The National Atlas of the United States of America

Summary

This paper reviews earlier plans for a national atlas of the United States, then describes the purpose, scope, and design characteristics of the new National Atlas being prepared by the U.S. Geological Survey on the recommendation of the National Academy of Sciences. It justifies choices for map content, scales, symbols, colors, paper, and binding; summarizes findings from a marketing survey of 8,000 questionnaires; analyzes the atlas's relation to regional and general reference atlases; and outlines computer methods used for indexing. The presentation includes colored slides illustrating map design and production progress.