SCHOOL OF ENGINEERING AND ARCHITECTURE

BAGUIO CITY

ENGINEERING SURVEYS 1 - LECTURE

8:00 - 9:30 TTH

TOPICS:

1. METHODS OF REPRENSENTING RELIEF

2. TYPES OF CONTOURS

3. THE CONTOUR INTERVAL

4. METHODS OF LOCATING INTERVALS

5. METHODS OF OBTAINING CONTOURS

6. TOPOGRAPHIC SURVEY ( CHECKERBOARD METHOD)

7. SLOPES

8. HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEY

EMDARLSON C. QUIDASOL ENGR. ALFONSO S. FELIX SR.

SUBMITTED BY: LECTURER
1. METHODS OF REPRESENTING RELIEF

A.) SPOT HEIGHTS

- THE ELEVATION OF IMPORTANT FEATURES AND CRITICAL POINTS SUCH AS ROAD JUNCTIONS, PEAKS,
SUMMITS, SAGS AND HIGHWAY CROSSINGS ARE INDICATED IN THE MAP AND ARE KNOWN AS SPOT HEIGHTS
OR SPOT ELEVATIONS.

B.) HACHURES

- ARE A SERIES OF SHORT LINES DRAWN IN THE DIRECTION OF THE SLOPE. FOR A STEEP SLOPE THE
LINES ARE HEAVY AND CLOSELY SPACED. FOR A GENTLE SLOPE THEY ARE FINE AND WIDELY SPACED.

C.) FORM LINES

- ARE DRAWN WHEN NOT ENOUGH VERTICAL CONTROL IS AVAILABLE OR WHEN THE SURFACE IS TOO
IRREGULAR OR INTRICATE TO CONTOUR. SUCH LINES RESEMBLE CONTOURS, BUT ARE NOT DRAWN WITH THE
SAME DEGREE OR ACCURACY.

D.) CONTOUR LINES

- IT IS THE MOST WIDELY USED METHOD OF REPRESENTING HILLS, MOUNTAINS, DEPRESSIONS, AND
GROUND SURFACE UNDULATIONS ON A TWO-DIMENSIONAL SHEET OF PAPER IS BY CONTOUR LINES OR ISO-
HYPSES.

E.) LAYER TINTING

- A PART OF A MAP LYING BETWEEN TWO PARTICULAR CONTOURS MAY BE COLORED IN ORDER THAT
THE DISTRIBUTION OF HIGH AND LOW LAND CAN BE SEEN AT A GLANCE. COLOR TINTS WHEN USED IN CON-
JUNCTION WITH CONTOUR LINES GIVE PICTORIAL EFFECT BY ACCENTUATING THE AREAS OF DIFFERENT ELE-
VATION.

F.) SHADING

- IS AN OLD METHOD USED TO SHOW RELATIVE ELEVATIONS ON MAPS. IT IS DEPENDENT UPON SHAD-
OWS CAST BY THE ELEVATED PORTIONS OF THE LAND. THIS METHOD IS ACCOMPLISHED BY THE CORRECT
PLACEMENT ON THE MAP OF DIFFERENT SHADES OF GRAY TINTS.

G.) TERRAIN MODELS

- PROVIDE THE MOST STRIKING AND REALISTIC EXPRESSION OF TOPOGRAPHY. THE MODEL IS A REPRE-
SENTATION OF THE TERRAIN DONE IN THREE DIMENSIONS TO SUITABLE HORIZONTAL AND VERTICAL SCALES.

H.) RIDGE AND STREAM LINING

- RIDGE LINING IS MAINLY USED TO EMPHASIZE THE LOCATION OF THE LOW AND HIGH GROUND. THIS
METHOD IS ESPECIALLY USEFUL IN AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS. THIS IS DONE TO SHOW THE LOCATION OF LOW
GROUND.

I.) SUBAQUEOUS CONTOURS

- TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS OFTEN INCLUDE AREAS OF NAVIGABLE WATERS SUCH AS THE SEASHORE AND
LARGE INLAND LAKES. THE PORTRAYAL OF RELIEF OF THE GROUND UNDERWATER IS DONE BY USING DEPTH
CURVES OR SUBAQUEOUS CONTOURS.
2. TYPES OF CONTOURS

A.) INDEX CONTOURS

- AS A CONVENIENCE IN SCALING ELEVATIONS, AND TO PROVIDE EASE AND SPEED IN READING CON-
TOURS, A CONTOUR IS SHOWN BY A HEAVIER LINE WHICH ARE NORMALLY TWICE THE GAUGE OF THE STAND-
ARD CONTOURS. THEY ARE USUALLY DRAWN EVERY FIFTH CONTOUR AND CARRY THE CONTOUR NUMBER OR
ELEVATION DESIGNATION. INDEX CONTOURS ALSO SERVE AS A VISUAL REINFORCEMENT IN THE CONTOUR
IMAGE. BY PRESENTING THE INFORMATION AT TWO VISUAL LEVELS, IT MAKE IT EASIER TO IDENTIFY THE MA-
JOR FORMS FROM THE DETAIL.

B.) INTERMEDIATE CONTOURS

- THE FOUR LIGHTER WEIGHT CONTOURS FOUND BETWEEN THE INDEX CONTOURS ARE THE INTERME-
DIATE CONTOURS. THESE LINES ARE NOT USUALLY LABELED EXCEPT WHERE THE TERRAIN IS RELATIVELY FLAT
AND THEIR ELEVATIONS ARE NOT READILY OBVIOUS. THEY CONFORM TO THE CONTOUR INTERVAL SPECIFIED
FOR THE MAP.

C.) DEPRESSION CONTOURS

- DEPRESSION CONTOURS ARE DRAWN TO SHOW LOW SPOTS SUCH AS EXCAVATIONS AROUND WHICH
CONTOURS CLOSE. THE SYMBOL USED IS THE INDEX OR INTERMEDIATE CONTOUR TO WHICH TICKS ARE
DRAWN PERPENDICULAR TO THE CONTOUR LINE ON THE DOWNHILL SIDE.

D.) SUPPLEMENTAL CONTOURS

- CERTAIN PORTIONS OF THE MAP AREA SOMETIMES ARE SO FLAT OR LEVEL THAT THE CONTOURS ARE
TOO FAR APART TO SHOW PROPERLY IMPORTANT BREAKS IN THE TERRAIN. TO BITTER DEPICT THE RELIEF
AND REMEDY SUCH SITUATIONS, SUPPLEMENTAL OR AUXILIARY CONTOURS ARE USED. THEY ARE DRAWN AS
DASHED LINES OR LINES OF DOTS THAT BEGIN AND END WHEN THEY APPROACH THE AREAS WHERE THE REG-
ULAR CONTOURS ARE USED.

E.) APPROXIMATE CONTOURS

- IN SOME INSTANCES CONTOUR ACCURACY CANNOT BE DEFINITELY DETERMINED. THE AREA MAY BE
IN ACCESSIBLE ON THE GROUND OR IT MAY BE DIFFICULT TO INTERPRET CONTOURS FROM AERIAL PHOTO-
GRAPHS WHEN HEAVY CLOUD OR SHADOWS OCCUR.

3. THE CONTOUR INTERVAL

- THE CONSTANT VERTICAL DISTANCE BETWEEN TWO ADJACENT CONTOUR LINES IS TERMED THE CONTOUR
INTERVAL. IT MUST ALWAYS BE CONSISTENT WITHIN THE LIMITS OF THE MAP BUT MAY BE VARIED BETWEEN MAP
SHEETS TO BETTER PORTRAY THE TERRAIN. THE CONTOUR INTERVAL WILL AFFECT THE DEGREE OF DETAIL FOR POR-
TRAYING INFORMATION RELATED TO SLOPE IN RELIEF.

4. METHODS OF LOCATING CONTOURS

A.) BY INTERPOLATION

- THE LOCATION AND PLOTTING OF CONTOUR LINES IS ONE OF THE MAJOR STEPS INVOLVED IN THE
CONSTRUCTION OF A TOPOGRAPHIC MAP. THE GROUND POINTS ARE EMPLOYED AS REFERENCE IN THE
PROPER LOCATION OF THE CONTOUR LINES. THE PROCESS OF LOCATING CONTOUR LINES PROPORTIONALLY
ON THE MAP IS TERMED AS INTERPOLATION.
 B.) BY ESTIMATION

- CONTOURS LINES MAY BE LOCATED BETWEEN POINTS OF KNOWN ELEVATION BY ESTIMATION. THIS
METHOD IS SUITABLE ON SMALL-SCALE MAPS WHERE THE GROUND FORM IS NOT TOO IRREGULAR. THE
FIRST STEP IS TO MAKE A CAREFUL STUDY OF THE POSITIONS OF THE CONTOUR POINTS.

C.) ANALYTICAL METHOD

- ARITHMETICAL COMPUTATIONS ARE EMPLOYED WHERE HIGH ACCURACY IS DESIRED IN LOCATING

CONTOUR LINES. THIS METHOD IS WELL SUITED FOR DRAWING LARGE-SCALE MAPS. DISTANCE BETWEEN
POINTS OF KNOWN ELEVATION ARE MEASURED AND THE LOCATION OF CONTOURS POINTS ARE DETER-
MINED BY PROPORTION.

D.) TRIANGLE AND SCALE METHOD

- THE METHOD OF INTERPOLATING POINTS BY USING AN ENGINEER’S SCALE AND A TRIANGLE IS AN

APPLICATION OF THE GEOMETRIC METHOD OF DIVIDING A LINE INTO A CONVENIENT NUMBER OF EQUAL
PARTS. THE METHOD PROVIDES AN ACCURATE AND RAPID PROCEDURE FOR INTERPOLATING CONTOUR LINES
IN WHICH MATHEMATICAL COMPUTATIONS ARE ELIMINATED.

E.) TEMPLATE METHOD

- THERE ARE GRAPHICAL DEVICES WHICH ARE USED FOR INTERPOLATING CONTOUR LINES BETWEEN
PLOTTED POSITIONS. THESE DEVICES ALLOW MANY INTERPOLATIONS TO BE MADE QUICKLY AND ACCURATE-
LY. ONE SUCH DEVICE IS THE CONTOUR TEMPLATE. IT CONSIST OF A SERIES OF EQUALLY SPACED PARALLEL
LINES THAT ARE DRAWN ON TRANSPARENT FILM OR PAPER USING ANY SPECIFIED.

5. METHODS OF OBTAINING CONTOURS

A.) 1. DIRECT METHOD

- ARE THOSE IN WHICH THE CONTOURS TO BE PLOTTED ARE ACTUALLY TRACED OUT IN THE FIELD. THE
PROCEDURE INVOVLES THE LOCATION AND MARKING OF A SERIES OF POINTS ON EACH CONTOUR LINE.
THESE POINTS ARE SURVEYED AND PLOTTED IN THE FIELD, AND THE APPROPRIATE CONTOURS ARE
DRAWN THROUGH THEM. THE TRACE CONTOUR METHOD IS ONE SUCH EXAMPLE THAT IS USED.

THE DIRECT METHOD OF CONTOURING IS EXECUTED RATHER SLOWAND ON THIS ACCOUNT IT IS SEL-
DOM ADOPTED ON LARGE SURVEYS. IT HAS, HOWEVER, THE ADVANTAGE OS SUPERIOR ACCURACY, AND
SUITABLE FOR THE CLOSE CONTOURING OF SMALL AREAS WHERE CONSIDERABLE PRECISION IS RE-
QUIRED. IN THIS METHOD, THE FIELDWORK BASICALLY CONSISTS OF TWO STEPS: THE LOCATION OF
POINTS ON THE CONTOURS AND THE SURVEY OF THESE POINTS. THESE OPERATIONS MAYBE CONDUCTED
SIMULTANEUOSLY WHEN TWO SURVEY PARTIES ARE EMPLOYED.

2. INDIRECT METHOD

- COMPRISE THOSE IN WHICH THE POINTS LOCATED AS REGARDS POSITION AND ELEVATION ARE NOT
NECESSARILY SITUATED ON THE CONTOURS TO BE SHOWN, BUT SERVE, ON BEING PLOTTED, AS A BASIS
FOR THE INTERPOLATION OF THE REQUIRED CONTOURS. THE FOLLOWING FIELD METHOD FOR OBTAIN-
ING TOPOGRAPHIC DETAIL FALL UNDER THIS CLASSIFICATION: COORDINATE METHOD, CONTROLLING-
POINT METHOD, CROSS-PROFILE METHOD AND THE PHOTOGRAMMETRIC METHOD.

BY THE INDIRECT METHOD, THE POINTS TO BE LOCATED MAYBE EITHER SITUATED ALONG A SERIES OF
STRAIGHT LINES SET OUT OVER THE AREA, OR ARE SCATTERED SPOT HEIGHTS AT REPRESENTATIVE
POINTS.
 IT IS ALSO WORTHWHILE TO MENTION THAT THE SELECTION OF THE FIELD METHOD TO BE USED ON
ANY TOPOGRAPHIC SURVEY DEPENDS ON MANY CONSIDERATIONS WHICH MAY INCLUDE: THE PURPOSE
OF THE SURVEY, SIZE AND TYPE OF AREA SURVEYED, EQUIPMENT AND TIME AVAILABLE, THE MAP SCALE
AND CONTOUR INTERVAL, INTENDED USE OF THE MAP, COST, AND THE EXPERIENCE OF SURVEY PERSO-
NELS.

B.) TRACE CONTOUR METHOD

- ONE OF THE MOST ACCURATE AND DIRECT PROCEDURE OF LOCATING CONTOURS IS BY THE TRACE-
CONTOUR METHOD. ALTHOUGH THIS METHOD IS QUITE ACCURATE, IT TENDS TO BE SLOW AND COSTLY TO
UNDERTAKE. THIS PROCEDURE IS THUS ONLY USED WHEN IT IS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY TO MEET RIGID AC-
CURACY REQUIREMENTS. THE METHOD IS USED ADVANTAGEOUSLY IN ROLLING COUNTRY WHERE THE
SLOPES ARE GENERALLY GENTLE.

THE PROCEDURE CONSISTS OF A SERIES OF ROD READINGS TAKEN ALONG THE SAME CONTOUR LINE
FROM SUCCESIVE SETUPS OF THE INSTRUMENT. WHEN THE TRANSIT AND THE STADIA ROD ARE USED, THE
INSTRUMENT IS SETUP IN ONE LOCATION NEAR THE ELEVATION OF THE CONTOUR TO BE TRACED. THE
HEIGHT OF THE INSTRUMENT IS OBTAINED BY BACKSIGHTING ON A POINT OF KNOWN ELEVATION , AND THE
ROD READING IS COMPUTED WHEN THE ROD IS ON THE CONTOUR TO BE TRACED. THE RODMAN IS THEN
DIRECTED TOWARDS THE EXPECTED PATH THAT THE CONTOUR WILL TAKE. POINTS ON THE CONTOUR ARE
FOUND BY TRIAL AND ARE LOCATED BY ANGLE AND STADIA DISTANCE. BY THIS PROCEDURE, THE ENTIRE
LENGTH OF THE CONTURE LINE IS TRACED OUT ON THE GROUNDAS FAR AS THE POSITION OF THE INSTRU-
MENT WILL ALLOW. THE NEXT CONTOUR LINE IN THE ARE IS THEN PURSUED UNTIL ALL THE LINES POSSIBLE
ARE TAKEN FROM THE INSTRUMENT STATION. THE INSTRUMENT IS THEN MOVED AHEAD AND ANOTHER SEC-
TION IS WORKED OUT.

THE MAXIMUM DISTANCE BETWEEN CONTOUR POINTS IS DETERMINED BY THE TERRAIN AND ACCU-
RACY REQUIRED. AS SOON AS AT LEAST THREE POINTS HAVE BEEN PLOTTED, THE TOPOGRAPHER SHOULD
DRAW AND LABEL THE CONTOUR LINE. CONTOURS ARE SKETCHED BETWEEN THE LOCATED POINTS AS PART
OF THE DRAFTING-ROOM WORK, BUT MAY ALSO BE DRAWN IN THE FIELD TO CLARIFY UNUSUAL CONDI-
TIONS.

ALTHOUGH THE TRANSIT MAY BE USED IN THIS WORK, EITHER ALONE OR WITH THE ENGINEER’S LEV-
EL, THE PLANE TABLE IS COMMONLY USED BECAUSE THE PROCEDURE REQUIRES FEWER POINTS TO BE OB-
SERVED AND LESS TIME IS NEEDED IN PLOTTING THE DETAILS.

C.) COORDINATE METHOD

- ONE WAY OF LOCATING AND PLOTTING THE CONTOURS OF A GIVEN AREA IS TO UTILIZE A GRID OR
COORDINATE SYSTEM. THE GENERAL PROCEDURE IS SUMMARIZED AS FOLLOWS:

1. ON A GRID SYSTEM LAY OUT THE AREA BY ESTABLISHING CORNER AND PERIMETER STAKES.

2. AT THE INTERSECTIONS OF THE GRID LINES DETERMINE THE ELEVATIONS.

3. PLOT THE POINT OF THE KNOWN ELEVATIONS TO THE DESIRED SCALE IN THE PLAN.

4. DRAW THE CONTOUR LINES BY INTERPOLATION.

JUST AS IN THE CASE OF THE TRACE-CONTOUR METHOD, THE COORDINATE METHOD IS ALSO USED WHERE A
RELATIVELY HIGH DEGREE OF ACCURACY IS DESIRED, AND HENCE THE MAP IS USUALLY DRAWN TO A LARGE
SCALE. THESE SURVEYS ARE REQUIRED FOR THE LOCATION AND DESIGN OF ENGINEERING STRUCTURES SUCH
AS DAMS, RESERVOIRS, BRIDGES AND BUILDINGS; AND FOR THE EARTHWORK ESTIMATES FOR PROJECTS
SUCH AS ROADWAYS, LEVEES, CANALS, AND LANDSCAPE GRADING. IT IS ALSO USEFUL WHERE THE TRACK IS
WOODED, WHERE THE TOPOGRAPHY IS SMOOTH, AND ON URBAN SURVEYS WHERE LOTS AND BLOCK ARE OF
REGULAR GEOMETRIC SHAPES.

THE AREA TO SURVEYED IS STAKED OFF INTO SQUARES OR RECTANGLES, USUALLY IN DIMENSION OF
5, 10, 15, 20 OR 30 METERS. THE DIMENSION OF THESE DIVISIONS DEPENDS ON THE ACCURACY AND REGU-
LARITY OF THE TOPOGRAPHY. THE FORM CHOSEN FOR THE DIVISIONS WILL DEPENDE LARGELY ON THE SHAPE
OF THE AREA. THE SIZE OF THE DIVISIONS SHOULD BE SUCH AS THAT, FOR THE MOST PART, THE GROUND
SLOPES CAN BE CONSIDERED UNIFORM BETWEEN THE GRID POINTS AT THE CORNERS OF THE DIVISIONS.

THE SQUARES NEED NOT TO BE OF THE SAME DIMENSIONS THROUGH OUT IN GROUND OF VARYING
CHARACTER. IT CAN BE REDUCED OF RUGGED PARTS, OR ALTERNATIVELY. WHEN NECESSARY, ADDITIONAL
POINTS MAY BE OBSERVED WITHIN THE SQUARES TO FURTHER COMPLETE THE MAP DETAILS.

AFTER ALL STATIONS OF THE GRID HAVE BEEN SET AND PROPERLY IDENTIFIED LINES OF LEVELS ARE
THEN RUN AND THE ELEVATION AT EACH GRID LINE INTERSECTION IS DETERMINED. IN ADDITION, ALL SIGNIF-
ICANT PLANIMETRIC FEATURES ARE LOCATED FROM THE NEAREST PAIR OF INTERSECTING GRID LINES.

WHEN THE FIELD MEASUREMENTS ARE COMPLETED, THE CONTROL POINTS, TRACT BOUNDARY, AND
THE GRID ARE PLOTTED INTO DESIRED SCALE. THE VALUES OF THE ELEVATIONS OF THE GRID INTERSECTIONS
ARE CORRESPONDINGLY INDICATED AT THE PLOTTED POSITIONS OF THE INTERSECTIONS. THE THE POSITIONS
OF THE CONTOUR LINES ARE LOCATED AND SKETCHED BY INTERPOLATION BETWEEN THE GRID INTERSEC-
TIONS. ALSO, ALL PLANIMETRIC FEATURES ARE PLOTTED TO COMPLETE THE TOPOGRAPHIC MAP OF THE AR-
EA.

D.) CONTROLLING POINT METHOD

- THE CONTROLLING-POINT METHOD OF OBTAINING CONTOURS IS CONSIDERED TO BE ONE WITH THE

MOST UNIVERSAL APPLICATION. THIS METHOD IS APPLICABLE TO PRACTICALLY EVERY TYPE OF TERRAIN AND
CONDITION ENCOUNTERED IN TOPOGRAPHIC MAPPING. ITS BASIC PRINCIPLE IS THAT THE READILY VISIBLE
AND WELL DEFINED POINTS ON THE AREA SURVEYED WILL FORM A FRAMEWORK ON WHICH OTHER MAP
DETAILS MAY BE INDICATED OR UPON WHICH THE INTERPOLATION OF CONTOURS MAY BE MADE MUCH EAS-
IER AND FASTER.

THE METHOD CAN BE ADVANTAGEOUSLY PERFORMED IN ROUGH AND RUGGED TERRAIN. IT IS SUITA-
BLE FOR SURVEYS WHICH SERVE THE DESIGN AND ESTIMATES OF MANY ENGINEERING PROJECTS, SUCH AS
RESERVOIRS, IRRIGATION CANALS, HYDRO-ELECTRIC DEVELOPMENTS, AND DRAINAGE SYSTEMS. ONE DIS-
TINCT ADVANTAGE OF THIS SYSTEM IS THAT THE AMOUNT OF DETAIL GATHERED CAN BE EASILY MODIFIED
TO PROVIDE THE DESIRED MAP.

AS IN THE OTHER METHODS, THE DETAILS ARE LOACTED IN THE FIELD BY THE USE OF EITHER THE
TRANSIT OR SELF-REDUCING TACHEOMETER AND STADIA, OR THE PLANE TABLE AND ALIDADE. BECAUSE OF
ITS VERSATILITY AND CAPABILITY FOR ON-THE-SPOT PLOTTING OF DETAILS, THE PLANE TABLE IS THE MOST
DESIRABLE EQUIPMENT FOR THIS METHOD OF COMPILATION.

POINTS ARE SELECTED AT RANDOM OR ALONG SELECTED LINES. SEPCIFICALLY, THE CONTROLLING
POINTS ARE THE POINTS ON THE EARTH’S SURFACE WHERE CHANGES IN THE GROUND SLOPE OCCUR. SUCH
POINTS MAY INCLUDE SUMMITS, THE ENDS OF A RIDGE LINE, THE LINE OF A VALLEY FLOOR, THE BEGINNING
OF A QULLY, THE TOP OF A CURB AND ITS CORRESPONDING GUTTER, ETC. IF THE ELEVATIONS OF THESE CON-
TROLLING POINTS ARE OBTAINED, THE CONFIGURATION OF THE EARTHS SURFACE CAN BE BETTER SHOWN IN
CONSISTENT DETAIL.

THE PROCEDURE OF LOCATING DETAILS AS FOLLOWS: THE INSTRUMENT IS SET UP AND ORIENTED
OVER A CONTROL STATION, AND ITS H.I ABOVE THE GROUND IS DETERMINED BY A BACKSIGHTON A PREVI-
OUSLY ESTABLISHED STATION OR BENCHMARK. THE RODMAN IS DIRECTED TO A SELECTED POINT AND STA-
DIA READINGS ARE TAKEN ON THE ROD. THE RECORDER KEEPS THE NOTES, COMPUTES THE ELEVATION AND
HORIZONTAL DISTANCE, AND RECORDS THE AZIMUTH OF THE POINT OBSERVED.

THE RODMAN PROCEEDS IN A SYSTEMATIC ROUTE OVER THE AREA TO PREVENT THE OMISSION OF
IMPORTANT POINTS. IT IS ADVISABLE THAT HE MOVES ONLY EITHER COUNTER CLOCKWISE OR CLOCKWISE TO
FACILITATE NOTE KEEPING AND PLOTTING. HE SHOULD ALSO TAKE NOTE OF OTHER SIGNIFICANT FEATURES
TO SUPPLEMENT THOSE THAT THE INSTRUMENTMAN IS ABLE TO OBSERVE. WHEN THE DESIRED POINTS IN
THE AREA AROUND THE INSTRUMENT HAVE BEEN COMPLETELY LOCATED, THE INSTRUMENT IS NEXT MOVED
TO ANOTHER CONTROL POINT. IF THE BASIC CONTROL IS NOT SUFFICIENTLY DENSE TO ALLOW THE COMPILA-
TION OF ENOUGH DETAILS, ADDITIONAL POINTS MUST BE LOCATED FOR INSTRUMENT SETUPS. THE SUPPLE-
MENTARY SETUPS MAY BE ESTABLISHED BY TRAVERSING BETWEEN CONTROL POINTS OR THE PLANE TABLE
INTERSECTION OR RESECTION. WHEN THE FIELD SURVEY IS COMPLETED, CONTOURS ARE INTERPOLATED AND
PLOTTED BETWEEN THE HIGH AND LOW POINTS WHOSE ELEVATIONS HAVE BEEN DETERMINED.

E.) CROSS-PROFILE METHOD

- THE CROSS PROFILE METHOD IS PRINCIPPALLY USED IN LOCATING CONTOURS ALONG A ROUTE OR
OTHER NARROW AREA OF TERRAIN. IT IS A MODIFICATION OF THE METHOD OF CROSS-SECTIONING AS USED
IN ROUTE SURVEYS. THE METHOD IS PARTICULARLY APPROPRIATE FOR SURVEYS REQUIRED IN CONSTRUC-
TION OF ROADWAYS, RAILWAYS, CANALS, IRRIGATION DITCHES, AND IN THE INSTALLATION OF PIPELINES OR
SEWER LINES. THE CROSS-PROFILE METHOD OF LOCATING CONTOURS DOES NOT FALL FAR SHORT OF THE
DIRECT METHOD IN TERMS OF ACCURACY, PROVIDED THAT ADDITIONAL SECTIONS ARE RUN WHERE RE-
QUIRED, AND THAT THE GROUND IS FAIRLY UNIFORM IN SLOP BETWEEN THE POINTS LOCATED.

IN THE CROSS-PROFILE METHOD, THE GROUND POINTS ARE ON RELATIVELY SHORT LINES TRANSVERSE
TO THE MAIN TRAVERSE OR BASE LINE AND ARE LOCATED IN THE HORIZONTAL PLANE. THE CONTROL POINTS
ARE STATIONS ON THE TRAVERSE AND ARE SET ALONG THE LINES AT AN INTERVAL WHICH DEPENDS ON THE
IRREGULARITY OF THE TERRAIN AND THE DESIRED CONTOUR INTERVAL. WHERE THE SLOPE OF THE TERRAIN
CHANGES ABRUPTLY, SUCH AS ON SPURS AND IN RAVINES, THE SPACING OF TRANSVERSE LINES SHOULD BE
MADE CLOSER THAN THE NORMAL SPACING.

THE CROSS PROFILES MAY BE TAKEN BY USING EITHER AND ENGINEER’S LEVEL AND TAPE, PLANE TA-
BLE AND STADIA, OR A LEVELING ROD PLUS A TRANSIT AND TAPE. WHEN THE TRANSIT, ROD, AND TAPE ARE
USED, THE TRANSIT IS SET OVER A SPECIFIED STATION AND THE HEIGHT OF INSTRUMENT IS FIRST DETER-
MINED. A SIGHT IS THEN TAKEN ON ANOTHER STATION ON THE SAME LINE AND AN ANGLE OF 90 DEGREES IS
TURNED, ESTABLISHING THE LINE OF THE CROSS PROFILE. AT EACH STATION, AT LEAST TWO TRANSVERSE
LINES ARE ESTALISHED; ONE TO THE LEFT OF THE MAIN TRAVERSE OR BASE LINE, AND THE OTHER TO THE
RIGHT. THE RODMAN IS DIRECTED TO MOVE OUT ALONG THESE LINES PARTICULARLY WHERE THERE ARE SIG-
NIFICANT BREAKS IN SLOPE. THE DISTANCE TO ANY POINT SIGHTED IS MEASURED BY TAPE OR STADIA. ALL
DISTANCES AND ELEVATIONS ARE RECORDED AND THE PROCEDURE IS REPEATED TO THE NEXT AND ALL SUB-
SEQUENT BREAKS IN TERRAIN ALONG THE CROSS-PROFILE TO THE LIMIT OF THE AREA TO BE MAPPED.

BEFORE THE CONTOURS ARE DRAWN, THE DIFFERENT POINTS ALONG THE TRANSVERSE LINES ARE
FIRST MARKED OFF AND THE ELEVATION OF EACH POINT IS WRITTEN AGAINST IT. THE CONTOURS ARE THEN
PLOTTED BY INTERPOLATION ON THE ASSUMPTION THAT THE SLOPE BETWEEN ADJACENT POINTS IS UNI-
FORM.

F.) PHOTOGRAMMETRIC METHOD

- THE AVAILABILITY OF AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS AND THE DEVELOPMENT OF PHOTOGRAMMETRIC

METHODS HAVE EXPANDED RAPIDLY OUR KNOW-HOW IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS. US-
ING PHOTOGRAMMETRIC METHODS, CONTOURS MAY BE PLOTTED FROM AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE
 TERRAIN WITH A MINIMUM OF GROUND SURVEY FOR CONTROL.

THE MAIN ADVANTAGES OF THE COMPILATION OF TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS BY AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS

OVER GROUNDS ARE:

1. SPEED OF COMPILATION

2. HIGH ACCURACY OF THE LOCATIONS OF PLANIMETRIC FEATURES.

3. FAITHFUL REPRODUCTION OF THE CONFIGURATION OF THE GROUND BY CONTINUOUSLY TRACED

CONTOUR LINES.

4. REDUCTION IN THE AMOUNT OF CONTROL SURVEYING REQUIRED TO CONTROL THE MAPPING.

5. FREEDOM FROM THE INTERFERENCE BY ADVERSE WEATHER AND INACCESSIBLE TERRAIN.

6. PHOTOGRAPHIC REPRESENTATION OF THE DETAILS OF THE AREA IS OBTAINED.

AMONG THE DISADVANTAGES OF MAPPING BY AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS ARE:

1. THE DIFFICULTY OF PLOTTING IN AREAS WITH HEAVY GROUND COVER.

2. THE HIGH COST OF MAPPING.

3. THE DIFFICULT OF LOCATING POSITIONS OF CONTOUR LINES IN FLAT TERRAIN.

4. THE NECESSITY OF FIELD EDITING AND FIELD COMPLETION.

5. EXPENSIVE COST OF PHOTOGRAMETRIC EQUIPMENT.

6. THE NEED TO TRAIN EQUIPMENT OPERATORS TO USE COMPLICATED PHOTOGRAMMETRIC EQUIP-

MENT.

GOVERNMENT MAPPING AGENCIES IN THE UNITED STATES, EUROPE, JAPAN, INDONESIA, AND IN THE
PHILIPPINES ARE NOW WIDELY INVOVLED IN THE FIELD OF PHOTOGRAMMETRY AND ITS RELATED APPLICA-
TIONS. IN THE PHILIPPINES, THE BUREAU OF LANS AND THE COAST AND GEODETIC SURVEYS WERE THE EAER-
LY PIONEERS. MANY OF ITS MAPS ARE NOW COMPILED USING PHOTOGRAMMETRIC METHODS.

IN PLOTTING A STEREOSCOPIC PAIR OF PHOTOGRAPHS, A DOCUMENT CALLED A MACHINE PLOT IS

PRODUCED WHICH DISPLAYS THE PLANIMETRY, THE HOMOGENEOUS SURFACES, AND ALSO THE ALTIMETRY
OF THE GROUND WHICH IS SHOWN BY THE CONTOURS AND SPOT HEIGHTS. THE TRANSFORMATION OF AN
AERIAL PHOTOGRAPH INTO AN ACCURATE MAP OF THE GROUND IS CARRIED OUT WITH PHOTOGRAMMETRIC
PLOTTING EQUIPMENT. PLOTTING IS JUST THE PROCEDURE WHICH ENABLES ONE TO PASS FROM THE AERIAL
PHOTOGRAPHY STAGE TO THE CARTOGRAPHIC REPRESENTATION OF THE GROUND. IT IS A COMPLEX SERIES
OF OPERATIONS BASED ON THE PRINCIPLE THAT TWO PHOTOGRAPHS OF A GIVEN OBJECT TAKEN FROM TWO
DIFFERENT POSITIONS ARE SUFFICIENT FOR DETERMINING ITS SHAPE AND SIZE.

6. TOPOGRAPHIC SURVEYS

METHODS OF REPRESENTING RELIEF:

1) SPOT HEIGHTS

THE ELEVATION OF IMPORTANT FEATURES AND CRITICAL POINTS SUCH AS ROAD JUNCTIONS, PEAKS,
SUMMITS, SAGS AND HIGHWAY CROSSINGS ARE INDICATED IN THE MAP AND ARE KNOWN AS SPOT HEIGHTS
OR SPOT ELEVATIONS.

2) HACHURES

ARE A SERIES OF SHORT LINES DRAWN IN THE DIRECTION OF THE SLOPE. FOR A STEEP SLOPE THE
LINES ARE HEAVY AND CLOSELY SPACED. FOR A GENTLE SLOPE THEY ARE FINE AND WIDELY SPACED.

3) FORM LINES

ARE DRAWN WHEN NOT ENOUGH VERTICAL CONTROL IS AVAILABLE OR WHEN THE SURFACE IS TOO
IRREGULAR OR INTRICATE TO CONTOUR. SUCH LINES RESEMBLE CONTOURS, BUT ARE NOT DRAWN WITH THE
SAME DEGREE OR ACCURACY.

4) CONTOUR LINES

IT IS THE MOST WIDELY USED METHOD OF REPRESENTING HILLS, MOUNTAINS, DEPRESSIONS, AND
GROUND SURFACE UNDULATIONS ON A TWO-DIMENSIONAL SHEET OF PAPER IS BY CONTOUR LINES OR ISO-
HYPSES.

5) LAYER TINTING

A PART OF A MAP LYING BETWEEN TWO PARTICULAR CONTOURS MAY BE COLORED IN ORDER
THAT THE DISTRIBUTION OF HIGH AND LOW LAND CAN BE SEEN AT A GLANCE. COLOR TINTS WHEN USED IN
CONJUNCTION WITH CONTOUR LINES GIVE PICTORIAL EFFECT BY ACCENTUATING THE AREAS OF DIFFERENT
ELEVATION.

6) SHADING

IS AN OLD METHOD USED TO SHOW RELATIVE ELEVATIONS ON MAPS. IT IS DEPENDENT UPON

SHADOWS CAST BY THE ELEVATED PORTIONS OF THE LAND. THIS METHOD IS ACCOMPLISHED BY THE COR-
RECT PLACEMENT ON THE MAP OF DIFFERENT SHADES OF GRAY TINTS.

7) RELIEF OR TERRAIN MODELS

PROVIDE THE MOST STRIKING AND REALISTIC EXPRESSION OF TOPOGRAPHY. THE MODEL IS A REP-
RESENTATION OF THE TERRAIN DONE IN THREE DIMENSIONS TO SUITABLE HORIZONTAL AND VERTICAL
SCALES.

8) RIDGE AND STREAM LINING

RIDGE LINING IS MAINLY USED TO EMPHASIZE THE LOCATION OF THE LOW AND HIGH GROUND.
THIS METHOD IS ESPECIALLY USEFUL IN AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS. THIS IS DONE TO SHOW THE LOCATION OF
LOW GROUND.

9) SUBAQUEOUS CONTOURS

TOPOGRAPHIC MAPS OFTEN INCLUDE AREAS OF NAVIGABLE WATERS SUCH AS THE SEASHORE
AND LARGE INLAND LAKES. THE PORTRAYAL OF RELIEF OF THE GROUND UNDERWATER IS DONE BY USING
DEPTH CURVES OR SUBAQUEOUS CONTOURS.

TYPES OF CONTOURS:

1) INDEX CONTOURS

AS A CONVENIENCE IN SCALING ELEVATIONS, AND TO PROVIDE EASE AND SPEED IN READING CON-
TOURS, A CONTOUR IS SHOWN BY A HEAVIER LINE WHICH ARE NORMALLY TWICE THE GAUGE OF THE STAND-
ARD CONTOURS. THEY ARE USUALLY DRAWN EVERY FIFTH CONTOUR AND CARRY THE CONTOUR NUMBER OR
ELEVATION DESIGNATION. INDEX CONTOURS ALSO SERVE AS A VISUAL REINFORCEMENT IN THE CONTOUR
IMAGE. BY PRESENTING THE INFORMATION AT TWO VISUAL LEVELS, IT MAKE IT EASIER TO IDENTIFY THE MA-
JOR FORMS FROM THE DETAIL.

2) INTERMEDIATE CONTOURS

THE FOUR LIGHTER WEIGHT CONTOURS FOUND BETWEEN THE INDEX CONTOURS ARE THE INTER-
MEDIATE CONTOURS. THESE LINES ARE NOT USUALLY LABELED EXCEPT WHERE THE TERRAIN IS RELATIVELY
FLAT AND THEIR ELEVATIONS ARE NOT READILY OBVIOUS. THEY CONFORM TO THE CONTOUR INTERVAL
SPECIFIED FOR THE MAP.

3) DEPRESSION CONTOURS

DEPRESSION CONTOURS ARE DRAWN TO SHOW LOW SPOTS SUCH AS EXCAVATIONS AROUND
WHICH CONTOURS CLOSE. THE SYMBOL USED IS THE INDEX OR INTERMEDIATE CONTOUR TO WHICH TICKS
ARE DRAWN PERPENDICULAR TO THE CONTOUR LINE ON THE DOWNHILL SIDE.

4) SUPPLEMENTAL CONTOURS

CERTAIN PORTIONS OF THE MAP AREA SOMETIMES ARE SO FLAT OR LEVEL THAT THE CONTOURS
ARE TOO FAR APART TO SHOW PROPERLY IMPORTANT BREAKS IN THE TERRAIN. TO BITTER DEPICT THE RE-
LIEF AND REMEDY SUCH SITUATIONS, SUPPLEMENTAL OR AUXILIARY CONTOURS ARE USED. THEY ARE
DRAWN AS DASHED LINES OR LINES OF DOTS THAT BEGIN AND END WHEN THEY APPROACH THE AREAS
WHERE THE REGULAR CONTOURS ARE USED.

5) APPROXIMATE CONTOURS

IN SOME INSTANCES CONTOUR ACCURACY CANNOT BE DEFINITELY DETERMINED. THE AREA MAY
BE IN ACCESSIBLE ON THE GROUND OR IT MAY BE DIFFICULT TO INTERPRET CONTOURS FROM AERIAL PHO-
TOGRAPHS WHEN HEAVY CLOUD OR SHADOWS OCCUR.

6) THE CONTOUR INTERVAL

THE CONSTANT VERTICAL DISTANCE BETWEEN TWO ADJACENT CONTOUR LINES IS TERMED THE
CONTOUR INTERVAL. IT MUST ALWAYS BE CONSISTENT WITHIN THE LIMITS OF THE MAP BUT MAY BE VARIED
BETWEEN MAP SHEETS TO BETTER PORTRAY THE TERRAIN. THE CONTOUR INTERVAL WILL AFFECT THE DE-
GREE OF DETAIL FOR PORTRAYING INFORMATION RELATED TO SLOPE IN RELIEF.

CHARACTERISTICS OF A CONTOUR:

1) ALL POINTS ON ANY ONE CONTOUR HAVE THE SAME ELEVATION.

2) EVERY CONTOUR CLOSES ON ITSELF, EITHER WITHIN OR BEYOND THE LIMITS OF THE MAP. THE CLOSURE
MAY OCCUR WITHIN THE MAP AREA, BUT OFTEN HAPPENS OUTSIDE THE AREA IN HENCE WILL NOT APPEAR
ON THE MAP SHEET.

3) A CONTOUR WHICH CLOSES WITHIN THE LIMITS OF THE MAP INDICATES EITHER A SUMMIT OR A DEPRES-
SION. CONTOURS WHICH INCREASE IN ELEVATION REPRESENTS HILLS, THOSE WHICH DECREASE IN ELEVA-
TION PORTRAY VALLEYS OR EXCAVATIONS.

4) CONTOURS ON THE GROUND CANNOT CROSS ONE ANOTHER EXCEPT WHERE AN OVERHANGING CLIFF, A
VERTICAL LEDGE OR WALL REPRESENTED ON A MAP.

5) CONTOURS ARE STRAIGHT AND PARALLEL TO EACH OTHER ON A PLANE SURFACE.

6) CONTOURS ARE SPACED EVENLY ON A UNIFORM SLOPE.

7) IRREGULAR CONTOURS SIGNIFY ROUGH, RUGGED TERRAIN,

8) THE HORIZONTAL DISTANCE BETWEEN ADJACENT CONTOURS INDICATES THE STEEPNESS OF THE SLOPE OF
THE GROUND. WHERE THE CONTOURS ARE RELATIVELY CLOSE TOGETHER, THE SLOPE IS COMPARATIVELY
STEEP, WHERE THE CONTOURS ARE FAR APART, THE SLOPE IS GENTLE.

9) CONTOURS CROSS CURBS AND A CROWNED SLOPING STREET IN TYPICAL SHAPED CURVES.

10) AS A CONTOUR APPROACHES A STREAM, THE CONTOUR TURNS UPSTREAM UNTIL IT INTERSECTS THE
 SHORE LINE. IT THEN CROSSES THE STREAM AT RIGHT ANGLES TO THE CENTER OF THE BED, AND TURNS BACK
ALONG THE OPPOSITE BANK OF THE STREAM. IF THE STREAM HAS AN APPRECIABLE WIDTH, THE CONTOURS
ARE NOT DRAWN ACROSS THE STREAM BUT ARE DISCONTINUED AT THE SHORE, WITH WHICH IT MERGES.

METHODS OF LOCATING CONTOUR LINES:

1) BY ESTIMATION

CONTOURS LINES MAY BE LOCATED BETWEEN POINTS OF KNOWN ELEVATION BY ESTIMATION. THIS
METHOD IS SUITABLE ON SMALL-SCALE MAPS WHERE THE GROUND FORM IS NOT TOO IRREGULAR. THE
FIRST STEP IS TO MAKE A CAREFUL STUDY OF THE POSITIONS OF THE CONTOUR POINTS.

2) RUBBER BAND METHOD

THE USE OF RUBBER BAND IS ANOTHER CONVENIENT METHOD OF INTERPOLATING CONTOUR LINES.
THE RUBBER BAND SELECTED SHOULD BE SUFFICIENTLY WIDE SUCH THAT GRADUATIONS AT EQUAL INTER-
VALS CAN BE MARKED ON IT TO FORM SOME KIND OF AN ELASTIC SCALE.

3) ANALYTICAL METHOD

ARITHMETICAL COMPUTATIONS ARE EMPLOYED WHERE HIGH ACCURACY IS DESIRED IN LOCATING

CONTOUR LINES. THIS METHOD IS WELL SUITED FOR DRAWING LARGE-SCALE MAPS. DISTANCE BETWEEN
POINTS OF KNOWN ELEVATION ARE MEASURED AND THE LOCATION OF CONTOURS POINTS ARE DETER-
MINED BY PROPORTION.

4) TRIANGLE AND SCALE METHOD

THE METHOD OF INTERPOLATING POINTS BY USING AN ENGINEER’S SCALE AND A TRIANGLE IS AN

APPLICATION OF THE GEOMETRIC METHOD OF DIVIDING A LINE INTO A CONVENIENT NUMBER OF EQUAL
PARTS. THE METHOD PROVIDES AN ACCURATE AND RAPID PROCEDURE FOR INTERPOLATING CONTOUR LINES
IN WHICH MATHEMATICAL COMPUTATIONS ARE ELIMINATED.

5) TEMPLATE METHOD

THERE ARE GRAPHICAL DEVICES WHICH ARE USED FOR INTERPOLATING CONTOUR LINES BETWEEN
PLOTTED POSITIONS. THESE DEVICES ALLOW MANY INTERPOLATIONS TO BE MADE QUICKLY AND ACCURATE-
LY. ONE SUCH DEVICE IS THE CONTOUR TEMPLATE. IT CONSIST OF A SERIES OF EQUALLY SPACED PARALLEL
LINES THAT ARE DRAWN ON TRANSPARENT FILM OR PAPER USING ANY SPECIFIED.

7. SLOPE

THE RATE OF RISE OR FALL OF THE GROUND SURFACE IS KNOWN AS ITS SLOPE. SLOPE CAN BE DESCRIBED AS
STEEP OR GENTLE BUT THE QUESTION ARISES AS TO HOW STEEP OR HOW GENTLE. THE SPEED AT WHICH EQUIP-
MENT OR PERSONNEL CAN MOVE WILL BE AFFECTED BY THE SLOPE OF THE GROUND AND MOST ENGINEERING
EQUIPMENT HAVE A LIMIT ON HOW STEEP A SLOPE IT CAN NEGOTIATE.

8. HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEYING

IT IS THE PROCESS EMPLOYED IN GATHERING INFORMATION CONCERNING ANY BODY OF WATER AND ITS
ADJACENT LAND AREAS.

PURPOSES OF HYDROGRAPHIC SURVEYING:

1) PROVIDING DATA FOR THE PREPARATION OF HYDROGRAPHIC MAPS AND NAUTICAL CHARTS NEEDED IN
NAVIGATION, HARBOR IMPROVEMENT, YARDAGE AND DREDGING PROJECTS.
2) FLOOD CONTROL, WATER SUPPLY, HYDRO-ELECTRIC POWER DEVELOPMENT, PIPELINE AND UNDER-
GROUND CABLE CROSSINGS, AND IRRIGATION.

3) OBTAINING INFORMATION NEEDED FOR THE DESIGN OF BRIDGES, DAMS, SEAWALLS, CULVERTS, SEWAGE
DISPOSAL PLANTS, LIGHTHOUSES, DOCKS, AND OTHER STRUCTURES.

4) DETERMINING THE VOLUME OF IMPOUNDED WATER, DIRECTION AND VELOCITY OF CURRENTS, DRAINAGE
AREAS, AND THE CAPACITY OF A CONTAINING BASIN.

5) GATHERING DATA NEEDED FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF TIDAL DATUMS.

6) LOCATING NAVIGATIONAL HAZARDS SUCH AS SUBMERGED OBSTRUCTION, SUNKEN VESSELS, SAND BARS,
ROCKS, SHOALS, AND CORAL REFS.

METHODS OF LOCATING SOUNDINGS:

1) TIME INTERVALS ALONG A RANGE LINE

THE METHOD OF LOCATING SOUNDINGS BY TIME INTERVALS ALONG A RANGE LINE IS GENERALLY
USED WHEN THE REQUIRED ACCURACY OF THE SURVEY IS NOT HIGH. THIS METHOD IS SIMPLE AND ECONOM-
ICAL TO UNDERTAKE. IF THE VELOCITY OF THE STREAM FLOW IS LOW AND THE BOAT CAN BE PROPELLED AT A
UNIFORM SPEED, THE TIME AND SPACING BETWEEN EACH SOUNDING WILL BE EXPECTED TO CORRESPOND
CLOSELY. SOUNDINGS MAY ALSO BE PERFORMED BY USING A LEAD LINE OR A SOUNDING ROD. THIS IS ONLY
APPLICABLE WHERE THE LENGTH OF THE RANGE IS SHORT, THE WATER RELATIVELY STILL, AND THE REQUIRED
ACCURACY LOW.

2) RANGE LINE AND AN ANGLE FROM SHORE

THE METHOD OF LOCATING SOUNDINGS BY A RANGE LINE AND AN ANGLE FROM SHORE IS COM-
MONLY USED ON SMALL LAKES OR WHERE RANGE LINES EXTEND ONLY RELATIVELY SHORT DISTANCES TO-
WARDS THE WATER FROM THE SHORE AREA. A SERIES OF CONNECTING BASE LINES ON SHORE MAY BE ES-
TABLISHED IF THERE IS A NEED TO EXTEND THE LIMITS OF THE AREA TO BE SURVEYED.

3) INTERSECTING RANGE LINES

ARE INTERSECTING RANGE LINES WHICH COULD BE USED IN LOCATING SOUNDINGS. THE FIXED
RANGE LINE ARE LOCATED ON SHORE AND SO LAID OUT TO INTERSECT AT APPROXIMATELY RIGHT ANGLES.
THE SHAPE AND SIZE OF THE BODY OF WATER AND THE TOPOGRAPHY OF THE SHORE ARE IMPORTANT FAC-
TORS TO CONSIDER WHEN ADAPTING A SYSTEM OF INTERSECTING RANGE LINES. THE RANGE MAY HAVE ANY
CONVENIENT DIRECTIONS. ONE SET OF RANGE LINES MAY BE PARALLEL AND THE RANGES OF THE OTHER SET
PERPENDICULAR TO THOSE OF THE FIRST SET.

4) ONE ANGLE AND STADIA DISTANCE FROM SHORE

THIS METHOD OF LOCATING SOUNDINGS IS PERFORMED IN A MANNER SIMILAR TO THAT OF STA-
DIA SURVEYING. IT IS CONVENIENT FOR SURVEYS OF SMALL BODIES OF WATER. THE THEODOLITE OR TRANSIT
IS SET UP ON SHORE AND THE STADIA ROD CARRIED IN A HEAVY FLAT-BOTTOM BOAT. IT IS SOMETIMES
MORE CONVENIENT TO KEEP THE BOAT ON A KNOWN RANGE ON WHICH THE OBSERVING INSTRUMENT IS
SET UP.

METHODS OF DISCHARGE MEASUREMENTS:

MEASUREMENT OF STREAM DISCHARGE ARE USUALLY MADE IN CONNECTION WITH THE DESIGN OF
WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM, FLOOD PROTECTION WORKS, HYDROELECTRIC POWER DEVELOPMENT, IRRIGATION
SYSTEM, AND FISH FARMING STRUCTURES. IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF BRIDGE, STREAM DISCHARGE DATA IS
ALSO NEEDED IN ORDER TO POSITION THE STRUCTURE SAFELY ABOVE FLOOD LEVELS. IT IS ALSO IMPORTANT
TO DETERMINE MAXIMUM DISCHARGE OF A STREAM WHEN ESTIMATING SIZE OF CULVERTS AND WATER-
WAY WAY AREAS NEEDED SOME STRUCTURES.

1)VELOCITY – AREA METHOD

THE VELOCITY-AREA METHOD OF MEASURING DISCHARGE IS COMMONLY EMPLOYED IN CHAN-
NELS AND RIVERS. IT CONSISTS ESSENTIALLY OF MAKING OBSERVATIONS OF VELOCITY AT SELECTED DEPTHS
ON SEVERAL VERTICALS OR SUBSECTIONS ALONG A LINE TRAVERSE TO THE DIRECTION OF FLOW. THE RESULT
IS QUITE ACCURATE SINCE THE CROSS-SECTION OF THE ENTIRE FLOWING BODY OF WATER IS DIVIDED INTO
SEVERAL SMALLER SUBSECTIONS. THE VELOCITY AT EACH SUBSECTION IS DETERMINED SEPARATELY AND
MULTIPLIED BY ITS AREA, AND THE SUM OF THESE PRODUCTS GIVES THE TOTAL DISCHARGE OF THE WHOLE
CROSS-SECTION.
2)SLOPE – AREA METHOD
THE SLOPE-AREA METHOD OF DETERMINING DISCHARGE IS USED PRIMARILY FOR OBTAINING
THE PEAK FLOW OF A STREAM AFTER THE STAGE HAS RECEDED. A STRAIGHT STRETCH OF RIVER OF UNIFORM
SLOPE AND CROSS-SECTION IS REQUIRED. THE FALL AND A DISTANCE BETWEEN THE POINTS AT WHICH IT IS
MEASURED SHOULD BE SUFFICIENTLY GREAT THAT THE INCLINATION CAN BE DETERMINED WITHOUT SERI-
OUS ERROR. THE SURVEY WORK INVOLVED INCLUDES THE DETERMINATION OF AREAS OF CROSS-SECTIONS
AT EACH END OF THE REACH AND THE SLOPE OF THE WATER SURFACE IN THE SELECTED REACH DURING THE
PEAK STAGE. IT WILL ALSO CALL FOR THE SELECTION OF A COEFFICIENT OF ROUGHNESS BASED ON THE PHYS-
ICAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE CHANNEL.

MEASUREMENT OF CAPACITY OF LAKES AND RESERVOIRS:

IN THE DESIGN OF WATER SUPPLY SYSTEM, IRRIGATION PROJECTS, STRUCTURES FOR AQUACULTURE
DEVELOPMENT, AND HYDROELECTRIC POWER GENERATING STATIONS, IT IS NECESSARY TO DETERMINE THE
VOLUME OF WATER WHICH COULD BE CONTAINED AND GENERATED BY A SUPPORTING RESERVOIR OR LAKE.
THE CAPACITY OF THE BODY OF WATER IS ALWAYS DETERMINED PRIOR TO ANY CONSTRUCTIONS AND SUB-
SEQUENT FILLING. WHEN THE STREAMS EMPTYING INTO A RESERVOIR OR LAKE IS SILT-LADED, PERIODIC RE-
SURVEYS ARE NECESSARY TO DETERMINE THE REMAINING EFFECTIVE CAPACITY FOR WATER STORAGE.

1) CROSS-SECTION METHOD
THE CROSS-SECTION METHOD IS COMMONLY USED WHEN A MODERATE DEGREE OF PRECI-
SION IS REQUIRED IN DETERMINING THE EFFECTIVE CAPACITY OF A BODY OF WATER. IT IS WELL SUITED IN
THE SURVEY OF LAKES AND RESERVOIRS WITH A UNIFORM DEFINED CROSS-SECTION AND WHERE A REFER-
ENCE BASE LINE COULD EASILY BE ESTABLISHED ALONG THE SHORE AND PARALLEL TO THE CENTER OF THE
LENGTH OF THE BODY OF WATER.

2) CONTOUR METHOD
A REFERENCE BASED LINE OR A SHORE TRAVERSE IS ESTABLISHED FROM WHICH THE WATER
LINE AND THE DESIRED SHORE TOPOGRAPHY ARE LOCATED. SOUNDINGS ARE THEN TAKEN BY USING ANY OF
THE METHODS. FOR A SMALL ELONGATED RESERVOIR, SOUNDINGS MAY BE CONVENIENTLY TAKEN AT REGU-
LAR INTERVALS ALONG PARALLEL RANGE LINES. THE SPACING OF THE RANGES AND THE SOUNDING ALONG
THEM MAY BE SUFFICIENTLY CLOSE TO CLEARLY DEFINE THE SLOPES OF THE RESERVOIR BED AND WHERE
THERE IS A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE IN DEPTH BETWEEN ADJACENT MEASUREMENTS.