Interpretation of Surface Features of Mars as a Function of Its Verbal—Toponymic—and Visual Representation - Maps for the Future Children Education and Internet - page 103

Chapter 9
Interpretation of Surface Features of Mars as a
Function of Its Verbal—Toponymic—and Visual
Representation

Henrik I. Hargitai

Abstract Does the language of place names affect the interpretation of a planetary
map? Is there any consistent change in the reading of a planetary map if the
language of descriptor terms is changed from the official Latin to the mother
language of the map reader? A survey made at a middle school in Hungary
addressed these questions. The method was to collect preconceptions the landscape
of Mars, then to show maps in Latin and Hungarian, and again ask the same
questions. The results show that there are considerable differences in the two
groups.

9.1 Introduction

Names of the surface features on extraterrestrial planetary bodies (planets, moons,
minor planets, dwarf planets, cometary nuclei) are approved by the International
Astronomical Union (IAU) Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature
(WGPSN) and listed in the Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. Usually, names
are binominal, having a “designation” (e.g. “Olympus”), and a “descriptor term”
(e.g. “Mons”) (always in Latin), except for craters and some other features, which
have no descriptor term (USGS 2011 ; Hargitai 2006 ).
One of the projects of the Commission on Planetary Cartography of the Interna-
tional Cartographic Association is to develop planetary maps for the general public
and develop standardized national variants of the official Gazetteer of Planetary
Nomenclature (Hargitai et al. 2010 ; Hargitai et al. 2008 ; Hargitai and Kereszturi
2002 , 2010 ; Shingareva et al. 2005 ).
The aim of this work is to investigate how the language of the nomenclature
changes the perception of an unknown surface.