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Common Tasks SMCT
Skill Level 1
Land Nav Task 3 – Identify Terrain Features on a Map

Land Nav Task 3 - Identify Terrain Features on a Map

Standards: Identified the five major and three minor features on the map.

Conditions:
Given a standard 1:50,000-scale military
map.

Standards:
Identified the five major and three minor
features on the map.

Performance
Steps

1.
Identify terrain features in
table C-3 in the same manner on all
maps, regardless of the contour
interval, but you must realize that a
hill in the Rocky Mountains will be
much bigger than the one in south
Florida. You must be able to recognize
all the terrain features to locate a
point on the ground or to navigate
from one point to another (figures C-3
through C-10).

Note. During instruction, demonstrate to the soldiers how they
can learn terrain features using the
fist and hand (figures C-1 and C-2).
They can be used to show what each
terrain feature would look like on the
ground.

Figure C-1.
Using fist to explain terrain features

Figure C-2.
Using hand to explain terrain features

Table
C-3. Major and minor terrain
features

FEATURE

CHARACTERISTICS

MAP
SYMBOL

Hill,
Figure C-5, Major

A
point or small area of high
ground from which the ground
slopes down in all directions.

Contour
lines forming concentric
circles.

Ridge,
Figure C-6 Major

A
line of high ground with height
variations along its crest.

Contour
lines forming a U or V; closed
end points away from high
ground.

Valley,
Figure C-7, Major

Reasonably
level ground bordered on the
sides by higher ground.
Generally has maneuver room.
Contains a stream.

Contour
lines form U. Lines tend to
parallel stream before crossing.
Contour line crossing a stream
always points upstream.

Saddle,
Figure C-8, Major

A
dip/low point along a ridge
crest; either lower ground
between two hill tops or a break
in the level crest.

A
saddle is normally represented
as an hourglass.

Depression,
Figure C-9, Major

Low
point or hole in the ground with
higher ground on all sides.

Closed
contour lines that have tick
marks pointing toward low
ground.

Draw,
Figure C-10, Minor

Like
a valley but normally has less
developed stream course. No
level ground and little or no
maneuver room. Ground slopes
upward on the sides and toward
the head of the draw.

Contour
lines are V-shaped with the
point of the V toward the head
of the draw (high ground).

Table C-3.
Major and minor terrain features

FEATURE

CHARACTERISTICS

MAP SYMBOL

Spur,
Figure C-3, Minor

Short,
continuously sloping line of
higher ground jutting out the
side of a ridge. Often Table
C-3. Major and minor terrain
features (continued)formed by
parallel streams cutting draws
down a ridge.

Contour
lines depict a spur with the U
or V pointing away from higher
ground.

Cliff,
Figure C-4, Minor

A
vertical or near vertical slope.

Contour
lines are close together or a
ticked or “carrying” contour
line (ticks point to lower
ground).

Figure C-3.
Spur

Figure C-4.
Cliff

Figure C-5. Hill

Figure C-6. Ridge

Figure C-7. Valley

Figure C-8. Saddle

Figure C-9. Depression

Figure C-10. Draw

Evaluation
Preparation:

Setup:
Use a 1:50,000-scale military map; circle
one example of each major terrain feature
and one example of each minor terrain
feature. Randomly number the circled terrain
features 1 through 8. Provide each soldier
being tested with duplicate sets of the map,
paper, and two pencils.

Brief
Soldier: Tell the soldier to number the
paper 1 through 8. Tell the soldier to write
down the terrain feature that corresponds to
each circled area on the map.

Performance Measures

GO

NO
GO

1.
Identified the following.

—

—

a. Hilltop.

b. Ridge.

c. Valley.

d. Saddle.

e.
Depression.

f. Draw.

g. Spur.

h. Cliff.

Evaluation
Guidance:
Score the soldier GO if all
performance measures are passed. Score the
soldier NO GO if any performance measure is
failed. If the soldier scores NO GO, show
the soldier what was done wrong and how to
do it correctly.

References

Required

Related

FM
3-25.26