Definition of Military Map

One of the main tasks of the military commanders is, among other aspects, to know the provision of his troops on the ground, and the details of this. The terrain is, since ancient times and still today, one of the essential elements when facing both a battle and an entire war.

That is why one of the most important elements that we find in the control rooms are the maps.

A military map is, like any other map, a two-dimensional representation of an area of ​​land, larger or smaller according to the specific needs of the operation, but in which useful elements have been included for the direction of operations and the units stationed on the ground, as well as on the ground itself and on the enemy.

Military maps can cover different regions of different sizes depending on the needs; Thus, for strategy we have regional or even global maps, while for tactics (if the strategy serves to win a whole conflict, the tactic is what allows us to win in a battle) we have regional or local maps.

We also have specialized maps, such as logistical or organizational, which serve tasks so important to maintain an army on the ground in combat conditions such as supplying food and ammunition, as well as reinforcement.

Having different departments within the staffs that are dedicated to these tasks in a more specialized, each of these different types of maps are used by each of these departments.

The information on the units deployed on the ground is made by means of callsigns in the form of a rectangle with a symbol in their so that responsible commanders can quickly distinguish whether they have deployed infantry or armored units between other

Two or more colored colors are also used to distinguish, at a glance, one's own units from those of the enemy.

If what we are talking about is local maps with instructions for the commanders to lead their troops in an attack through enemy lines, these Maps can also include information on the movements to be carried out and the times to be carried out, since not only do movements occur, but there are also what

These maps are a prized target for enemy troops, as you show them the movements that will be carried out and, accordingly, prepare both the defense and a possible counterattack later.

An example is the capture of the attack plans of the airborne operation Market Garden by the Germans. On that occasion, however, the Wehrmacht generals did not want to believe in the authenticity of said maps and plans, thinking that it was a distraction and deception operation on the part of the allies.

Something that all military maps must include whether or not they are geographic information, such as heights and depressions.

The orography of the land has always played and still today plays a very important role in anticipating war actions and attacks. battles that are fought in any war, and as such, commanders must know the terrain they tread and the terrain they tread. units.

With the advent of the computer age, which has fully affected modern armies, maps on paper or on large tables have not lost their importance.

These types of maps do not depend on a battery, and allow to move tiles in a simpler way than they do on the screen of a computer, by a lot technology with which they are endowed, although it is obvious that for certain cases (such as reconstructions of the terrain), the help of computerized systems is invaluable.

In the same way, we also find physical military maps that, more than indicating the heights of the geographical features, the reproduced in three dimensions, becoming a kind of model that allows managers and strategy planners to read better the land.

Important elements to highlight on military maps are mined areas and, more recently, everything that could constitute electromagnetic interference.

This is due not only to the need to guarantee communications between units (something extremely necessary to coordinate actions and report their results), but must be taken into account for the Right functioning of advanced modern military equipment, which can be susceptible to problems in sighting or guidance systems among others.

Climatic charts are also of great importance in the field of military maps.

In all kinds of operations, although singularly in the air or maritime, it depends heavily on the time to be done. For this reason, all the geographic information and the disposition of the units must be superimposed on the information on the evolution weather.

On resume, military maps do not differ greatly from civil maps until we go into detail of many of its contents, although the base is the same as that used for other aspects of the lifetime.

Photos: Fotolia - kanin / caryblade

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