Useful Geography Sites

Try our customized search, or browse the list of sites below. Note that some of the sources, such as the Geographic Names Information System, have to be searched individually.

Customized Search

For topographic maps of the U.S., see the Geographic Names Information System.

Geography and Maps

California Geographical Survey - http://geogdata.csun.edu/

• Description: Despite the name, this site includes panoramic aerial images of all the Pacific coastal states of the U.S. Click on "The Electronic Map Library" to access these atlases as well as other maps.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• Reviewed by: [Library staff]

EROS home page - http://edc.usgs.gov

• Description: Site of U.S. Geological Survey's (USGS) Earth Resources Observation Systems (EROS) Data Center, otherwise known as the EDC. Look under "Features" for: Map Finder (search for USGS 7.5-minute series maps to order maps online); a Photo Finder site for the National Aerial Photography Program; educational materials; and Earthshots, a "a collection of Landsat images and text, designed to show environmental changes and to introduce remote sensing."
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Choice, Aug.1998]

Geographic Names Information System - http://geonames.usgs.gov/

• Description: A service of the U.S. Geological Survey, the GNIS gives information on United States geographic names of all kinds. Results give coordinates, elevation, and other info, along with links to topographic map servers. The page also includes a link to the GEOnet Names Server for geographic names outside the United States.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• Reviewed by: Reference staff checked 12/5/2005

Geospatial Intelligence Agency - Raster Roam - http://geoengine.nima.mil/geospatial/SW_TOOLS/NIMAMUSE/webinter/rast_roam.html

• Description: Enter a latitude and longitude to see a map of that location. Zoom, view metadata, and feature information. A product of the U.S. National Geospatial Intelligence Agency.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• Reviewed by: Reference staff 4/27/2004

How Far Is It? - http://www.indo.com/distance/

• Description: Super-duper distance engine. Enter the names of two places, and the computer will respond with the distance between them in miles, kilometers, & nautical miles, the course and heading, and the latitude and longitude of each place. Linked to the Xerox PARC map server, too.
• Appropriate to course or program: MTH020
• [Reviewed by: Library Staff]

Map Machine @ nationalgeographic.com - http://www.nationalgeographic.com/resources/ngo/maps/

• Description: Includes an atlas with descriptive information on countries; View from Above presents maps from satellite information.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Library Staff]

Online Cartography Resources - http://hcl.harvard.edu/maps/cart/

• Description: A Harvard University site with links to sites with maps, globes, geographical information, time & distance information, and gazetteers.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Library Staff]

PCL Map Collection - U. Texas - http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/

• Description: University of Texas site with many maps in electronic form, including historical maps. There are links to other map collections
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Library Staff]

U.S.A.: 50 States and Capitals - http://www.50states.com/

• Description: Information on every state, including state symbols, flags, and songs.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Library Staff]

Countries of the World

CIA World Factbook - http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html

• Description: Country profiles based on information gathered by the National Intellegence Service. Topics include geography, people, government, economy, communications, transportation, military and transnational issues.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Library Staff]

Encyclopaedia of the Orient - http://i-cias.com/e.o/index.htm

• Description: Deals with North Africa, the Middle East, and their cultures. Has definitions of religious terms from Islam, Zoroastrianism, Babism, and the Mandean religion.
• Appropriate to course or program: HST157
• [Reviewed by: College and Research Libraries News, p. 812]

Foreign Government Resources on the Web - http://www.lib.umich.edu/govdocs/foreign.html

• Description: A treasurehouse of documents from foreign governments and international agencies, full of statistics on individual foreign countries and of international statistics generally.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Staff, Oct. 1998]

INCORE internet country guides - http://www.incore.ulst.ac.uk/cds/countries/index.html

• Description: Provides scholarly and news information on ethnic conflicts in Algeria, Angola, Burundi, Côte d'Ivoire, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Liberia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, Democratic Republic of Congo, Northern Ireland, Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Macedonia, Serbia-Montenegro, Russia, Chechnya, Israel/Palestine, Iraq, Turkey, Kurdistan, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, India, Pakistan, Kashmir, Sindh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Indonesia, East Timor, Myanmar (Burma), Colombia. (Others may be added.) Each country's guide includes an annotated list leading to virtual libraries, topical Web sites and reports, news sources, maps, and relevant research articles.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Choice, April, 1998, p. 1352]

Library of Congress / Area Handbook Series - http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/cshome.html

• Description: Online version of books in the Country Studies series; area handbooks for 85 countries of the world. Information on culture, history, politics, etc.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Choice, April, 1998, p. 1450]

Middle East Network Information Center (MENIC) at University of Texas - http://link.lanic.utexas.edu/menic/

• Description: A beautifully-organized and comprehensive site with info on culture, archeology, history, geography, and more.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Choice, November, 1999]

Organization of American States (OAS) - http://www.oas.org/

• Description: Information about OAS as well as its member states. Topics include: development; democracy; human rights; trade; environment; education; drugs; corruption; poverty; land mines. Accessible in both English and Spanish (con conexión a la página principal de la Organización de los Estados Americanos en Español. Temas incluyen desarrollo integral; democracía; derechos humanos; comercio; medio ambiente; educacíon; drogas; corrupción; pobreza; desminado).
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Choice, April, 1998, p. 1450]

Political database of the Americas - http://www.georgetown.edu/pdba/

• Description: A comprehensive resource of current primary source documents and political information about Western Hemisphere politics. Base de Datos Políticos de las Americas, con una conexión a una página principal en Español. Una recopilación de información documental y estadística sobre los 35 países del continente.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Choice, Feb. 1998, p. 978]

Portals to the World - http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/portals.html

• Description: "Portals to the World" contains selective links providing authoritative, in-depth information about the nations and other areas of the world. They are arranged by country or area with the links for each sorted into a wide range of broad categories. The links were selected by Area Specialists and other Library staff using Library of Congress selection criteria.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Library staff

United Nations Home Page - http://www.un.org/

• Description: Contains search engine for UN press releases, General Assembly documents, Security Council Resolutions, etc. Database subjects include treaties, relief, land mines, statistics & indicators, etc. To find agencies of the UN, most with their own search engines, click on "UN Around the World." Con conexión a la página principal de las Naciones Unidas en Español.
• Appropriate to course or program:
• [Reviewed by: Library Staff]

For cultural information, see also Anthropology

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Updated by Reference.