Exploring Coordinate Systems - Projecting Maps!

 

This assignment brought us back to work with Projected Coordinate Systems. We took a close look at the types of distortions associated with different types of projections, and learned to choose correct projections to apply to different regions.

For the last step, we were to choose one of the 50 states of America to project, and I chose my home state of Ohio. Fortunately, it did not seem too difficult to find a projected coordinate system for this state, because the different types of projections provided a consistent result. I noticed there was very little, if any, change between the State Plane and UTM options for Ohio's zone, and settled on the NAD 1983 HARN UTM ZONE 18N option after determining that it was an updated, accurate choice. The result, with measurements, can be viewed below:

The NAD 1983 HARN UTM ZONE 18N projection accounts for Ohio's position largely within UTM 18. Another option was NAD 1983 HARN StatePlane Ohio North FIPS 3401 (US Feet), which I took note included a very little difference between the 'North' and 'South' options.The North option was closest to the system I chose, which made sense due to Ohio's placement just below Canada and the Great Lakes.  

This is a lesson I always appreciate, mainly because practice makes perfect and a lot of knowing good coordinate systems for different regions is experience. After this, I feel even more confident identifying accurate projection choices, and more comfortable with the idea of experimenting on my own with customized projections. 

More to come!