Plate 51
Contour Lab
A contour line joins places at the same height, and a map with them shows a 3D shape on flat paper.
- Family
- Science
- Origin
- Raised from a recipe
- Habit
- Diurnal: kept on the page
- Voice
- Yes, with the sound on
- Your own
- About these contours
- Licenses
- Public domain
How to play
Tap to pull the layers apart; tap again to stack them. Pick a place in the Splash tab.
Notes
This lab cuts real land into layers, one for each step of height, so you can see where the lines come from.
The land is measured: the U.S. Geological Survey's elevation data for Mount St. Helens, the Grand Canyon or Yosemite Valley, about 35 m between samples. Each layer's edge is a contour line. Tap to lift the layers apart and see each edge on its own; seen from straight above, the edges are the nested rings of a contour map. Lines close together mean steep ground; far apart, gentle. Choose the place and how much the heights are stretched.
Its controls
| Control | Kind | Range | Start |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pull the layers apart | Tap | ||
| Pull the layers apart | Switch | Off | |
| Place | List | 3 choices | Mount St. Helens |
| Height | List | 3 choices | Stretched 2× |
Sources and credits
| Work | By | License |
|---|---|---|
| Mount St. Helens: USGS 3DEP 1/3 arc-second elevation, a square averaged to 256 × 256 samples | U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program (The National Map) | Public domain (USGS 3D Elevation Program) |
| The Grand Canyon: USGS 3DEP 1/3 arc-second elevation, a square averaged to 256 × 256 samples | U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program (The National Map) | Public domain (USGS 3D Elevation Program) |
| Yosemite Valley and Half Dome: USGS 3DEP 1/3 arc-second elevation, a square averaged to 256 × 256 samples | U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program (The National Map) | Public domain (USGS 3D Elevation Program) |