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Cartographic Scale

Definition

The cartographic scale is a tool that represents the ratio between a distance on a map and the corresponding distance on the ground.

Analogy

Think of it like using a miniature model of your school building to plan out where you're going to hang banners for homecoming. The model isn't actual size, but every inch on the model might represent 10 feet in real life. That's your "scale."

Related terms

Representative Fraction (RF): This is another way to express scale, as a simple fraction or ratio. For example, if one centimeter on the map equals one kilometer in reality, this would be expressed as 1/100,000.

Large Scale: A term used when map scale is relatively large and detailed information can be shown. For instance, a city map showing streets and buildings.

Small Scale: This refers to maps that show larger areas in less detail. For example, world maps are often small scale.