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Tag: Topography

Topography comes to life in this collection of accurate, accessible science graphics, designed to make understanding Earth’s surface features clear and engaging. From mountains, valleys, and plains to ocean trenches and plateaus, these visuals explain how topography is shaped by geological processes such as plate tectonics, erosion, and volcanism. Ideal for educators, students, and geography enthusiasts, this topography graphic collection turns complex landscape concepts into easy-to-grasp, visually rich resources for teaching and learning.

Plate tectonic Earth map

Visually accessible and scientifically accurate global map of key plate tectonics characteristics on the Earth.

Visually accessible and scientifically accurate global map of key plate tectonics characteristics on the Earth. Superposed on the Earth’s surface topography (from s-ink.org/surface-topography-relief) are the seafloor age (from s-ink.org/oceanic-plate-age), plate boundaries (from s-ink.org/subduction-zones-map) and tectonic plate names (from s-ink.org/tectonic-plates-simple), active volcanoes (from s-ink.org/global-volcano-distribution), largest earthquakes (from s-ink.org/historic-earthquake-distribution), major rivers, and the outlines of the world map. 

Data sets shown are from Amante and Eakins (2009), Müller et al. (1997), Argus et al. (2011), Bird (2003), Deep Sea Drilling Project (1989), NCEI Volcano Location Database, and Hayes (2018). The Scientific colour map ‘lipari‘ is used to represent data accurately and to all readers.

  • Light and dark background versions
  • Perceptually uniform colour map
  • Colour-blind friendly
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Antarctica topography

The ice surface- and bed topography of Antarctica.

The ice surface- and bed topography of Antarctica with elevations relative to present-day global mean sea-level. Almost 98% of the Antarctic continent surface is covered by ice and its weight is pushing down the rocky crust below it. If the continental ice sheet would melt, isostatic post-glacial rebound would cause an uplift of the rocky surface of Antarctica. Elevations are taken from the BedMachine compilations (Morlighem et al., 2020) and the Scientific colour map ‚oleron‘ is used to represent bed topography accurately and to all readers.

  • Creator: Guy Paxman
  • This version: 25.06.2024
  • License: Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)
  • Specific citation: These graphics by Guy Paxman are available via the open-access s-ink.org repository.
  • Related references:
    Morlighem, M., Rignot, E., Binder, T. et al. Deep glacial troughs and stabilizing ridges unveiled beneath the margins of the Antarctic ice sheet. Nature Geoscience 13, 132–137 (2020)

  • Animation included
  • Individual still images included
  • Light- and dark background versions
  • Transparent background
  • Perceptually uniform colour map
  • Colour-vision deficiency friendly
  • Readable in black&white
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Greenland topography

The ice surface- and bed topography of Greenland.

The ice surface- and bed topography of Greenland with elevations relative to present-day global mean sea-level. Almost 80% of Greenland’s surface is covered by ice and its weight is pushing down the rocky crust below it. If the ice sheet would melt, post-glacial rebound would cause an uplift of the rocky surface of Greenland. Elevations are taken from the BedMachine compilations (Morlighem et al., 2017) and the Scientific colour map ‚oleron‘ is used to represent bed topography accurately and to all readers.

  • Creator: Guy Paxman
  • This version: 23.06.2024
  • License: Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (CC BY-SA 4.0)
  • Specific citation: These graphics by Guy Paxman are available via the open-access s-ink.org repository.
  • Related references:
    Morlighem, M., Williams, C. N., Rignot, E. et al. BedMachine v3: Complete bed topography and ocean bathymetry mapping of Greenland from multibeam echo sounding combined with mass conservation. Geophysical Research Letters, 44(21), 11-051 (2017)

  • Individual still images included
  • Light- and dark background versions
  • Transparent background
  • Perceptually uniform colour map
  • Colour-vision deficiency friendly
  • Readable in black&white
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Paleotopography

Reconstruction of the Earth’s surface paleotopography and paleobathymetry between present day and 540 Million years ago as still images.

Reconstruction of the Earth’s surface paleotopography and paleobathymetry between present day and 540 Million years ago as still images. Shown is the Scotese & Wright (2018) paleo-digital elevation model (PaleoDEMS) based on tectonic plate reconstruction. The Scientific colour map ‘bukavu‘ is used to represent data accurately and to all readers.

  • Transparent background
  • Perceptually uniform colour map
  • Colour-vision deficiency friendly
  • Readable in black&white
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Paleotopography (animated)

Animated reconstruction of the Earth’s surface paleotopography and paleobathymetry between present day and 540 Million years ago.

Animated reconstruction of the Earth’s surface paleotopography and paleobathymetry between present day and 540 Million years ago. Shown is the Scotese & Wright (2018) paleo-digital elevation model (PaleoDEMS) based on tectonic plate reconstruction. The Scientific colour map ‘bukavu‘ is used to represent data accurately and to all readers.

  • Transparent background
  • Perceptually uniform colour map
  • Colour-vision deficiency friendly
  • Readable in black&white
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Surface topography cross-section art

The global bedrock relief model of the Earth’s surface along the equator integrating land topography and ocean bathymetry reveals the vastness of the ocean depths.

No time to dive: The global bedrock relief model of the Earth’s surface along the equator integrating land topography and ocean bathymetry reveals the vastness of the ocean depths. Seeing the vastness of our global ocean that spans more than 70% of the planet’s surface, and hosts about 94% of wildlife, makes it clear why more than 80% has never been mapped, explored, or even seen by humans. Artwork is based on the data visualisation from s-ink.org/surface-topography-cross-section.

  • Vector-format version
  • Colour-vision deficiency friendly
  • Readable in black&white
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Ocean depths

Depth comparison of prominent places in the Earth’s oceans measured from the sea level down.

Depth comparison of prominent places in the Earth’s oceans measured from the sea level down. All icons are to scale.

  • Transparent background
  • Light & dark background versions
  • Vector format
  • Colour-vision deficiency friendly
  • Readable in black&white
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Mountain heights

Height comparison of prominent mountains on the Earth measured from their base to their peak.

Height comparison of prominent mountains on the Earth measured from their base to their peak unrelated to their respective height above sea level. Icons of buildings are to scale.

  • Transparent background
  • Light & dark background versions
  • Vector format
  • Colour-vision deficiency friendly
  • Readable in black&white
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Surface topography cross-section

Global cross-section of the Earth’s surface topography showing the bedrock elevation across oceans, land, and ice sheets.

Global cross-section of the Earth’s surface topography along the equator. Shown are the bedrock elevation across oceans, land, and ice sheets. The data is ETOPO1 (Amante and Eakins 2009), a 1 arc-minute global relief model of Earth’s surface that integrates land topography and ocean bathymetry. Alternative crosssections are included.

  • Alternative cross-sections
  • Transparent background
  • Light & dark background versions
  • Colour-vision deficiency friendly
  • Readable in black&white
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