What is the Real Size of Africa?

Unit 1: Basic Concepts

10/7/16

Mercator Projection

Original Article can be accessed here

Synopsis:

          The typical world map ingrained in everyone’s head is in actuality not geographically correct. This may be surprising to many people because this is the map projection that we see everywhere as kids and that is still being used today. This is called the Mercator and it doesn’t just have the normal distortion that you get when putting the world on a flat map, it has Africa shown much smaller than it actually is. This hasn’t happened to the other continents as much as it was done to Africa. The Mercator map made by Geert de Kremer (Mercator) was created in 1569 which was a long time ago when there was more European superiority. Other countries such as Canada, Russia, and the US or greatly enlarged while the continent of Africa is left being much smaller. The repercussions of having a map like this be used in the US are still felt today. There are many results of it that end up hurting Africa in the long run.

Analysis:

          The portrayal of Africa as smaller in size than it really is has a lot of effects. Firstly, it is a fact that bigger continents look more powerful and intimidating than smaller ones. The nations shown as being bigger look more imposing and stronger than the smaller ones. Therefore, when Africa is shown as being small it is then perceived as being insignificant. It is known that there is no perfect map because the earth is a sphere and not flat, however this much distortion to Africa is not necessary. The explanation is that when Mercator was making the map his mind was on navigation and elegance and didn’t put much importance on the fact that he was making Africa smaller. He also made a mistake and then stretched out the northern and southern edges of the globe to fix it and make it look presentable. Africa will continue to be unfairly treated if the use of the Mercator is continued. About a month ago, the International Cartographic Association President (ICA) has resurfaced the debate about this map and have admitted that it is a major misrepresentation of the earth. Many people have mentioned other map projections such as the Winkle Triple and the Gall-Peters that could be used in place of the Mercator. People are starting to be more conscious and aware of the problem but up until now nothing has been done yet. This CNN article has brought the issue into the limelight which could lead to the maps discontinuation. It is known that how a country or continent is perceived has a direct effect on whether it strives or fails. Economic aspects as well as social ones are all affected. Cartography is a very sensitive topic and overall, the leading map we use shouldn’t be so unfair to some parts of the world and so generous to others. Hopefully since there is talk about it, it will change in the near future.