See also earth; equator; land; maps.

anthropogeography the scientific study of man’s geographical distribution and his relationship with his environment. colatitude the complement of latitude; the difference between any given latitude and 90°. gazetteer 1. a book of place names, sometimes with additional information, arranged alphabetically. 2. an index to an atlas. geography 1. the science that studies and describes the surface of the earth and its physical, biological, political, economie, and demographic characteristics and the complex interrelations among them. 2. the topographical features of a specific area. 3. a book on this subject. —geographer, n. —geographic, geographical, adj. geomorphology the study of the characteristics, origins, and development of land forms. —geomorphologist, n. —geomorphologic, geomorphological, adj. geopolitics 1. the study or application of the effect of political or economic geography on the political structure, programs, or philosophy of a state. 2. a policy or policies based on such factors. 3. the complex of geographical and political factors affecting or determining the nature of a state or region. 4. the study of the relationship between geography and politics, applied especially to the study of the doctrines and actions of Nazi Germany in the context of world domination. —geopolitician, n. —geopolitical, adj. hypsography the branch of geography that studies land areas above sea level to measure and map them. —hypsographic, hypsographical, adj. islandology the science or study of islands. —islandologist, n. loxodrome a rhumb line or curve on the surface of a sphere intersecting all meridians at the same angle; hence, the course of a ship or aircraft following a constant compass direction. —loxodromic, adj. megameter an instrument for determining longitude by observation of the stars. meridian 1. a great circle that passes through the earth’s poles and any other given point on the earth’s surface. 2. half of such a circle. 3. any line of longitude running north and south on a map. See also astronomy. —meridian, meridional, adj. orography the branch of physical geography that studies mountains and mountain systems. —orographic, orographical, adj. paleogeography, palaeogeography the branch of geography that studies the features of the earth of past geologie times. —paleogeographer, palaeogeographer, n. —paleogeographic, palaeogeographic, paleogeographical, palaeogeographical, adj. physiography 1. physical geography. 2. geomorphology. See also classification. —physiographer, n. —physiographic, physiographical, adj. telmatology a branch of physical geography that studies wet lands, as marshes or swamps. thermogeography the study of geographical variation and distribution of temperature. —thermogeographical, adj. topography 1. the art or technique of preparing charts or maps of a specified area. 2. the physical features of an area. —topographic, topographical, adj. topology the study of the physical features of a specific place or area, usually accompanied by maps or charts showing relationships and elevations. —topologist, n. —topologic, topological, adj.