Thematic atlas mapping — three stages of development
Тематическое атласное картографирование — три этапа развития
- Publication
- Многоликая география: Развитие идей Иннокентия Петровича Герасимова (к 100-летию со дня рождения)
- Pages
- 309–319
Физико-географический атлас мира · Version 1
1964L. F. Yanvareva and M. I. Gerasimova recount the compilation of the 1964 Physical-Geographical Atlas of the World and examine its vegetation and soil maps within a comparison of three generations of world atlases. They credit I. P. Gerasimov with defining its concept, assembling its scientific team and securing organizational support and publication funding. An initial programme was prepared in 1954; the USSR Academy of Sciences formally established the editorial board in 1958, with Gerasimov as chairman and Yu. V. Filippov as chief editor. The atlas contained 250 maps of the world, continents and USSR, accompanied by explanatory text. The authors identify conceptual unity, coordination between maps and the consistent application of geographical zonality as its defining features. They describe B. V. Sochava's vegetation classification as a hierarchical, genetic-geographical system combining several criteria; the world vegetation map distinguished 102 mapping units. The world soil map had 98 units and emphasized zonal soil types and their landscape associations. The authors observe that regional variation within zones was weakly represented, chiefly through differences in soil-cover composition on continental maps. They also identify the inclusion of soil-forming processes in the legends as a basis for subsequent interpretive mapping.
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The available opening and closing sections compare three comprehensive world atlases produced in the USSR and Russia: the Great Soviet World Atlas (1937, 1940), the Physical-Geographical Atlas of the World (1964), and Nature and Resources of the Earth (1998). They discuss changes in production, scientific concepts, thematic coverage, and map legends. I. P. Gerasimov did not participate directly in compiling the first atlas, but used its soil maps to develop soil-geographical theory. He directed the scientific design and organization of the second and conceived the third, assembling its team; the latter was completed under A. A. Lyuty. The authors identify successive emphases on synthesizing knowledge of the natural environment, organizing interconnected physical maps through the concept of zonality, and representing resources, environmental problems, and information for scenarios and forecasts. Vegetation and soil mapping shifted from traditional general-purpose maps toward maps of specific properties and processes and predictive assessments. Soil-map examples address secondary salinization risk, potential resistance to anthropogenic acidification, and contamination risks from toxic trace elements. Legends evolved from unranked textual lists to multilevel hierarchies and then to tables and matrices linking multiple indicators. The authors interpret these changes as developments in scientific paradigms and cartographic models within soil and biotic mapping. Although geographic information technologies expanded data-processing capacity, interpretation continued to depend on scientific judgment and expert assessment.
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