mercator's projection
Noun: A specific type of map projection where the Earth's surface is projected onto a cylinder that is tangent at the equator. This projection preserves angles and shapes locally (it is conformal), but distorts areas, with the distortion increasing dramatically with distance from the equator.
This term is used in cartography, geography, and navigation to describe a common method for representing the spherical Earth on a flat map. - For nautical charts, Mercator's projection is often preferred because a straight line on the map represents a constant true bearing, which simplifies navigation. - The teacher explained how Mercator's projection makes Greenland appear much larger than its actual size relative to Africa.
- "The Mercator projection": This is a more common modern phrasing synonymous with "Mercator's projection." It refers to the same cylindrical map projection developed by Gerardus Mercator.
- Most online mapping services initially used a variant of the Mercator projection for their base maps.
- Cylindrical projection (n): The broader family of map projections onto a cylinder, of which Mercator's projection is the most famous conformal example.
- Conformal projection (n): A type of map projection that preserves angles and shapes at infinitesimal scale. Mercator's projection is a conformal projection.
- Web Mercator (n): A specific, slightly modified version of the Mercator projection used by many web-based mapping platforms (e.g., Google Maps, Bing Maps).
- Mercator projection
This term has one primary, technical meaning related to cartography. It is not commonly used in idiomatic or figurative language.
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a map projection of the earth onto a cylinder; areas appear greater the farther they are from the equator
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