Discovery Day: GIS and Maps

How often do you use GPS? Do you play D & D or PokemonGo? Is looking at Google Earth a favorite pastime? What do all these things have in common? They all involve GIS!

GIS or Geographic Information Systems is all about better understanding the Earth and how to get around on it. It involves geography, cartography, and geodesy. What is the museum’s connection to GIS? Other than the fact that we use it every day, the Latitude Observatory is a geodetic site and the work done there helped build GPS.

This year’s annual GIS Day (as part of GIS Week) will provide visitors with an opportunity to creatively learn more about the place they live. A map gallery will show visitors how the City of Gaithersburg has used GIS over the past year to plan events, understand housing needs, and determine watershed runoff. Hands-on activities will explore GIS, geography, and maps. As always, we will be putting out lures for the PokeStops around the museum.

Free, but we ask visitors to register.