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Mercator Maps 

There are several mathematical methods used to transfer information about the Earth's curved surface to a flat, rectangular map. One method we will use in KidSat is the "Mercator Projection."

Mercator maps give true directions and accurate shapes of the land and bodies of water, but they exagerate [[exaggerate]] the size of the land that lies far from the equator, especially at the North and South Poles.

The figure on the left shows a portion of a globe. The figure on the right shows a Mercator Map Projection of this region of the Earth. Notice the following: The longitude and latitude lines are curved on the globe but straight on the Mercator Projection Map. Greenland is much smaller than South America on the globe, but appears to be longer than South America on the Mercator Projection Map.

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