Mapping Data

Elevation: Beautiful Topographic Map of Alabama

Contour Elevation Map of Alabama

This Alabama topographic elevation map shows the Yellowhammer State in 24 terraced elevation bands. The scale runs from 0 meters (0 ft) up to 700 meters (2,297 ft). Each band steps through the relief in sequence, so the map reads like a physical relief model. Lowlands appear in deep greens, middle elevations warm into golds and reds, and the highest terrain fades into grays and whites.

Alabama covers about 135,767 square kilometers (52,419 sq mi). The southern tail of the Appalachian Mountains fades out in the northeast of the state, and you can see it happen on this relief map as the reds sink into coastal green.

Highest Point in Alabama

Cheaha Mountain, at 2,411 ft (735 m), is the highest point in Alabama. On this topographic map, it anchors the pale summit end of the elevation scale.

Lowest Point in Alabama

Alabama’s lowest elevation is sea level along its coastline. On the relief map, this terrain fills the deep green base of the color scale.

Alabama Map Datasets

I prepared this relief map with elevation data from the AWS Terrain Tiles dataset. The dataset builds on the NASA Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) along with other open topographic sources, and it serves global elevation data as map tiles that anyone can access.

The map spaces its 24 elevation bands with a blend of two methods. Half of the spacing follows equal elevation steps. The other half follows equal land area, a technique known as histogram equalization.

Why blend them?

A fixed interval scale would leave flatter regions sitting in a single color, which hides their topography. On the other hand, full histogram equalization would push a quarter of the land into summit tones. The blend lets this elevation map use the entire relief palette while the legend stays honest. Each label marks the true elevation behind its band, which is why the values are not evenly spaced.

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