Main Map
The Main Map is built up of many layers. The layers are divided into three groups: Raster, Slow Vector, and High-Speed Vector. A Base Map is selected, and then the Gray Line overlay is added. After that, the Raster layers are added, in their required plot order. Sections of the resulting image are then used to create a map of the correct width in degrees of longitude, centered at the sun position, and then it is resized to fit the correct window height in pixels. The Slow Vector layers are then added, in their required plot order. All of this happens every minute. Then, every five seconds, the High-Speed Vector layers are added, in their required plot order, and the resulting image is shown on screen.
The Main Map always has a height of 180 degrees of latitude, but the width, in degrees of longitude, will adapt to the current size of the program-window. The maximum possible width of the map is 720 degrees of longitude.
The selection of the Base Map is handled by the 'Maps Menu'. The selection of the layers that are plotted on top of the Base Map are handled by the 'Layers Menu'. In addition, there are the Solar Features. To configure them, show the 'Settings Menu' and go to the 'Solar Features' tab-page, and its three sections: 'Map Center-Position', 'Gray Line Plotting', and 'Celestial Bodies Plotting'.
Map Center-Position - You can choose to lock the center of the map to a specified Longitude Value, when the map will not move, or to the Sun Position (recommended). The sun position will be calculated from the time-value that the program is currently using, as set in the 'Date Time' tab-page of the 'Settings Menu'. This may be the current time (recommended), or a fixed value, an offset value, or a loop between specified limits.
Zooming - There is no zoom facility: the Time Mapper UHD is not that kind of program. Essentially, its a static clock, although one of the most amazing static clocks available.
Gray Line Plotting - This plots the regions of the earth that are in darkness, and those that are in daylight. The line between the two, known as the 'Gray Line Terminator' has a shape that varies over the seasons. It is of a special interest to Amateur Radio Operators, as they can take advantage of the special propagation effects that can occur when both stations are located on the Terminator Line, enabling low-power communications over many thousands of kilometers. The GrayLine overlay can be either a view of the Earth at night, or a solid color of your choosing. To change the solid color, click the colored box next to the words 'Solid Color'. To set the transparency of the Terminator, and the width of its leading edge, use the controls provided. When the 'Gray Line' checkbox is selected, the GrayLine overlay on the World Map will automatically refresh and update every minute. The Gray Line is the first item to be added to the selected Base Map before other processing, and, as it is not classed as a 'Map Layer', its stack-position can not be altered like other map-layers.
Celestial Bodies Plotting - You can also plot the positions of the Sun and the Moon, for the time-value that the program is currently using, as set in the 'Date Time' tab-page of the 'Settings Menu'. This may be the current time (recommended), or a fixed value, an offset value, or a loop between specified limits. When plotted, the Moon will also show the current Phase. You can choose to show the sun position, and also the track of the sun for the day, and also the Sun-Analemma, which marks the position of the sun over 365 days for the current Time. It is interesting to turn on the 'Base Lines' map-layer, and see how the Analemma is positioned between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn, and note how the sun moves up and down the Analemma over the period of a year.
Right-Click Options
In addition, the Main Map has some useful Right-Click Options:
Show Time Info for this Position - right-clicking any point on the map will open a small window that shows the click-position in latitude and longitude, and the position's Time Zone, Local Time, Dawn, Sunrise, Postrise, Preset, Sunset, Dusk, Solar Midnight, Moonrise, and Moonset date and times.
Add Map Marker at this Position - You can use this facility even if the 'Map Markers' map-layer is not currently showing. Visit the 'Map Markers' help-page to learn more about them. Selecting this option will add a Map Marker to the Map Marker database, using the latitude/longitude values as an initial label. After adding a Map Marker in this way, you should visit the 'Markers' tab-page of the 'Settings Menu' where you can edit its label contents and styles.
Copy Position Coords to Clipboard - A helpful little function, in case you need the latitude and longitude position of a point on the map, plus the 4-character OpenLocatorCode, for other purposes.
Set User Location to this Position - Normally, you would set your User Position: the position that many of the map calculations are based on, in the 'Settings Menu > User' tab-page. However, you may need to quickly alter the position to see how the program responds to a temporary position: for instance to see the sun polar plot, or to see QSO routes from a new location, or to see the paths that a Beacon transmission might take. To change the User Position, just right-click the map and choose 'Set User Location to this Position'. To return to your home position, or to add precise coordinates, use the 'Settings Menu > User' tab-page.
Set DataBar Section Clock to this TimeZone - The Data Bar, that section of the program window below the map, can contain up to five separate sections, and each section can contain a number of different types of content. If a Clock is showing, then you can use this function to set the Time Zone of a visible clock. You can do exactly the same thing in the 'Data Bar' tab-page of the 'Settings Menu' of course, but having the option of a right-click function here can often be quicker.