Part of a Geographic Travels series examining how governments and institutions map geographic vulnerability, and what those maps reveal, emphasize or leave out. Editor’s note: This article was originally published on Geographic Travels in July 2010. It has been independently rewritten, expanded and fact-checked in 2026 while preserving the original article’s focus on maps of geographic vulnerability. In this series,...Continue Reading
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United States Overlaid the Moon
Reddit user boredboarder8 created the below image overlaying the United States on the Moon. The lower forty-eight United States would cover about twenty percent of the Moon’s surface…
Last Friday I blogged about Near Earth Objects (NEOs), space debris which come dangerously close to the Earth. I mentioned how most objects are currently unknown. Lo and…
The Geographical Oddity of Fortaleza de São João Baptista de Ajudá
In the middle of Ouidah, in present-day Benin, stands the Fortaleza de São João Baptista de Ajudá, also known as the Fort of St. John the Baptist of…
Omnes Viae: Itinerarium Romanum – Google Maps from AD 400
The Tabula Peutingeriana is an amazing map. It shows roads, cities and major towns, and physical geographic features across the Roman world as represented in late antiquity. It…
The Geographic Analysis of How to Get Protesters to Tahrir Square
Originally published June 8, 2011 — restored with updated historical context. iRevolution highlighted a Tufts GIS Poster Expo-winning project titled Identifying Strategic Protest Routes for Civil Resistance. The…
Map of Where the Twelve Apostles Died
This map shows the traditional locations associated with the deaths of Jesus’ Twelve Apostles. It has also been updated to include Saint Matthias, who was chosen to replace…
Catholicgauze’s Presentation for the 2010 AAG: Geography of Religious Wars
Today is the beginning of the 2010 Association of American Geographers convention in Washington, D.C. For this year’s convention I am presenting the Geography of Religious Wars. My…
The United States of America was designed to be a federal system comprising a union of independent states bonded together for the betterment of all members. Some states…
The Overlooked Ahwazi Arabs
Originally published February 2008 — restored with updated historical context. Millions of Arabs live in Iran’s southwestern Khuzestan Province, a region with a distinct cultural, linguistic, and historical…
From Google Earth to a Finished Map: How to change KML to SHP files into a finished map for free
Note: This is one way Catholicgauze discovered to make “professional”-looking maps. If you have your own way, feel free to comment and share! As part of my efforts…