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...and photograph the fames from overhead. Others analyze these photographs and combine them with existing information about land features, climate, roads, housing and business locations, and cell phone towers. With these data, they create up-to-the-minute maps.
At the same time, workers meet with city planners, officials, and major businesses explain the progress of the fire and its effects. The location of the wildfire is not entirely surprising: months earlier, mapmakers gave satellite measurements to resource managers so that they could identify vegetation at risk for combustion.
When people think of geography, they don't often think of crisis management. But the study of location is applied to all sorts of issues that affect people and the environment.
Geography involves more than memorizing States and capitals. It's a unique way of looking at the world and solving problems. And for some people, it provides a way to earn a living.
People working in jobs related to geography study how the elements of a place relate to each other. Not all of these workers respond to crises, such as wildfires. They might, for example, create topographical maps of a flood zone to show where people or animals live or how the coastline has changed over time. Other workers might analyze how a proposed road would affect the people, businesses, and natural features around it.
"Understanding geography can help governments and businesses make better decisions," says Michael Phoenix, a geographer for a mapping software company in Redlands, California. "People who can think spatially--think about where things are in relation to other things--are in great demand."
The number of workers with the title of "geographer" or "mapmaker" is small; there are fewer than 11,000 mapmakers and geographers in the United States, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). But technology is creating new career opportunities related to geography. Read on to learn more about them.
What is a "geography job"?
A geography job is any work that focuses on location. For many people, the jobs that first come to mind are those related to making maps. But many other kinds of work are linked to place. Jobs range from planning the locations of schools and businesses to analyzing the political stability of a region.
Workers in geography jobs do not necessarily need a college degree in geography. In some of these jobs, in fact, workers need a degree in another subject. And some geography jobs have no degree requirement at all. Even if it is not required, however, some training in geography--whether in the form of a geography degree, a certificate, or individual courses--is an advantage in all of the careers profiled here.
The ability to work with data is becoming increasingly important in geography, due, in large part, to technological advances. For example, much of our information about where things are located comes from satellites that continuously beam coordinates to global positioning devices on Earth. In the last decade, the Federal Government has launched several new global positioning satellites. These, together with some commercial satellites, greatly increase the accuracy and amount of geographic data available. At the same time, new Geographic Information System (GIS) software can process those data with greater speed and flexibility.
This technology creates new career possibilities for people who understand geography and who can process and use geographic information.
Jobs in data gathering, GIS, and urban planning
A few geography jobs are based almost entirely on the study of location. Remote sensing specialists, photogrammetrists, and surveyors gather data about where things are on Earth. GIS analysts review these data and sometimes use them to make maps. And planners help to determine where buildings and roads should be located.
Remote sensing specialists and photogrammetrists
Many maps rely on photographs or other data taken from airplanes, jets, and satellites. Remote sensing specialists oversee the collection of this information and interpret satellite images. Photogrammetrists interpret the more detailed data from jets and planes.
When a government, business, or other client needs a map, remote sensing specialists analyze the type of information that the map should include and then decide what type of sensors to use to get that information. The amount of detail required determines what equipment is needed, such as the size of the camera and the type of plane that will carry it.
In addition to seeing how things look, remote sensing specialists might need to measure temperature, moisture in the air, and other phenomena. For example, Steve Raber, a remote sensing specialist and program manager at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Coastal Services Center in Charleston, South Carolina, uses sensors to measure chlorophyll and, thus, helps to determine the abundance of plant life.
When data come from satellites, remote sensing specialists run the information through a series of computer programs to create images and maps. The specialists might use different colors to show where interesting features are, such as different types of forests and crops. Jim Vogelmann, a remote sensing specialist at the U.S. Geological Survey's National Center for Earth Resource Observations and Science in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, studies the different wavelengths of light shown in satellite images and uses that information to assess the condition of forests. "With satellites, you see large chunks of land at once," he says. "We can create land-cover maps that show thousands of square miles. We provide a broad overview of the Earth's landscapes."
When data come from aerial photographs or other sensors closer to Earth, photogrammetrists interpret the data to decide what they show. The first step in analyzing a photograph is to...
NOTE: All illustrations and photos
have been removed from this article.
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