On a standard topographical map, there are no lines beyond those that are spaced 1km apart to help you achieve this level of accuracy, so you either have to estimate or use your compass Romer. This is the level of accuracy you’ll want when describing the location of a stricken individual to mountain rescue. How to read grid references: estimating six-figure grid referencesĪ six-figure grid reference describes the location of something to within 100 square meters. Put all of that together and you get a four-figure grid reference of NY 14 04, which describes the square km that contains the southwestern end of Wast Water. Next, go up the stairs: it’s between 04 and 05, so its Northings reference is 04. Let’s use the example of the southwestern end of Wast Water in the image of the map above, which is in the NY 100 x 100km square of Britain.įirst, read along the corridor: it’s between 14 and 15, so its Eastings reference is 14. Wast Water in the English Lake District (Image credit: Getty) If your feature is between 25 and 26 when reading vertically, its Northings reference is 25. So, if your feature is between lines 13 and 14 when reading horizontally, its Eastings reference is 13. Always remember that the numbers refer to the square diagonally to the right (east) and upwards (north) of the line. The grid lines are labelled around the edge of the map, as well as more subtly at intervals within the map (this can be seen on the Eastings lines between the Northings lines 04 and 05 in the image above). Another way of putting this, as has been repeated countless times in school classrooms, is along the corridor, then up the stairs. To find the grid reference, start with the horizontal reading (Eastings) and then the vertical (Northings). If we wanted to describe the location of smaller features, like Wasdale Hall or Lund Bridge, we’d opt for the greater accuracy of a six-figure grid reference. Using the above map as an example, a four-figure grid reference is appropriate for describing the southwestern end of Wast Water, or to describe the location of the hill Whin Rigg’s main bulk. You can clearly see the 1km grid squares on this map, with numbers going vertically up the left side (03 to 06) and horizontal readings going across the detail of the map towards the top (12 to 17) (Image credit: Alex Foxfield) How to read grid references: four-figure grid referencesĪ four-figure grid reference describes the location of something to within a square km, so it’s ideal for big landmarks but not quite as useful for describing the location of smaller things like people or buildings. Using this information, you can give a four-figure grid reference for a location. On a topographical map, each of these lines is numbered sequentially from west to east and south to north respectively. The lines that make up the grid are called Eastings (the horizontal lines running east to west or vice versa) and Northings (the vertical lines running north to south or vice versa). Each of these lettered squares is then broken into a 100 x 100 grid, with each square within the grid representing 1km. Using Britain as an example, each 100 x 100km square has a two-letter identification. The US National Grid (USNG) and the British Grid System work off the same principles, breaking the entire country down into metric squares, with grid lines orientated along the cardinal points of the compass. What are grid references like around the world? Well, different nations have their own grid systems. Knowing your grid reference can aid mountain rescue services, enabling them to find you far quicker (Image credit: Getty)
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