Hydrography is part of the physical geography that is responsible for studying the description of seas, rivers, lakes and other water currents. The word hydrography is of Greek origin and is made up of the expressions ” hydor ” which means ” water ” and “graphein ” which represents ” record” or ” write ” plus the suffix “i a” that expresses ” quality ” or “action ”
Also, the term hydrography refers to all seas, rivers, lakes, among other streams of water that make up an area or region.
The study of inland waters includes: flow, basin, watershed, riverbed or bed, river regime, erosion, river sedimentation, types of valleys and slopes. It is also responsible for describing the nature and configuration of the seabed, its relationship with adjacent land masses, the characteristics and dynamics of the sea.
In reference to the above, hydrography covers other sciences such as: climatology, hydrology, geology, among others. Also, for the study that carries out the hydrography, the bathymetry is included that is responsible for measuring vertically the depth, the geodesy, geophysics and, also the mediation of horizontal and vertical movements of the water column.
The main objective of hydrography is to obtain information that allows the realization of nautical charts. The nautical charts are a scale representation of navigable waters, they indicate the depth of the water, height of land, details of the coast, nature of the bottom, navigation hazards and, endless information that allow sailors to sail safely .
On the other hand, hydrographers are the professionals who study hydrography and analyze navigable waters around the world. Also, they are responsible for preparing charts and maps that demonstrate the formation and location of canals, water depths, sea currents, among other points. Hydrographers are also in charge of studying the influence of winds in accordance with the rhythm of waters and seas.
In almost all countries they provide hydrographic services and, there is also the International Hydrographic Information Coordination, known as the “International Hydrographic Organization” , founded in 1921, with headquarters in Monaco. It is also an intergovernmental entity that is responsible for promoting the use of hydrography for the safety of navigation and other maritime purposes; improve the quality of data, information, hydrographic services, resources, techniques, among others; provide advice on all hydrographic issues to all States and International Organizations, and facilitate hydrographic activity among member states.
Hydrography is a science of great importance not only for navigation but also for the protection of the marine, river, lake environment. Due to the hydrography, nautical charts are elaborated to safely transport hydrocarbons, underwater minerals and marine ecosystems are known, it allows sports navigators to have updated navigation routes. It is also essential for the development of a nation’s infrastructure, based on the construction of ports and transport as well as the exploitation of marine resources. By virtue of the above, hydrography for humans is of the utmost importance for its development and survival, since from its studies it allows the production of dams that generate electricity, the minerals obtained from its channel are used to obtain metals and produce building materials and,
Hydrography and Hydrology
However, the terms hydrography and hydrology should not be confused. Both are natural sciences that treat the waters, with the difference that hydrology deals with atmospheric water, rainfall, humidity, evaporation, that is, the operation of water on the planet, in turn, hydrography is responsible for study all the waters of the earth and, to measure, collect, analyze and represent relative data of the ocean floor, coasts, tides, currents, among others.
Hydrography and orography
Unlike hydrography, a term studied earlier, the word orography is of Greek origin “gold” that means “mountain“, “graphein ” that expresses “record” and the suffix “ia” that is translated as “quality“. Consequently, the orography is part of the physical geography that is responsible for the description of the mountains.
On the other hand, the term orography identifies the set of mountains of a region, region, country, and so on.
Finally, orographic studies are of the utmost importance since they allow studying the relief of a mountain and knowing the characteristics of the subsoil, information of great utility for the areas of construction, agriculture and mining.
