Parts farthest from the equator look much bigger than they really are. The most common map used these days is the Mercator projection. All distort the relative size of Earth’s features. Over the centuries, mapmakers have come up with many different types. It could also help see the average position of atmospheric fronts, like the polar vortex.” Displaying size differencesĪ drawing of a curved object (such as Earth’s surface) onto a flat piece of paper is called a projection. “This includes things like changes in ocean currents. “Anything that involves visualizing data on maps will be easier with this new type of projection,” she says. It shows how really vast the Arctic is, too. For instance, it better conveys to scientists, like her, who study the Arctic, how far this area is from other places on the planet. She says maps made the new way could be very useful. Thomas is a climate scientist at the University at Buffalo in New York. “Wow!” said Elizabeth Thomas on learning of the new map. Their big trick? Divide the map onto two pages. Now three scientists have come up with a clever way to limit those distortions. Smooshing the globe into a flat image usually distorts lots of surface features. When cartographers - people who make maps - set out to portray the Earth, they have to turn a 3-D sphere into a 2-D map.
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