[WIP] Community Atlas - Topographical map of Nibirum with ocean currents

WeathermanSweden · September 2020

I have to admit that @Loopysue will recognize some of her arrows... ?

They are from Sue's great annual "The One Day Worldbuilder" - Issue 155

WeathermanSweden · September 2020

This is the latest version. I ask my self if there is something missing? Should there be a scale on this map? Should the map contain the names of the continents? Thinking about adding "prevailing winds"...

Should major drifts be named?

Something else I should think of before the map can be part of the community atlas?

I made at least a check for consistency so that the eastern part matches the western part...

...as a meteorologist I am thinking more of questions - where would hurricanes likely develop and can Tornado-Alleys be found on Nibirum...?

...will the weather be fine when traveling to northern Alarius...

Loopysue · September 2020

You've done a really great job with this map

Does any world map need a scale? I sometimes draw one, but I often wonder why, since the scale can only be accurate at the equator on an Equirectangular projection - which I am usually careful to point out by calling it the Equatorial scale. As for the rest of it - I'm totally all at sea! I only know what I learned from Geoff's Climate Cookbook. I'm more of a geologist and biologist.

Monsen · September 2020

@Loopysue wrote:

Does any world map need a scale?

Absolutely. Without a scale I have no idea about the size of the world. Is the circumference 1000km? 25000km? 100000km? A scale provides very usefull information to any map, even if it isn't accurate for the entire map.

Loopysue · September 2020

Maybe just a plain statement about the circumference?

WeathermanSweden · September 2020

Thank you Sue and Remy for your input.

On Shessars world map there is a scale - I will adapt it in some way in my map. I like the scale on your world Jerion - @Loopysue - maybe I can use that one? Or will my map then look to much like a copy of yours?

What do you think - should the map also contain the names of the continents and should major drifts be named?

For the latter, however, I have to admit that I lack the creativity for creating fantasy names...?

Monsen · September 2020

Some basic names would be good. Makes them a bit more interesting.

Loopysue · September 2020

WeathermanSweden said:

Thank you Sue and Remy for your input.
On Shessars world map there is a scale - I will adapt it in some way in my map. I like the scale on your world Jerion - @Loopysue - maybe I can use that one? Or will my map then look to much like a copy of yours?
What do you think - should the map also contain the names of the continents and should major drifts be named?
For the latter, however, I have to admit that I lack the creativity for creating fantasy names...?

Use away, André. That's what the stuff in the annuals is for

WeathermanSweden · September 2020

@Monsen Remy, can a script change the colour palette of a map automatically when clicking on a button or something like that?

My map uses (as you already may have suspected...) one of my 32/16 colour schemes (based on Sue's schemes) so that the user easily can change the whole appearance of a map by changing the palette in the FCW file.

Natural:

Desert:

Parchment dark:

and so on...

Or what about just a Mars look like one ?:

Just in case someone has a need / use for this...or over 100 other variants... ?

Monsen · September 2020

You can use the PALLOAD command in hotspot to load a palette file. The specified file has to exist though, otherwise a file dialog will pop up.

[Deleted User] · September 2020

I would definitely name major currents, and all continents. What about major winds and monsoons?

This is a terrific map

Wyvern · September 2020

Great looking map so far.

I'm not keen on the altitude scale being on the later version though, as it's hiding part of the ocean current flows there.

Stating the scale of the map (1:XXXXX - whatever it is) might be more useful than a physical scale that's accurate only for the equator, but the latter could be helpful to give a rough idea of the planet size involved, as Monsen noted.

I just gave simple "Drift" names to a couple of the main currents on my Errynor/NW Alarius map, based on Earthly examples, so inventing more names for the major currents elsewhere would seem very reasonable.

Similarly, continent names for the larger landmasses would seem in-keeping with this pattern.

I suspect most prior mappers, like myself, have tended to assume similar major prevailing wind patterns to Earth's. So, NW Alarius is essentially Europe, and Alarius overall would probably see weather patterns similar to Europe-Asia. Beyond that though, things become a bit trickier, as the parallels with Earth aren't so exact, particularly the smaller seas between most of the continents. Be interesting to see what you come up with, however!

Shessar · September 2020

Beautiful. I have no other words.

JimP · September 2020

I know there are javascripts to switch a background on a web site, but I don't know how save they are.

They should be modifiable to change maps instead.

WeathermanSweden · September 2020

@Quenten thank you and yes I'll try to fix a wind layer as well.

@Wyvern - I was hoping to hear from you - just because of your map of NW-Alarius being the only(?) one with currents on it and two names for them! Do you have some more suggestions of names for other currents / drifts? Where would you place the legend for the altitudes? Outside or skip it? I am not so happy with it either.

mike robel · September 2020

That's a great map!

What is a 32/16 color scheme. I get frustrated drawing brown and green contour lines because there are only 16 gradients and the darker ones are so close together I cannot tell them apart. For that matter, I don't really know how "far" apart they are.

[Deleted User] · September 2020

Currents often get fantastically interesting names like the Gulf Stream, etc. Here is a list from Wikipedia:

Currents of the Arctic Ocean

Baffin Island Current – An ocean current running south down the western side of Baffin Bay in the Arctic Ocean, along Baffin Island
Beaufort Gyre – A wind-driven ocean current in the Arctic Ocean polar region
East Greenland Current – Current from Fram Strait to Cape Farewell off the eastern coat of Greenland
East Iceland Current – A cold water ocean current that forms as a branch of the East Greenland Current
Labrador Current – A cold current in the Atlantic ocean along the coasts of Labrador, Newfoundland and Nova Scotia
North Icelandic Jet – A deep-reaching current that flows along the continental slope of Iceland
Norwegian Current – A current that flows northeasterly along the Atlantic coast of Norway into the Barents Sea
Transpolar Drift Stream – An ocean current of the Arctic Ocean
West Greenland Current – A weak cold water current that flows to the north along the west coast of Greenland.
West Spitsbergen Current – warm, salty current that runs poleward just west of Spitsbergen

Currents of the Atlantic Ocean

Angola Current – A temporary ocean surface current. It is an extension of the Guinea Current, flowing near western Africa's coast
Antilles Current – A highly variable surface ocean current of warm water that flows northeasterly past the island chain that separates the Caribbean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic meridional overturning circulation – system of currents in the Atlantic Ocean, having a northward flow of warm, salty water in the upper layers and a southward flow of colder, deep waters that are part of the thermohaline circulation
Azores Current – A generally eastward to southeastward-flowing current in the North Atlantic, originating near the Grand Banks of Newfoundland where it splits from Gulf Stream
Benguela Current – The broad, northward flowing ocean current that forms the eastern portion of the South Atlantic Ocean gyre
Brazil Current – A warm current that flows south along the Brazilian south coast to the mouth of the Río de la Plata
Canary Current – A wind-driven surface current that is part of the North Atlantic Gyre
Cape Horn Current – A cold water current that flows west-to-east around Cape Horn
Caribbean Current – A warm ocean current that flows northwestward through the Caribbean from the east along the coast of South America into the Gulf of Mexico
East Greenland Current – Current from Fram Strait to Cape Farewell off the eastern coat of Greenland
East Iceland Current – A cold water ocean current that forms as a branch of the East Greenland Current
Equatorial Counter Current – A shallow eastward flowing current found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans
Falkland Current – A cold water current that flows northward along the Atlantic coast of Patagonia as far north as the mouth of the Río de la Plata
Florida Current – A thermal ocean current that flows from the Straits of Florida around the Florida Peninsula and along the southeastern coast of the United States before joining the Gulf Stream near Cape Hatteras
Guinea Current – A slow warm water current that flows to the east along the Guinea coast of West Africa
Gulf Stream – A warm, swift Atlantic current that originates in the Gulf of Mexico flows around the tip of Florida, along the east coast of the United States before crossing the Atlantic Ocean
Irminger Current – A north Atlantic current setting westward off the southwest coast of Iceland
Labrador Current – A cold current in the Atlantic ocean along the coasts of Labrador, Newfoundland and Nova Scotia
Lomonosov Current – A deep current in the Atlantic Ocean. from the coast of Brazil to the Gulf of Guinea
Loop Current – Ocean current between Cuba and Yucatán Peninsula
North Atlantic Current – A powerful warm western boundary current in the north Atlantic Ocean that extends the Gulf Stream northeastward
North Brazil Current – A warm current that is part of the southwestern North Atlantic Gyre which begins by splitting from the Atlantic South Equatorial Current and flows aling the northwest coast of Brazil until it becomes the Guiana Current
North Equatorial Current – A Pacific and Atlantic Ocean current that flows east-to-west between about 10° north and 20° north on the southern side of a clockwise subtropical gyre
Norwegian Current – A current that flows northeasterly along the Atlantic coast of Norway into the Barents Sea
Portugal Current – A weak warm water current that flows south-easterly towards the coast of Portugal
South Atlantic Current – An eastward ocean current, fed by the Brazil Current
South Equatorial Current – Ocean current in the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Ocean that flows east-to-west between the equator and about 20 degrees south
West Greenland Current – A weak cold water current that flows to the north along the west coast of Greenland.
West Spitsbergen Current – warm, salty current that runs poleward just west of Spitsbergen

Currents of the Indian Ocean

Agulhas Current – Western boundary current of the southwest Indian Ocean that flows down the east coast of Africa
Agulhas Return Current – An ocean current in the South Indian Ocean flowing from the Agulhas retroflection along the subtropical front
East Madagascar Current – Current that flows southward on the east side of Madagascar and subsequently feeds the Agulhas Current
Equatorial Counter Current – A shallow eastward flowing current found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans
Indian Monsoon Current – The seasonally varying ocean current regime found in the tropical regions of the northern Indian Ocean
Indonesian Throughflow – Ocean current that provides a low-latitude pathway for warm, relatively fresh water to move from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean
Leeuwin Current – A warm ocean current which flows southwards near the western coast of Australia. It rounds Cape Leeuwin to enter the waters south of Australia where its influence extends as far as Tasmania
Madagascar Current – The Madagascar current is split into two currents, the North Madagascar Current and the East Madagascar Current
Mozambique Current – A warm ocean current in the Indian Ocean flowing south along the African east coast in the Mozambique Channel
North Madagascar Current – an Ocean current near Madagascar that flows into the South Equatorial Current just North of Madagascar and is directed into the Mozambique Channel
Somali Current – An ocean boundary current that flows along the coast of Somalia and Oman in the Western Indian Ocean
South Equatorial Current – Ocean current in the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Ocean that flows east-to-west between the equator and about 20 degrees south
Southwest Madagascar Coastal Current – A warm poleward ocean current flowing in the south-west of Madagascar
West Australian Current – A cool surface current that starts as the Southern Indian Ocean Current and turns north when it approaches Western Australia

Currents of the Pacific Ocean

Alaska Current – A warm-water current flowing nortwards along the coast of British Columbia and the Alaska Panhandle
Aleutian Current – An eastward flowing ocean current which lies north of the North Pacific Current;
California Current – A Pacific Ocean current that flows southward along the western coast of North America from southern British Columbia to the southern Baja California Peninsula
Cape Horn Current – A cold water current that flows west-to-east around Cape Horn
Cromwell Current – An eastward-flowing subsurface current that extends along the equator in the Pacific Ocean
Davidson Current – A coastal countercurrent of the Pacific Ocean flowing north along the western coast of the United States from Baja California, Mexico to northern Oregon
East Australian Current – The southward flowing western boundary current that is formed from the South Equatorial Current reaching the eastern coast of Australia
East Korea Warm Current – An ocean current in the Sea of Japan which branches off from the Tsushima Current at the eastern end of the Korea Strait, and flows north along the southeastern coast of the Korean peninsula
Equatorial Counter Current – A shallow eastward flowing current found in the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific Oceans
Humboldt Current – A cold, low-salinity eastern boundary current that flows north along the western coast of South America from southern Chile to northern Peru
Indonesian Throughflow – Ocean current that provides a low-latitude pathway for warm, relatively fresh water to move from the Pacific to the Indian Ocean
Kamchatka Current – A cold-water current flowing south-westward from the Bering Strait, along the Siberian Pacific coast and the Kamchatka Peninsula
Kuroshio Current – North flowing ocean current on the west side of the North Pacific Ocean
Mindanao Current – A narrow, southward flowing ocean current along the eastward side of the southern Philippines
Mindanao Eddy – A semi-permanent cold-ring eddy formed in the retroflection area of the Mindanao Current.
North Equatorial Current – A Pacific and Atlantic Ocean current that flows east-to-west between about 10° north and 20° north on the southern side of a clockwise subtropical gyre
North Korea Cold Current – A cold water current in the Sea of Japan that flows southward from near Vladivostok along the coast of the Korean Peninsula
North Pacific Current – A slow warm water current that flows west-to-east between 30 and 50 degrees north in the Pacific Ocean
Oyashio Current – A cold subarctic ocean current that flows south and circulates counterclockwise in the western North Pacific Ocean
South Equatorial Current – Ocean current in the Pacific, Atlantic, and Indian Ocean that flows east-to-west between the equator and about 20 degrees south
Subtropical Countercurrent – A narrow eastward ocean current in the central North Pacific Ocean
Tasman Front – A relatively warm water east-flowing surface current and thermal boundary that separates the Coral Sea to the north and the Tasman Sea to the south
Tasman Outflow – A deepwater current that flows from the Pacific Ocean past Tasmania into the Southern Ocean that encircles Antarctica

Currents of the Southern Ocean

Antarctic Circumpolar Current – Ocean current that flows clockwise from west to east around Antarctica
Tasman Outflow – A deepwater current that flows from the Pacific Ocean past Tasmania into the Southern Ocean that encircles Antarctica

Oceanic gyres

Beaufort Gyre – A wind-driven ocean current in the Arctic Ocean polar region
Indian Ocean Gyre – A large systems of rotating ocean currents. The Indian Ocean gyre is composed of two major currents: the South Equatorial Current, and the West Australian Current
North Atlantic Gyre – A major circular system of ocean currents
North Pacific Gyre – A major circulating system of ocean currents
Ross Gyre – A circulating system of ocean currents in the Ross Sea
South Atlantic Gyre – The subtropical gyre in the south Atlantic Ocean
South Pacific Gyre – A major circulating system of ocean currents
Weddell Gyre – One of the two gyres that exist within the Southern Ocean

As you can see, nearly all are based on place manes (use Nibirum continental and regional names here), position or direction of flow, and descriptions like Stream, Current, Outflow, Gyre, Jet, Outflow, Countercurrent.

Wyvern · September 2020

@WeathermanSweden: I think Quenten's provided you with more real-world ideas than you can likely use right now for ocean current names, though of course the names have changed over time in places, and a lot have regional (local language) variants too. The latter might be interesting to explore for Nibirum, perhaps.

I picked "Drift" names for the two main currents I showed, partly because the North Atlantic Drift, the northern part of the Gulf Stream, is relatively familiar from my own time studying geography from/in the UK, and partly because I was dealing with relatively near-coastal areas, where less-active oceanic water streams seemed appropriate. I have much interest in mapping the ocean floors in fantasy terms, and the civilisations based there, so adding some current activity was largely automatic.

With aspects like the altitude colour-key, I tend to add them on a map only where they won't be hiding anything that should be better shown. [It irritates me when published real-world maps aren't given the same consideration!] Otherwise, I simply set them in a separate side-bar of their own alongside (or below) the map. That has the further advantage they can be expanded to be easier to read, and other features, such as a scale, or notes on the map, can be added there as well. So here, you might add a key for the current arrow colours (and possibly the prevailing wind arrows, if these will be added to the same map), for instance, and maybe quantify what the different line thicknesses refer to, if relevant.

As Nibirum has more-or-less Earth-like seasons, is it worth considering a pair of maps for the alternate half-yearly views of the currents and weather systems? There are differences on Earth like this, though it does mean a lot more thinking-through of ideas than maybe is warranted for a fantasy world.

Monsen · September 2020

With aspects like the altitude colour-key, I tend to add them on a map only where they won't be hiding anything that should be better shown.

Since this is an atlas map, I can easily make a toggle in the atlas sidebar to hide/show such information as the color bar. This is only applicable to the actual map in the atlas of course, and not the image on the web site which will have to go with one of the approaches.

DaltonSpence · September 2020

I guess you could say this whole discussion is about Current Events. (ba-dum-bump!)

[Deleted User] · September 2020

All hot wind, really (I am looking forward to the wind charts)

WeathermanSweden · September 2020

@mike robel You can read more about the 32/16 colour schemes here:

https://rpgmaps.profantasy.com/exporting-coloured-topographical-maps-from-ft3-to-cc3by-andre-franke/

I use 16 colours for the sea and 32 for the land. I created special export sets for FT3 so that you can change the colours of your CC3+ maps as easy as in FT3. I use the colours 224-239 for the sea and 192-223 for the land - after inspiration of @Loopysue who introduced using colours at that range for height contours...

So you can get the Nibirium world even in classical CC2 colours (called for Basic in FT3):

or even the classical FT3 default look:

...only by typing PALLOAD filename

Thank you to all the input from all here.

It will take some time - because many times you have to do even other things that have nothing to do with mapping at all...?

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[WIP] Community Atlas - Topographical map of Nibirum with ocean currents

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