We love maps (as do many of you no doubt) and geological maps are always up there at the top of the list of faves! We have many cool maps on the walls of the GEO Jobe HQ and there’s always room for one more. Here’s an awesome map you can print out and hang on your wall or gift to a favorite geogeek or geographer – The North America Tapestry of Time and Terrain – enjoy!
About the map (source: USGS)
The North America Tapestry of Time and Terrain (1:8,000,000 scale) is a product of the US Geological Survey in the I-map series (I-2781). This map was prepared in collaboration with the Geological Survey of Canada and the Mexican Consejo Recursos de Minerales.
This cartographic Tapestry is woven from a geologic map and a shaded relief image. This digital combination reveals the geologic history of North America through the interrelation of rock type, topography and time. Regional surface processes as well as continent-scale tectonic events are exposed in the three dimensions of space and the fourth dimension, geologic time. The large map shows the varying age of bedrock underlying North America, while four smaller maps show the distribution of four principal types of rock: sedimentary, volcanic, plutonic and metamorphic.
This map expands the original concept of the 2000 Tapestry of Time and Terrain, by José F. Vigil, Richard J. Pike and David G. Howell, which covered the conterminous United States. The U.S. Tapestry poster and website have been popular in classrooms, homes, and even the Google office building, and we anticipate the North America Tapestry will have a similarly wide appeal, and to a larger audience.
Related Links:
- Download this map as a PDF file (i2781_c.pdf; 131 MB)
- Download this map as a medium-resolution (300 dpi) PDF file (i2781_c_med.pdf; 22.8 MB)
- Download this map as a low-resolution (144 dpi) PDF file (i2781_c_low.pdf; 2.8 MB)
- Download a smaller, jpeg version of the Tapestry (NorthAmericaTapestry.jpg; 1.2 MB)
- Download the files used for printing this map
Do you have an awesome map hanging on the wall of your office? Got a favorite to share? Please do tell us @geojobegis
Searching for more historic maps? A couple of places you might check out include:
- The USGS historic topo maps collection
- Topo Map Explorer
- David Rumsey Map Collection
- NYPL Map Warper Explorer
- Amerisurv historic map collection and store
