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Atlas Map Skills

Atlas maps help you find countries, oceans, and cities fast. This GCSE Geography quiz builds your confidence with scale, symbols, and direction so atlases feel easy to use.

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Fascinating Fact:

Atlas maps use scale to show how distances on the page relate to real distances on the ground, for example 1:50 000 or 1 cm to 500 km.

In GCSE Geography, atlas map skills help you link page symbols to real places. You learn to use scale, latitude, and longitude so you can measure distances and locate features accurately.

Key Terms

Scale: Shows how a distance on the map relates to the actual distance on the Earth’s surface.
Latitude: Imaginary lines that run east–west, measuring how far north or south a place is from the Equator.
Longitude: Imaginary lines that run north–south, measuring how far east or west a place is from the Prime Meridian.

Frequently Asked Questions (Click to see answers)

What atlas map skills are tested in GCSE Geography?

GCSE Geography usually tests atlas skills such as using the index, reading grid references, recognising map symbols, understanding scale, and using latitude and longitude to locate countries and major features.

How can I get faster at using an atlas in exams?

To get faster, practise using the contents page and index, skim pages for key symbols, and use the map key and compass rose quickly. Regular timed practice with past questions really improves your atlas speed.

What is the difference between an atlas and an OS map?

An atlas shows small-scale maps of regions, countries, and the world, which is useful for global patterns. An OS map is large-scale, giving detailed local information such as streets, land use, and contour lines.

Try These Related Quizzes

To see a larger image, click on the picture.

1 .

Which pair of coordinates most closely corresponds to the location of the highest mountain in New Zealand - Mt. Cook? Its location is marked on this map with a red X.

44° N, 170° W

44° N, 170° E

44° S, 170° E

44° S, 170° W

You should know by now that New Zealand is south of the equator. The map indicates that the longitude is east. Here's a bit of general knowledge for you, not needed for the GCSE - the native people, the Maori, refer to it as Aoraki. In 1991, part of the summit fell off as a massive rockslide, reducing the height of the mountain by 10 metres!

2 .

In which American state is the Arkansas City in grid square Gd on page 84?

Arkansas

Kansas

Oklahoma

Kazakhstan

Kansas and Arkansas are named for the native American Kansa tribe. Arkansas originates from the French settlers and explorers and is pronounced Arkansaw but Kansas is pronounced exactly as you would expect

3 .

What feature do you find just to the north west of the point where the 50° W line of longitude meets the equator?

The Alps

The mouths of the Amazon

Cayenne

The Carribean Sea

The Amazon flows more or less parallel to the equator and just a little to the south until it finally meets the sea. Deforestation of the Amazon rainforest is a major global concern

4 .

What does the 30' indicate?

Latitude 30 degrees north

Latitude 30 degrees south

Longitude 30 degrees west

It's the half way point between two degrees of longitude

Degrees are broken down into minutes, there are 60 minutes in a degree

5 .

Which of the following types of map in an atlas would you use to identify a mountain range?

Relief

Political

Climatic

Cultivation

Relief maps show the height of the land making it easy to identify mountain ranges, valleys, ocean trenches and so on

6 .

Which type of map would you look for in an atlas if you wanted to find the average rainfall in the African country of Mozambique?

Relief

Political

Climate

Cultivation

Climate maps are also used to show average temperatures

7 .

The line of zero degrees longitude is called the:

Greenwich meridian

Blairwitch meridian

London median

Green meridian

This was established by the Royal Observatory at Greenwich in London to help British ships navigate around the world. It was later adopted as the international prime meridian

8 .

In which grid square does the Butt of Lewis lie?

The eastings reference comes first

9 .

On what page would you find find St Michael in Alaska?

When using an index with small print like this, use a ruler to make sure you are looking along the correct line

10 .

In addition to maps, atlases often contain charts too. According to this chart, which region of the world consumes the most meat and which consumes the highest level of fat and sugar combined?