Why all world maps are wrong

Making accurate world maps is mathematically impossible.
Follow Johnny on Instagram www.instagram.com/johnny.harris/

Help us make more ambitious videos by joining the Vox Video Lab: http://bit.ly/video-lab

Maps are flat representations of our spherical planet. Johnny Harris cut open a plastic globe to understand just what it takes to turn a sphere into something flat.

His struggle to make a flat map out of the plastic globe is indicative of a challenge mapmakers have faced for centuries: It is mathematically impossible to translate the surface of a sphere onto a plane without some form of distortion.

To solve this problem, mathematicians and cartographers have developed a huge library of representations of the globe, each distorting a certain attribute and preserving others.

For instance, the Mercator projection preserves the shape of countries while distorting the size, especially near the north and south pole.

For a more accurate view of land area look at the Gall-Peters projection, which preserves area while distorting shape.

In the end, there's not "right" map projection. Each comes with trade-offs, and cartographers make projection decisions based on the particular tasks at hand. But if you are interested in seeing an accurate depiction of the planet, it's best to stick with a globe.

Interact with projections: http://metrocosm.com/compare-map-proj...
Mercator tool: http://thetruesize.com/
Mike Bostock Map Transitions: http://bl.ocks.org/mbostock/3711652
Mercator Puzzle: http://hive.sewanee.edu/ldale/maps/10...

Vox.com is a news website that helps you cut through the noise and understand what's really driving the events in the headlines. Check out http://www.vox.com