CBSE Class 5 Environmental Studies Earth, Globes and Maps Notes Set 01

Earth, a special planet

Earth is the only planet known to have both air and water in large amounts, and it has life on it. Its surface is made of big landmasses called continents and large water bodies called oceans. There are seven continents: Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe and Australia. The five oceans are the Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Southern and Arctic. Earth is the fifth largest planet in our solar system.

The shape of the Earth

In ancient times many people believed the Earth was flat and that a ship would fall off its edge. Long sea voyages showed this was wrong. The expedition led by Ferdinand Magellan, a Portuguese explorer, sailed all the way around the world in the early sixteenth century and proved that the Earth is round. Magellan himself died on the way, and his crew completed the journey. Photographs taken from space now show clearly that the Earth is a sphere, which means a ball-like round object.

The globe

A globe is a small model of the Earth. It is useful because: 1. it is a simple and fairly accurate model of the Earth 2. it shows how land and water are spread over the Earth 3. it shows the true shape, size and position of continents and oceans.

Maps and atlases

A map is a drawing of the whole Earth or a part of it on a flat surface. A book of maps is called an atlas. Maps can show continents, countries, cities or even a neighbourhood. Because the Earth is curved and paper is flat, a map cannot be perfectly accurate, so a globe is more accurate than a map.

Globe and map compared

1. A globe cannot be folded, so it is hard to carry; a map can be folded and carried easily. 2. A globe cannot show small details of a place; a map can show even a small area in detail. 3. Only one half of a globe can be seen at a time; a map can show the whole world at once.

Types of maps

1. Physical maps show natural features such as mountains, rivers and plateaus. 2. Political maps show countries, states, capitals and cities. 3. Climatic maps show climate, rainfall and temperature. 4. Thematic maps show one special topic, such as population, roads, forests, soil, crops or industries.

How to read a map

Four features help us read a map. Direction: maps use north, south, east and west, and the in-between directions north-east, north-west, south-east and south-west. Scale: the ratio between a distance on the map and the real distance on the ground, so a small unit on paper stands for a large distance. Symbols: small marks with fixed meanings. Colours: for example blue for water, green for plains and brown for mountains.

Worked examples

Example 1. Why is a globe called a model of the Earth? Answer: It has the same round shape as the Earth, only much smaller, and it shows land and water in their correct places.

Example 2. A map has a scale where 1 cm stands for 10 km. Two towns are 4 cm apart on the map. How far apart are they? Answer: 4 × 10 = 40 km.

Example 3. Which type of map would you use to find the capital of a country? Answer: A political map, because it shows countries and their capitals.

Quick Check Questions