The map along the bottom of the picture is called a vertical cross-section. It shows the distribution of, in this case, temperature, with depth along an imaginary channel drawn from north to south along roughly the middle of the Bay.
Graphic Image Explained These are special maps called images. In the images lableled "surface" and "bottom" you can easily recognize the outline of the Chesapeake Bay and its rivers. The image labeled "surface" shows color-coded temperature data for the surface of the Bay (the shallowest depths). The image labeled "bottom" shows how the temperature is distributed at the deepest depths, or bottom of the Bay. Between the two images is a color legend. The images are color-coded so that each color represents a range of values of temperature (or other variables such as salinity, oxygen, nitrate and phosphate). Reds and oranges indicate warmer temperatures while purples and blues indicate cooler temperatures. Temperature is represented in units of degrees Celsius.
The map along the bottom of the picture is called a vertical cross-section. It shows the distribution of, in this case, temperature, with depth along an imaginary channel drawn from north to south along roughly the middle of the Bay.
Bay Data Animations