Yes, it is! Since the Mercator tends to spread the meridians apart near the poles, any landmass to the North (or South) will look disproportionally large, compared to landmasses nearer the equator. Just look at a globe. You will see how the meridians (lines of longitude)converge at the North pole. Look at a Mercator projection. You will see those lines spread out so they are the same spacing as nearer the equator. That's how the Mercator makes Greenland look so HUGE, compared to the US...
-Bob
The Mercator projection is a cylindrical map projection developed by Gerardus Mercator in 1569. It is designed for maritime navigation, as it preserves angles and shapes, making it easier for sailors to plot straight-line courses. However, this projection significantly distorts the size of landmasses, particularly near the poles, making regions like Greenland appear much larger than they are relative to equatorial areas. Despite its distortions, the Mercator projection remains widely used for maps and navigation due to its practical benefits.
The Peters map projection was created by German historian Arno Peters in 1973 as an alternative to the traditional Mercator map projection. The Peters map aims to provide a more accurate representation of the relative sizes of land masses by distorting shapes.
No!, the picture below shows Greenland bigger than India. But this projection is wrong because its a Mercator Projection:- Mercator projection: The maps we see and use in schools are based on Mercator projection. A Mercator projection is a mathematical method of showing a map of the globe on a flat surface. This projection was developed in 1568 byGerhardus Mercator a Flemish geographer, mathematician, and cartographer.Mercator projection was made during an age when Europe dominated and exploited the world. The white dominated countries are thus portrayed to be extraordinarily large, while non white countries become extraordinarily small. It seems that the Mercator map was made to artificially portray the territorial "superiority" of the colonial powers, and psychologically impact the gullible minds of the colonised into submission. Surprisingly, even today maps in India reflect that bygone era.The United Nations in 1974, acknowledging this discrepancy (in Mercator maps), accepted a new map made by another German, Arno Peters. It is called the Peters' projection or the Peters' map. It has equal areas, and equal representation. Peters' map shows countries in their relative sizes, and is based upon Peters' decimal grid, which divides the surface of the Earth into a hundred longitudinal fields of equal width, and a hundred latitudinal fields of equal height.Really,This is correct
Robinson's map is much more accurate. Mercator's is very out of proportion. If you notice, mercator's map shows Greenland larger than South America, when South America is actually the bigger of the two.
Mercator Projection : longitude and latitude as straight, parallel lines Conic Projection : a circular map made from a flattened cone, centered on a pole or other point Gall-Peters Projection : relocates standard parallels, narrows longitudinal spacing Robinson Projection : approximates a true spherical view of the Earth, except the poles Winkel Tripel Projection : an azimuth approximation of the world view, similar to Robinson The most widely used is the Mercator projection, the major disadvantage being its area expansions (areas closer to the poles appear larger and lack their true shapes). The Gall-Peters Projection provides a closer approximation of the relative areas. All flat representations of a spherical surface will create variances in "true" size or shape. (see image links)
A great projection for visualizing shipping routes and their compass headings using one view of the entire globe could be the Eckert IV projection. This projection maintains relative directional accuracy across the globe, making it easier to interpret compass headings along shipping routes.
Mercator Projection : longitude and latitude as straight, parallel lines Conic Projection : a circular map made from a flattened cone, centered on a pole or other point Gall-Peters Projection : relocates standard parallels, narrows longitudinal spacing Robinson Projection : approximates a true spherical view of the Earth, except the poles Winkel Tripel Projection : an azimuth approximation of the world view, similar to Robinson The most widely used is the Mercator projection, the major disadvantage being its area expansions (areas closer to the poles appear larger and lack their true shapes). The Gall-Peters Projection provides a closer approximation of the relative areas. All flat representations of a spherical surface will create variances in "true" size or shape. (see image links)
advantages: correctly shows the relative sizes of Earth's landmasses disadvantages: has distortion shows the landmasses near the edges stretched and curved
Equal-area map projections, such as the Mollweide or Gall-Peters projections, are best for comparing the sizes of countries as they accurately represent the relative sizes of land masses. This helps to avoid distortions that can occur in other types of map projections, such as the Mercator projection.
Continents are typically placed on a world map by using a projection method, such as the Mercator projection, where they are spread out across the globe in their relative positions and sizes. The location of the continents on a map is determined by their latitudinal and longitudinal coordinates, as well as their relationships to other landmasses and bodies of water. It is important to accurately represent the shape and size of the continents to create an informative and visually appealing map.
Google maps appears to use a type of Mercator projection. This distorts areas; places further from the equator appear significantly larger relative to areas near the equator. (you'll note that on their map, Greenland appears to be about the same size or even larger than Brazil).
An interrupted-area projection map is considered one of the truest representations of Earth because it preserves the relative sizes of landmasses and oceans, minimizing distortion. This type of map often features interruptions or gaps, allowing for a more accurate depiction of areas compared to traditional projections like the Mercator, which distorts size for certain regions. By prioritizing area fidelity, interrupted-area projections provide a more realistic view of spatial relationships on the Earth's surface.