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Mercator Projection

Definition

The Mercator projection is a type of cylindrical map projection presented by Flemish geographer Gerardus Mercator in 1569. It preserves angles and shapes but distorts sizes, making landmasses near poles appear larger than they actually are.

Analogy

Imagine trying to peel an orange and lay its skin flat without tearing it - it's impossible! Similarly, when we try to project our spherical Earth onto flat maps like Mercator Projection, some distortions occur - just like wrinkles would form if you tried flattening an orange peel!

Related terms

Cylindrical Projection: A method where Earth’s surface features are projected onto a cylinder wrapped around Earth which then unrolls into flat surface.

Conformal Map Projection: These types of projections maintain shape locally while sacrificing other properties; Mercator projection falls under this category.

Distortion: In geography terms, distortion refers to the misrepresentation of shape, area, distance, or direction of or between geographic features when compared to their true measurements on Earth's surface.