NR 322: Quick History of GIS

Jim Graham

Fall 2008

Where does it start?

• When was the first time someone scratched a map in the sand?

• Carved the number of fruit trees on their land onto a plank of wood?

Town Plan from Catal Hyük (6200 B.C.)

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.missbarbara.net/carto.gif&imgrefurl=http://missbarbara.net/&h=160&w=155&sz=28&hl=en&start=14&um=1&tbnid=KvjKVX9L0flPHM:&tbnh=98&tbnw=95&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dancient%2Bmaps%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den

Newgrange (3300 BC)

Stonehenge (3000BC)

First World Map: 500 BCE

• Neo-Babylonian (Persian Period)

• Copy of an original dating to the Sargonid Period, circa late eighth or seventh century BCE

Interpretation

http://www.henry-davis.com/MAPS/AncientWebPages/103.html

Homer’s View of the Earth

Roman fresco globe 50 A.D.

Madaba Mosaic Map: Palestine, 565 A.D.

Plan of Jerusalem, c. 1200

• Psalter-fragment

• The Hague

Pietro Vesconte's World Maps, 1321

East

Henry The Navigator

• Portuguese prince

• Born: 1394

• 1498 Vasco de Gama sailed from Portugal to India

Cantino world map (1502)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_world_maps

Piri Reis map (1513)

First Map of 4 Known Continents

Sebastian Munster 1544

Medieval map of the Black Sea

Polynesian Stick Maps

Buddhist Temple Complex

Position• Sun, Moon, and Stars?• Sun, Moon, Stars and

Stexant -> Latitude• Sun, Moon, Stars,

Stextant, and Chronometer -> Latitude and Longitude

• GPS

Direction

• Sun, moon, and stars• Compass• GPS (as long as you are moving!)

Recent Past

• Surveying with glass optics and “chains”– USGS Topographic Maps

• Charts and Sextants• Compasses• Street Maps

Current GIS

• Computers with GIS Software (ArcGIS)

• Aerial & Satellite photography

• Laser surveys• LandSat Satellite

Images• GPS Satellite

Network

Future of GIS?

• Interconnected Earth– Google Earth?

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Martin Behaim globe (1492)

Fra Mauro world map (1459)

World map according to Posidonius (150-130 B.C.)