Map elevation — the height of any point on the map

Which corner of the field is lowest? How much higher is the back of the plot than the road? Move the map so the red arrow sits on the place, and the row under the map shows its terrain elevation, next to its coordinates, its distance and bearing from you, and the nearest address.

Point the red arrow

• At first the map follows your location, which stays in the middle of the map.
• Move the map with your finger. The map stops following you, a red arrow appears in the middle, and the row under the map describes the point under the arrow.
• Tap the map to show the zoom buttons. Zoom out to see the whole site, then zoom in to place the arrow precisely.
• Tap RE-CENTER at the top of the map to follow your location again.

Moving the map leaves follow mode because Cancel centering mode on map move is on by default. The common map settings can also return the map to follow mode by itself when you stop moving it.

What the row shows

• Coordinates of the point under the arrow, in the coordinate format you chose.
• Elevation of the ground at that point, in your altitude unit (feet or meters).
• Distance from your current location, and the bearing to the point.
• The nearest address, on the line below.

The elevation belongs to the point under the arrow, so it clears while you move the map and the new value appears a moment after the map stops. To hide or show the row, tap the red arrow and choose Hide red arrow details or Show red arrow details.

Where the height comes from

The row shows terrain elevation: the height of the ground at that point, looked up from a terrain model. It is not your GPS altitude, which can be off by tens of meters.

• It needs a connection. Each point is looked up online. With no connection, or in a place the terrain data does not cover, the elevation shows ----. Offline maps still show the map, but not the elevation.
• Fields, slopes and open ground read true. The terrain model is at its best on open land, which is where most measuring happens.
• Cliffs and steep peaks read lower. The terrain model describes the ground in small cells, and a cliff edge or a narrow top falls inside a cell with lower ground. Close to such a feature, move the arrow a little and compare the readings.

Measure with it

• Slope and drainage. Put the arrow on each corner of a field and compare the heights to see which way the land falls. Trust differences of several meters; on a small plot, a difference of a meter or two is within the terrain model’s accuracy.
• A site before you visit. Check how much higher the back of a plot, a building site or a fence line is than the road you will arrive on.
• Heights in your measurements. Add points with the add-point button (below), and each point of a shape or a route keeps the elevation of its spot.

Keep the height with a point

The add-point button at the right end of the row adds a point at the arrow, with the elevation the row shows. If the row shows ----, because the reading has not arrived or there is no connection, the point starts without an altitude. You can add it later: open the point, expand Altitude, tap Find on the Terrain row, and then Apply ( the point editor’s altitude section ).

A point whose altitude came from the terrain shows it without a GPS accuracy (±) value in the points list, because the height was not measured by GPS.