

Explains what a GIS is, how it works, and how they have been used throughout history.

Dictionary of Abbreviations and Acronyms in Geographic Information Systems, Cartography, and Remote Sensing (UC Berkeley)

Hundreds of acronyms defined. Browsable by term.

Map Machine: Discover the Possibilities of Digital Mapping (National Geographic Society)

Resources for learning about Geographic Information Systems technology, including getting started with GIS, GIS data on the Web, and GIS training on the Web.

GIS Dictionary (University of Edinburgh and Association for Geographic Information)

Online dictionary of terms which either relate directly to GIS or which GIS users may come across in the course of their work.

Map Reading and Interpretation

Map Projection Home Page (Hunter College, City University of New York)

Large collection of information related to map projections.

Map Projection Overview (Peter H. Dana, The Geographer's Craft Project, Department of Geography, The University of Colorado at Boulder)

Brief description of map projections, how they are obtained, and what they are used for.

Map Projections (Wolfram MathWorld)

Highly technical mathematical explanations of standard projections and related terms. Excerpted from U.S. Geological Survey’s Map Projections: A Working Manual and from other sources.

Map Scales (U.S. Geological Survey)
Call No. I 19.80:M 32/11
Paper copy located in Government Documents, Willis Library Third Floor.

Explains how to interpret map scales and what scales are available in the USGS mapping program.

Topographic Map Symbols (U.S. Geological Survey)

Explains what a topographic map is and how to read the maps and interpret the symbols on USGS topographic maps.

Navigation and Positioning

Finding Your Way With Map and Compass (U.S. Geological Survey)
Paper copy located in Government Documents, Willis Library Third Floor.

Explains basic concepts of navigating with a topographic map and a compass.

Latitude: The Art and Science of Fifteenth-Century Navigation (Rice University)

Collection of images and historical information related to sailing, navigating, and map-making in the fifteenth century. 

Coordinate Systems Overview (Peter H. Dana, The Geographer's Craft Project, Department of Geography, The University of Colorado at Boulder)

A brief description of local and global systems for use in precise positioning, navigation, and geographic information systems for the location of points in space.

Geodetic Datum Overview (Peter H. Dana, The Geographer's Craft Project, Department of Geography, The University of Colorado at Boulder)

Discusses the history and applications of geodetic datums, which are used to define the size and shape of the earth and the origin and orientation of the coordinate systems used to map the earth.

Global Positioning System Overview (Peter H. Dana, The Geographer's Craft Project, Department of Geography, The University of Colorado at Boulder)

Brief description of the Global Positioning System and how it works.

Global Positioning System Primer (The Aerospace Corporation)

Explanation of what the Global Positioning System is, how it works, and various ways it can be used.

Time

Astronomical Information Center (U.S. Naval Observatory)

Background information on the sun and moon, time, calendars and historical events, computing astronomical phenomena, and related topics.

On Time (National Museum of American History, Smithsonian Institution)

This online exhibition explores the ways Americans have measured, used, and thought about time, and encourages us to think about the ways we experience time every day.

Time Zones (U.S. Naval Observatory)

Explanation of why we have time zones and how our current system was created.

Teaching Packets

Map Adventures (U.S. Geological Survey)

Suitable for grades K–3. Lessons and activities for learning basic concepts for visualizing objects from different perspectives and how to understand and use maps.

Global Change (U.S. Geological Survey)
Call No. I 19.2:G 51/PACK.
Paper copy located in Government Documents, Willis Library Third Floor.

Suitable for grades 4–6. Lessons and activities to assist in teaching the concepts of weather, seasons, and other cycles and changes in the environment.

What Do Maps Show? (U.S. Geological Survey)
Call No. I 19.2:M 32/21/KIT
Paper copy located in Government Documents, Willis Library Third Floor.

Suitable for grades 5–8. Lessons and activities to assist in teaching the concepts of reading maps.

Exploring Maps (U.S. Geological Survey)

Suitable for grades 7–12. Lessons and activities to assist in teaching basic mapmaking and map-reading skills.