I’ve seen a (non) literal billion maps with different depictions of how large Africa is. I gather that it is actually far larger than the United States, but it doesn’t usually seem to be depicted that way. This seriously confuses me. ISS flyovers give a good idea of the difference. Why are so many maps disproportionate?
In: Technology
It wasn’t an evil and intentional conspiracy to diminish Africa’s standing in the world.
The Mercator projection is good for navigators, because you can read correct compass headings off it. That’s basically why it became a popular type of map.
Something has to give when you put a 3D surface onto a 2D sheet of paper, either the proportions or the orientations. People who wanted to sail from A to B chose the map that gave them correct orientation.
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