the traditional world map a familiar
site in countless classrooms and offices
is an enduring image of our
planet yet this portrayal primarily
based on the merer projection is
fundamentally
flawed garders Mercator a Flemish
cartographer introduced this projection
in 1569 revolutionizing navigation it
allowed Sailors to chart their courses
in straight lines crucial advancement
and Maritime travel
however this benefit came with a
significant compromise in geographical
accuracy understanding why the map is
wrong requires delving into the
challenges of cartography the Earth is
not flat but an oplate spheroid slightly
flattened at the poles and bulging at
the
equator translating this
three-dimensional shape into a
two-dimensional representation is
inherently problematic Matthew Edney a
geography and cartography historian at
the University of Southern Maine
emphasizes that every world map is
distorted in some way the key question
is whether the projection prioritizes
the correct shape or size of land masses
and different projections make different
compromises the Mercator Projection is
conformal maintaining the shapes of land
masses but at the expense of their
relative sizes it stretches the poles
into lines as long as the equator
resulting in significant aerial
Distortion Regions near the the poles
like Greenland and Alaska appear much
larger than they are while equatorial
regions like Africa and India are
substantially
minimized for instance Greenland appears
almost the same size as Africa on a
merkator map but in reality Africa is
nearly 14 times
larger this Distortion edne explains
arises from the projections attempt to
render great circles at straight lines
to achieve this the marcor pro ction
exponentially increases the separation
of parallels as one moves toward the
poles leading to increased vertical
stretching in these
regions given these inaccuracies
alternatives to the Mercator Projection
have been proposed the gulpers
projection popular in the 1970s and
1980s is an equal area map but it
significantly distorts the shapes of
land
masses land masses are stretched
horizontally near the poles and vertic
at the equator though it corrects size
discrepancies the Distortion of shapes
LED Arthur Robinson a renowned
cartographer to liken it to long
underwear hung on a line to dry another
notable attempt is the Winkle triple
projection adopted by the National
Geographic Society in
1998 created in 1921 it's a compromise
projection striving to minimize
distortions in area direction and
distance while it doesn't eliminate
these distortions entirely it reduces
them more effectively than other small
scale
Maps however even this projection has
its shortcomings particularly in
representing the Pacific Ocean which
appears larger than it is in 2021 a new
approach emerged devised by
astrophysicists this method presents
Earth in two pancake Maps viewed either
side by side or back to back this now
representation differs significantly
from traditional flat maps and might
offer a more accurate depiction although
its adoption in educational and
professional settings remains to be seen
ultimately the choice of projection
depends on the map's intended use and
the priorities of accuracy whether in
size shape or Direction edne advocates
for equal area projections for
educational proposes aligning with the
idea that understanding the real sizes
of countries and continents is crucial
however the decision often boils down to
Market preference in summary the world
map as we know it predominantly based on
the Mercator Projection is wrong in
terms of size and distance accuracy this
stems from the inherent challenge of
depicting a spherical object on a flat
surface while various projections
attempt to address these distortions
each has its own set of compromises
making the perfect flat map of the Earth
and elusive goal