# Removing Cardinal Directions From Axis Ticks

**URL:** https://forum.generic-mapping-tools.org/t/removing-cardinal-directions-from-axis-ticks/1974
**Category:** PyGMT Q&A
**Created:** [August 10, 2021, 10:39pm UTC](https://forum.generic-mapping-tools.org/t/removing-cardinal-directions-from-axis-ticks/1974 "2021-08-10T22:39:07Z")
**Posts on this page:** 3
**Page:** 1

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### Author: ![hazardgoat](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex047/user_avatar/forum.generic-mapping-tools.org/hazardgoat/32/1354_2.png) [@hazardgoat](https://forum.generic-mapping-tools.org/u/hazardgoat)
#### Post date: [August 10, 2021, 10:39pm UTC](https://forum.generic-mapping-tools.org/t/removing-cardinal-directions-from-axis-ticks/1974/1 "2021-08-10T22:39:08Z")

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Examples from PyGMT v0.3.1 seem to show lat/lon axis ticks being labeled as just numbers, whereas the versions after that produce axis ticks that show the lat/lon as well as the associated cardinal direction. How can I remove the cardinal direction from the axis ticks in the current version of PyGMT?

Axis ticks in PyGMT v0.3.1:

 ![Screenshot_3](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex047/uploads/gmt/original/2X/3/3242679840067db8f13b05a367d4c5ce4781b2a0.png)

Axis ticks in PyGMT v0.4.0+:

 ![Screenshot_4](https://canada1.discourse-cdn.com/flex047/uploads/gmt/original/2X/d/d21513f4ba894103712ffb0f175ee50f1c2e9213.png)

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### Author: ![seisman](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex047/user_avatar/forum.generic-mapping-tools.org/seisman/32/4_2.png) [@seisman](https://forum.generic-mapping-tools.org/u/seisman)
#### Post date: [August 10, 2021, 10:50pm UTC](https://forum.generic-mapping-tools.org/t/removing-cardinal-directions-from-axis-ticks/1974/2 "2021-08-10T22:50:28Z")

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The changes in the axis annotations are due to the changes in default settings (classic vs modern themes, [https://docs.generic-mapping-tools.org/latest/theme-settings.html](https://docs.generic-mapping-tools.org/latest/theme-settings.html)) of the GMT 6.2.0 release.

To change the annotations to the previous behavior, you can simply change the `FORMAT_GEO_MAP` parameter:

```auto
pygmt.config(FORMAT_GEO_MAP="ddd:mm:ss")

```

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### Author: ![hazardgoat](https://yyz1.discourse-cdn.com/flex047/user_avatar/forum.generic-mapping-tools.org/hazardgoat/32/1354_2.png) [@hazardgoat](https://forum.generic-mapping-tools.org/u/hazardgoat)
#### Post date: [August 10, 2021, 11:03pm UTC](https://forum.generic-mapping-tools.org/t/removing-cardinal-directions-from-axis-ticks/1974/3 "2021-08-10T23:03:36Z")

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Thank you! I suspected it was that pygmt.config command and was playing around with it but didn’t fully understand how to combine the various parameters to get what I wanted.