Mercator projection

masses near the equator, such as Central Africa.

1 Properties and historical details

Mercators 1569 edition was a large planisphere measuring 202 by 124 cm, printed in eighteen separate sheets.
As in all cylindrical projections, parallels and meridians
are straight and perpendicular to each other. In accomplishing this, the unavoidable east-west stretching of the
map, which increases as distance away from the equator
increases, is accompanied in the Mercator projection by
a corresponding north-south stretching, so that at every
point location the east-west scale is the same as the northsouth scale, making the projection conformal. Being a
conformal projection, angles are preserved around all locations.

Mercator projection of the world between 82S and 82N.

Because the linear scale of a Mercator map increases with

latitude, it distorts the size of geographical objects far
from the equator and conveys a distorted perception of
the overall geometry of the planet. At latitudes greater
than 70 north or south the Mercator projection is practically unusable, since the linear scale becomes innitely
high at the poles. A Mercator map can therefore never
fully show the polar areas (as long as the projection is
based on a cylinder centered on the Earths rotation axis;
see the Transverse Mercator projection for another application).
All lines of constant bearing (rhumbs or loxodromes
those making constant angles with the meridians) are represented by straight segments on a Mercator map. The
two properties, conformality and straight rhumb lines,
make this projection uniquely suited to marine navigation: courses and bearings are measured using wind roses
or protractors, and the corresponding directions are easily transferred from point to point, on the map, with the
help of a parallel ruler or a pair of navigational protractor
triangles.

Mercator world map (Nova et Aucta Orbis Terrae Descriptio

ad Usum Navigantium Emendate Accommodata (1569) For
higher resolution and coloured images see Mercator 1569 world
map. That page contains details of the map and translations of
the texts

The Mercator projection is a cylindrical map projection

presented by the Flemish geographer and cartographer
Gerardus Mercator in 1569. It became the standard map
projection for nautical purposes because of its ability to
represent lines of constant course, known as rhumb lines
or loxodromes, as straight segments that conserve the angles with the meridians. Although the linear scale is equal
in all directions around any point, thus preserving the angles and the shapes of small objects (which makes the
projection conformal), the Mercator projection distorts
the size of objects as the latitude increases from the Equator to the poles, where the scale becomes innite. So, for
example, landmasses such as Greenland and Antarctica
appear much larger than they actually are relative to land

The name and explanations given by Mercator to his

world map (Nova et Aucta Orbis Terrae Descriptio ad
Usum Navigantium Emendata: new and augmented description of Earth corrected for the use of sailors) show
that it was expressly conceived for the use of marine navigation. Although the method of construction is not explained by the author, Mercator probably used a graphical
method, transferring some rhumb lines previously plotted on a globe to a square graticule, and then adjusting
the spacing between parallels so that those lines became
1

USES

straight, making the same angle with the meridians as in

the globe.
The development of the Mercator projection represented
a major breakthrough in the nautical cartography of the
16th century. However, it was much ahead of its time,
since the old navigational and surveying techniques were
not compatible with its use in navigation. Two main
problems prevented its immediate application: the impossibility of determining the longitude at sea with adequate accuracy and the fact that magnetic directions, instead of geographical directions, were used in navigation.
Only in the middle of the 18th century, after the marine
chronometer was invented and the spatial distribution of
magnetic declination was known, could the Mercator projection be fully adopted by navigators.
Several authors are associated with the development of
Mercator projection:
German Erhard Etzlaub (c. 14601532), who had
engraved miniature compass maps (about 108
cm) of Europe and parts of Africa, latitudes 67
0, to allow adjustment of his portable pocket-size
sundials, was for decades declared to have designed
a projection identical to Mercators.

Greenland

Australia
0

1000 km

The Mercator projection portrays Greenland as larger than Australia; in actuality, Australia is more than three and a half times
larger than Greenland.

Alaska takes as much area on the map as Brazil,

when Brazils area is nearly ve times that of Alaska.

Finland appears with a greater north-south extent

Portuguese mathematician and cosmographer Pedro
than India, although Indias is greater.
Nunes (15021578), who rst described the loxodrome and its use in marine navigation, and sug Antarctica appears as the biggest continent (and
gested the construction of a nautical atlas comwould be innitely large on a complete map), alposed of several large-scale sheets in the cylindrical
though it is actually the fth in area.
equidistant projection as a way to minimize distortion of directions. If these sheets were brought to
The Mercator projection is still used commonly for navthe same scale and assembled an approximation of
igation. On the other hand, because of great land
the Mercator projection would be obtained (1537).
area distortions, it is not well suited for general world
English mathematician Edward Wright (c. 1558 maps. Therefore, Mercator himself used the equal-area
1615), who published accurate tables for its con- sinusoidal projection to show relative areas. However,
despite such distortions, Mercator projection was, espestruction (1599, 1610).
cially in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, perhaps the
English mathematicians Thomas Harriot (1560 most common projection used in world maps, but in this
1621) and Henry Bond (c.16001678) who, inde- use, it has much been criticized.[1][2][3][4] Because of its
pendently (c.1600 and 1645), associated the Merca- very common usage, it has been supposed to have greatly
tor projection with its modern logarithmic formula, inuenced on peoples view of the world,[5] and because
later deduced by calculus.
it shows countries near the Equator as far too small when
compared to those of Europe and North America, it has
been supposed to cause people to consider those countries
2 Uses
as less important.[6] As a result of these criticisms, most
modern atlases no longer use the Mercator projection for
As on all map projections, shapes or sizes are distortions world maps or for areas distant from the equator, preferof the true layout of the Earths surface. The Mercator ring other cylindrical projections, or forms of equal-area
projection exaggerates areas far from the equator. For projection. The Mercator projection is still commonly
used for areas near the equator, however, where distorexample:
tion is minimal.
Greenland appears larger than Africa, when in reality Africas area is 14 times greater and Greenlands
is comparable to Algeria's alone. Africa also appears to be roughly the same size as Europe, when
in reality Africa is nearly 3 times larger.

Arno Peters stirred controversy when he proposed what

is now usually called the GallPeters projection as the alternative to the Mercator. The projection he promoted is
a specic parameterization of the cylindrical equal-area
projection. In response, a 1989 resolution by seven North

3.2

Cylindrical projections

American geographical groups deprecated the use of

cylindrical projections for general purpose world maps,
which would include both the Mercator and the Gall
Peters.[7]

to a cylinder tangential to it at the equator. The cylinder

is then unrolled to give the planar map.[10][11] The fraction R a is called the representative fraction (RF) or the
principal scale of the projection. For example, a Mercator map printed in a book might have an equatorial width
of 13.4 cm corresponding to a globe radius of 2.13 cm
2.1 Web Mercator
and an RF of approximately 1 M (M is used as an abbreviation for 1,000,000 in writing an RF) whereas MerMain article: Web Mercator
cators original 1569 map has a width of 198 cm corresponding to a globe radius of 31.5 cm and an RF of about
1
Many major online street mapping services (Bing Maps, M.
OpenStreetMap, Google Maps, MapQuest, Yahoo!
=
y()
y axis
Maps, and others) use a variant of the Mercator pro180E
180W
parallel through P
jection for their map images[8] called Web Mercator or
N
P'
P(x,y)
P
Google Web Mercator. Despite its obvious scale varix
true scale on equator

ation at small scales, the projection is well-suited as

0
x
an interactive world map that can be zoomed seam=0
lessly to large-scale (local) maps, where there is relaS
tively little distortion due to the variant projections nearx=
x=
central meridian
meridian through P
central
conformality.
meridian
The major online street mapping services tiling systems
display most of the world at the lowest zoom level as a
single square image, excluding the polar regions by truncation at latitudes of = 85.05113. (See below.)
Latitude values outside this range are mapped using a different relationship that doesn't diverge at = 90.

3
3.1

Mathematics of the Mercator

projection
The spherical model

Although the surface of Earth is best modelled by an

oblate ellipsoid of revolution, for small scale maps the
ellipsoid is approximated by a sphere of radius a. Many
dierent methods exist for calculating a. The simplest
include (a) the equatorial radius of the ellipsoid, (b) the
arithmetic or geometric mean of the semi-axes of the ellipsoid, (c) the radius of the sphere having the same volume as the ellipsoid.[9] The range of all possible choices
is about 35 km, but for small scale (large region) applications the variation may be ignored, and mean values of
6,371 km and 40,030 km may be taken for the radius and
circumference respectively. These are the values used for
numerical examples in later sections. Only high-accuracy
cartography on large scale maps requires an ellipsoidal
model.

3.2

Cylindrical projections

A cylindrical map projection is specied by formul linking the geographic coordinates of latitude and longitude
to Cartesian coordinates on the map with origin on the
equator and x-axis along the equator. By construction,
all points on the same meridian lie on the same generator[12] of the cylinder at a constant value of x, but the distance y along the generator (measured from the equator)
is an arbitrary[13] function of latitude, y(). In general
this function does not describe the geometrical projection (as of light rays onto a screen) from the centre of the
globe to the cylinder, which is only one of an unlimited
number of ways to conceptually project a cylindrical map.
Since the cylinder is tangential to the globe at the equator,
the scale factor between globe and cylinder is unity on the
equator but nowhere else. In particular since the radius
of a parallel, or circle of latitude, is R cos , the corresponding parallel on the map must have been stretched by
a factor of 1/cos = sec . This scale factor on the parallel is conventionally denoted by k and the corresponding
scale factor on the meridian is denoted by h.[14]
3.2.1 Small element geometry
The relations between y() and properties of the projection, such as the transformation of angles and the variation in scale, follow from the geometry of corresponding
small elements on the globe and map. The gure below
shows a point P at latitude and longitude on the globe
and a nearby point Q at latitude + and longitude
+ . The vertical lines PK and MQ are arcs of meridians of length R.[15] The horizontal lines PM and KQ
are arcs of parallels of length R(cos ).[16] The corresponding points on the projection dene a rectangle of
width x and height y.

The spherical approximation of Earth with radius a can

be modelled by a smaller sphere of radius R, called the
globe in this section. The globe determines the scale
of the map. The various cylindrical projections specify
how the geographic detail is transferred from the globe For small elements, the angle PKQ is approximately a

3
projection

globe

(a)

R(cos)

MATHEMATICS OF THE MERCATOR PROJECTION

(b)

R
M

Q y+y

y
M
x+x

right angle and therefore

tan

R cos
,
R

tan =

x
,
y

The previously mentioned scaling factors from globe to

cylinder are given by
parallel scale factor
x
R cos ,
meridian scale factor
y
R .

k() =
h() =

P M
PM

P K
PK

Since the meridians are mapped to lines of constant x we

must have x = R( 0 ) and x = R, ( in radians).
Therefore, in the limit of innitesimally small elements

tan =

3.3

R sec
tan ,
y ()

k = sec ,

h=

y ()
.
R

Derivation of the Mercator projection

x = R( 0 ),

[ ( )]
y = R ln tan
+
.
4
2

The choice of the function y() for the Mercator projecIn the rst equation 0 is the longitude of an arbitrary cention is determined by the demand that the projection be
tral meridian usually, but not always, that of Greenwich
conformal, a condition which can be dened in two equiv(i.e., zero). The dierence ( 0 ) is in radians.
alent ways:
The function y() is plotted alongside for the case R = 1:
it tends to innity at the poles. The linear y-axis values are
Equality of angles. The condition that
not usually shown on printed maps; instead some maps
a sailing course of constant azimuth on
show the non-linear scale of latitude values on the right.
the globe is mapped into a constant grid
More often than not the maps show only a graticule of
bearing on the map. Setting = in
selected meridians and parallels
the above equations gives y () = R sec
.
Isotropy of scale factors. This is the
statement that the point scale factor is
independent of direction so that small
shapes are preserved by the projection.
Setting h = k in the above equations again
gives y () = R sec .

3.3.1 Inverse transformations

= 0 +

x
,
R

[
( y )]
= 2 tan1 exp
.
R
2

Integrating the equation

The expression on the right of the second equation denes

the Gudermannian function; i.e., = gd(y/R): the direct
equation may therefore be written as y = Rgd1 ().[17]

y () = R sec ,

3.3.2 Alternative expressions

with y(0) = 0, by using integral tables[17] or elementary There are many alternative expressions for y(), all demethods,[18] gives y(). Therefore,
rived by elementary manipulations.[18]

3.4

Scale factor

y=

[
]
R
1 + sin
ln
=
2
1 sin

R tanh1 (sin ) =

]
1 + sin
R ln
= R ln (sec + tan )
cos
R sinh1 (tan ) = R cosh1 (sec ) = R gd1 ().

Corresponding inverses are:

= sin1 [tanh(y/R)] = tan1 [sinh(y/R)] = sec1 [cosh(y/R)] = gd(y/R).

For angles expressed in degrees:
R( 0 )
x=
,
180

y = R ln tan 45 +
2

)]
.

The above formulae are written in terms of the globe radius R. It is often convenient to work directly with the
map width W = 2R. For example, the basic transformation equations become

x=

3.3.3

W
( 0 ) ,
2

y=

W [ ( )]
ln tan
+
.
2
4
2

Truncation and aspect ratio

The ordinate y of the Mercator projection becomes innite at the poles and the map must be truncated at some
latitude less than ninety degrees. This need not be done
symmetrically. Mercators original map is truncated at
80N and 66S with the result that European countries
were moved towards the centre of the map. The aspect s
P Q
P M
P K
=
=
=k=
= h = sec .
ratio of his map is 198/120 = 1.65. Even more extreme
s
PQ
PM
PK
truncations have been used: a Finnish school atlas was
truncated at approximately 76N and 56S, an aspect ra- This result holds for an arbitrary direction: the denition
tio of 1.97.
of isotropy of the point scale factor. The graph shows the
Much web based mapping uses a zoomable version of the variation of the scale factor with latitude. Some numeriMercator projection with an aspect ratio of unity. In this cal values are listed below.
case the maximum latitude attained must correspond to
y = W/2, or equivalently y/R = . Any of the inverse
transformation formulae may be used to calculate the corresponding latitudes:

at latitude 30 the scale factor is k = sec 30 =

1.15,
at latitude 45 the scale factor is k = sec 45 =
1.41,

[
( y )]
at latitude 60 the scale factor is k = sec 60 =
= tan1 [sinh ] = tan1 [11.5487] = 85.05113
.
= tan1 sinh
2,
R
at latitude 80 the scale factor is k = sec 80 =
5.76,

3.4

Scale factor

at latitude 85 the scale factor is k = sec 85 =

11.5

The gure comparing the innitesimal elements on globe

and projection shows that when = the triangles PQM
and PQM are similar so that the scale factor in an ar- Working from the projected map requires the scale facbitrary direction is the same as the parallel and meridian tor in terms of the Mercator ordinate y (unless the map
is provided with an explicit latitude scale). Since ruler
scale factors:

measurements can furnish the map ordinate y and also

the width W of the map then y/R = 2y/W and the scale
factor is determined using one of the alternative forms for
the forms of the inverse transformation:

are aligned to the meridians and parallels.[14][19][20] For

the Mercator projection, h = k, so the ellipses degenerate
into circles with radius proportional to the value of the
scale factor for that latitude. These circles are then placed
on the projected map with an arbitrary overall scale (because of the extreme variation in scale) but correct relative sizes.

k = sec = cosh

(y)
R

(
= cosh

2y
W

)
.

The variation with latitude is sometimes indicated by

multiple bar scales as shown below and, for example, on a
Finnish school atlas. The interpretation of such bar scales
is non-trivial. See the discussion on distance formulae below.

3.4.1

Area scale

MATHEMATICS OF THE MERCATOR PROJECTION

3.6 Accuracy
One measure of a maps accuracy is a comparison of the
length of corresponding line elements on the map and
globe. Therefore, by construction, the Mercator projection is perfectly accurate, k = 1, along the equator and
nowhere else. At a latitude of 25 the value of sec
is about 1.1 and therefore the projection may be deemed
accurate to within 10% in a strip of width 50 centred on
the equator. Narrower strips are better: sec 8 = 1.01,
so a strip of width 16 (centred on the equator) is accurate to within 1% or 1 part in 100. Similarly sec 2.56 =
1.001, so a strip of width 5.12 (centred on the equator)
is accurate to within 0.1% or 1 part in 1,000. Therefore,
the Mercator projection is adequate for mapping countries close to the equator.

The area scale factor is the product of the parallel and

meridian scales hk = sec2 . For Greenland, taking 73
as a median latitude, hk = 11.7. For Australia, taking 25 3.7 Secant projection
as a median latitude, hk = 1.2. For Great Britain, taking
In a secant (in the sense of cutting) Mercator projection
55 as a median latitude, hk = 3.04.
the globe is projected to a cylinder which cuts the sphere
at two parallels with latitudes 1 . The scale is now true
at these latitudes whereas parallels between these lati3.5 Distortion
tudes are contracted by the projection and their scale factor must be less than one. The result is that deviation of
the scale from unity is reduced over a wider range of latitudes.
y()

180W

180E

increased scale
true scale

reduced scale

standard parallel

y(1)
x

standard parallel

y(-1)

true scale
increased scale

An example of such a projection is

x = 0.99R
Tissots indicatrices on the Mercator projection

The classic way of showing the distortion inherent in a

projection is to use Tissots indicatrix. Nicolas Tissot
noted that for cylindrical projections the scale factors at a
point, specied by the numbers h and k, dene an ellipse
at that point of the projection. The axes of the ellipse

( )
y = 0.99R ln tan
+
4
2

k = 0.99 sec .

The scale on the equator is 0.99; the scale is k = 1 at a latitude of approximately 8 (the value of 1 ); the scale is k
= 1.01 at a latitude of approximately 11.4. Therefore,
the projection has an accuracy of 1%, over a wider strip
of 22 compared with the 16 of the normal (tangent)
projection. This is a standard technique of extending the
region over which a map projection has a given accuracy.

3.9

3.8

Formulae for distance

Generalization to the ellipsoid

7
80 are 846 km, 689 km, 450 km and 156 km respectively.

When the Earth is modelled by an ellipsoid (of revolution)

Longer distances require various approaches.
the Mercator projection must be modied if it is to remain
conformal. The transformation equations and scale factor
for the non-secant version are[21]
3.9.1 On the equator
x = R ( 0 ) ,
[
]
( ) ( 1 e sin )e/2
y = R ln tan
+
,
4
2
1 + e sin

k = sec 1 e2 sin2 .

Scale is unity on the equator (for a non-secant projection). Therefore, interpreting ruler measurements on the
equator is simple:
True distance = ruler distance / RF (equator)

For the above model, with RF = 1 M, 1 cm corresponds

The scale factor is unity on the equator, as it must be since to 3,000 km.
the cylinder is tangential to the ellipsoid at the equator.
The ellipsoidal correction of the scale factor increases
with latitude but it is never greater than e2 , a correction 3.9.2 On other parallels
of less than 1%. (The value of e2 is about 0.006 for all
reference ellipsoids.) This is much smaller than the scale On any other parallel the scale factor is sec so that
inaccuracy, except very close to the equator. Only accuParallel distance = ruler distance cos / RF
rate Mercator projections of regions near the equator will
(parallel).
necessitate the ellipsoidal corrections.

3.9

Formulae for distance

Converting ruler distance on the Mercator map into true

(great circle) distance on the sphere is straightforward
along the equator but nowhere else. One problem is the
variation of scale with latitude, and another is that straight
lines on the map (rhumb lines), other than the meridians
or the equator, do not correspond to great circles.
The distinction between rhumb (sailing) distance and
great circle (true) distance was clearly understood by
Mercator. (See Legend 12 on the 1569 map.) He stressed
that the rhumb line distance is an acceptable approximation for true great circle distance for courses of short
or moderate distance, particularly at lower latitudes. He
even quanties his statement: When the great circle distances which are to be measured in the vicinity of the
equator do not exceed 20 degrees of a great circle, or 15
degrees near Spain and France, or 8 and even 10 degrees
in northern parts it is convenient to use rhumb line distances.
For a ruler measurement of a short line, with midpoint at
latitude , where the scale factor is k = sec = 1/cos :
True distance = rhumb distance ruler distance cos / RF. (short lines)
With radius and great circle circumference equal to 6,371
km and 40,030 km respectively an RF of 1 M, for
which R = 2.12 cm and W = 13.34 cm, implies that a ruler
measurement of 3 mm. in any direction from a point on
the equator corresponds to approximately 900 km. The
corresponding distances for latitudes 20, 40, 60 and

For the above model 1 cm corresponds to 1,500 km at a

latitude of 60.
This is not the shortest distance between the chosen endpoints on the parallel because a parallel is not a great circle. The dierence is small for short distances but increases as , the longitudinal separation, increases. For
two points, A and B, separated by 10 of longitude on the
parallel at 60 the distance along the parallel is approximately 0.5 km greater than the great circle distance. (The
distance AB along the parallel is (a cos ) . The length
of the chord AB is 2(a cos ) sin /2. This chord subtends
an angle at the centre equal to 2arcsin(cos sin /2) and
the great circle distance between A and B is 2a arcsin(cos
sin /2).) In the extreme case where the longitudinal
separation is 180, the distance along the parallel is one
half of the circumference of that parallel; i.e., 10,007.5
km. On the other hand, the geodesic between these points
is a great circle arc through the pole subtending an angle
of 60 at the center: the length of this arc is one sixth of
the great circle circumference, about 6,672 km. The difference is 3,338 km so the ruler distance measured from
the map is quite misleading even after correcting for the
latitude variation of the scale factor.
3.9.3 On a meridian
A meridian of the map is a great circle on the globe
but the continuous scale variation means ruler measurement alone cannot yield the true distance between distant
points on the meridian. However, if the map is marked
with an accurate and nely spaced latitude scale from
which the latitude may be read directlyas is the case
for the Mercator 1569 world map (sheets 3, 9, 15) and

5 NOTES

all subsequent nautical chartsthe meridian distance between two latitudes 1 and 2 is simply

4 See also
Cartography

m12 = a|1 2 |.
If the latitudes of the end points cannot be determined
with condence then they can be found instead by calculation on the ruler distance. Calling the ruler distances of
the end points on the map meridian as measured from the
equator y1 and y2 , the true distance between these points
on the sphere is given by using any one of the inverse
Mercator formul:

[
( y )]
[
( y )]


1
2
m12 = a tan1 sinh
tan1 sinh
,
R
R
where R may be calculated from the width W of the map
by R = W/2. For example, on a map with R = 1 the
values of y = 0, 1, 2, 3 correspond to latitudes of =
0, 50, 75, 84 and therefore the successive intervals of
1 cm on the map correspond to latitude intervals on the
globe of 50, 25, 9 and distances of 5,560 km, 2,780
km, and 1,000 km on the Earth.

Central cylindrical projection - sometimes erroneously described as the method of construction of

the Mercator projection
GallPeters projection
Jordan Transverse Mercator
List of map projections
Mercator 1569 world map
Nautical chart
Rhumbline network
Tissots indicatrix
Transverse Mercator projection
Universal Transverse Mercator coordinate system

5 Notes
3.9.4

On a rhumb

A straight line on the Mercator map at angle to the

meridians is a rhumb line. When = /2 or 3/2 the
rhumb corresponds to one of the parallels; only one, the
equator, is a great circle. When = 0 or it corresponds
to a meridian great circle (if continued around the Earth).
For all other values it is a spiral from pole to pole on the
globe intersecting all meridians at the same angle, and is
thus not a great circle.[18] This section discusses only the
last of these cases.
If is neither 0 nor then the above gure of the innitesimal elements shows that the length of an innitesimal rhumb line on the sphere between latitudes ; and
+ is a sec . Since is constant on the rhumb
this expression can be integrated to give, for nite rhumb
lines on the Earth:
r12 = a sec |1 2 | = a sec .

[1] Kellaway, G.P. (1946). Map Projections p. 3738. London: Methuen & Co. LTD. (According to this source, it
had been claimed that the Mercator projection was used
for imperialistic motives
[2] Abelson, C.E. (1954). Common Map Projections s. 4.
Sevenoaks: W.H. Smith & Sons.
[3] Chamberlin, Wellman (1947). The Round Earth on Flat
Paper s. 99. Washington, D.C.: The National Geographic
Society.
[4] Fisher, Irving (1943). A World Map on a Regular Icosahedron by Gnomonic Projection. Geographical Review
33 (4): 605.
[5] Mercator Projection vs. Peters Projection, part 2. Matt
T. Rosenberg, about.com.
[6] Mercator Projection vs. Peters Projection, part 1. Matt
T. Rosenberg, about.com.
[7] American Cartographer. 1989. 16(3): 222223.
[8] http://groups.google.com/group/Google-Maps-API/

Once again, if may be read directly from an accumsg/8222b18e7921f6e6

rate latitude scale on the map, then the rhumb distance
between map points with latitudes 1 and 2 is given by [9] Maling, pages 7779.
the above. If there is no such scale then the ruler distances
[10] Snyder, Working manual pp 3795.
between the end points and the equator, y1 and y2 , give
the result via an inverse formula:
[11] Snyder, Flattening the Earth.

[12] A generator of a cylinder is a straight line on the surface


( y )
(y )
parallel to the axis of the cylinder.

2 
1
tan1 sinh
r12 = a sec tan1 sinh
.
R
R
[13] The function y() is not completely arbitrary: it must be
These formul give rhumb distances on the sphere which
monotonic increasing and antisymmetric (y() = y(),
may dier greatly from true distances whose determinaso that y(0)=0): it is normally continuous with a continution requires more sophisticated calculations.[22]
ous rst derivative.

[14] Snyder. Working Manual, page 20.

[15] R is the radius of the globe and is measured in radians.
[16] is measured in radians.
[17] NIST. See Sections 4.26#ii and 4.23#viii

An interactive Java Applet to study the metric deformations of the Mercator Projection.
Web Mercator: Non-Conformal, Non-Mercator
(Noel Zinn, Hydrometronics LLC)

[18] Osborne Chapter 2.

Mercators Projection at University of British

Columbia

[19] Snyder, Flattening the Earth, pp 147149

Mercators Projection at Wolfram MathWorld

[20] More general example of Tissots indicatrix: the Winkel

tripel projection.

Google Maps Coordinates

[21] Osborne, Chapters 5, 6

[22] See great-circle distance, the Vincentys formulae or
Mathworld.

References
Maling, Derek Hylton (1992), Coordinate Systems
and Map Projections (second ed.), Pergamon Press,
ISBN 0-08-037233-3.
Monmonier, Mark (2004), Rhumb Lines and Map
Wars: A Social History of the Mercator Projection (Hardcover ed.), Chicago: The University of
Chicago Press, ISBN 0-226-53431-6
Olver, F. W.J.; Lozier, D.W.; Boisvert, R.F.; et al.,
eds. (2010), NIST Handbook of Mathematical Functions, Cambridge University Press
Osborne, Peter (2013), The Mercator Projections, doi:10.5281/zenodo.35392. (Supplements:
Maxima les and Latex code and gures)
Rapp, Richard H (1991), Geometric Geodesy, Part I
Snyder, John P (1993), Flattening the Earth: Two
Thousand Years of Map Projections, University of
Chicago Press, ISBN 0-226-76747-7
Snyder, John P. (1987), Map Projections A Working Manual. U.S. Geological Survey Professional Paper 1395, United States Government Printing Ofce, Washington, D.C. This paper can be downloaded from USGS pages. It gives full details of
most projections, together with interesting introductory sections, but it does not derive any of the projections from rst principles.

External links
Ad maiorem Gerardi Mercatoris gloriam contains
high-resolution images of the 1569 world map by
Mercator.
Table of examples and properties of all common
projections, from radicalcartography.net.

10

8 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

8.1

Text

Mercator projection Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercator_projection?oldid=736795039 Contributors: Bryan Derksen, The

Anome, Tarquin, Ap, Malcolm Farmer, Eclecticology, XJaM, Caltrop, Perique des Palottes, Fredb, Heron, Soulpatch, Olivier, Patrick,
Michael Hardy, Zocky, Kosebamse, Strebe, AugPi, Smack, Raven in Orbit, Timwi, Joseaperez, David.Monniaux, Robbot, MrJones, Hankwang, R3m0t, Dittaeva, Romanm, Wereon, Mcapdevila, Szwejk~enwiki, Eequor, Fuzzy Logic, Gdr, Quadell, Latitude0116, Lev, Austin
Hair, Allefant, Dr. Nodelescu~enwiki, Lacrimosus, PRiis, Zaphod-Swe, Rich Farmbrough, Dpm64, Smyth, Dbachmann, Bender235,
Mdf, Euyyn, Leif, Nwerneck, Reinyday, Tronno, .:Ajvol:., Foobaz, Matt McIrvin, Nsaa, Tra, Jason Davies, MattWade, Sobolewski,
Jheald, Juhtolv, Gmaxwell, Georgia guy, Je3000, Pictureuploader, Audiovideo, Graham87, Deltabeignet, Magister Mathematicae, Cambridgeincolour, Ligulem, The wub, Cheesy123456789, Authalic, SchuminWeb, Mathbot, DVdm, Murgatroyd, Kmorrow, Gaius Cornelius,
Sir48, Bota47, Searchme, Mholland, Citynoise, Jacklee, Closedmouth, Jecowa, Paul D. Anderson, Aoa8212, Sycthos, SmackBot, Ashenai,
W!B:, Gilliam, Betacommand, Bluebot, TimBentley, McNeight, Stevage, Colonies Chris, Darth Panda, Attakmint, Elendils Heir, Vinaiwbot~enwiki, Clicketyclack, Gobonobo, Pat Payne, JorisvS, Minna Sora no Shita, BranStark, Paul Koning, Rattatosk, Cydebot, AndyAnderson, Alvesgaspar, Porsche997SBS, Christonard, Oerjan, Dawnseeker2000, Saimhe, Ben pcc, Clan-destine, VictorAnyakin, Hamaryns,
Husond, VoABot II, Ronstew, JamesBWatson, A3nm, Hellerick, Gun Powder Ma, Fear the hobbit, STBot, Rodemont, Leyo, Tgeairn,
Pharaoh of the Wizards, UBeR, Jrsnbarn, RichardKennaway, Johnbod, TomasBat, NewEnglandYankee, Mrdavenport, 83d40m, Thijs07,
Funandtrvl, Deor, Chienlit, TXiKiBoT, Any IP., Captain Wikify, Broadbot, Aaron Rotenberg, Geominers, Andy Dingley, Vchimpanzee,
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a gentleman?, Sushiinger, Xavier8484, FrescoBot, D'ohBot, Peter Mercator, Pinethicket, I dream of horses, Jonesey95, Calmer Waters,
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Potato, NewbTopolis Rex, Fuortu, Hdjensofjfnen, Fabian Steeg and Anonymous: 244

8.2

Images

File:Australia-Greenland_size_comparison.svg
Australia-Greenland_size_comparison.svg License:
(User:Siebengang)

Source:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/
CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Benjamin Hell

File:Commons-logo.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4a/Commons-logo.svg License: CC-BY-SA-3.0 Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

File:CylProj_infinitesimals2.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d0/CylProj_infinitesimals2.svg License:
CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Peter Mercator
File:Cylindrical_Projection_basics2.svg Source:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e2/Cylindrical_Projection_
basics2.svg License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Peter Mercator
File:Cylindrical_Projection_secant.svg Source:
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secant.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Peter Mercator
File:Mercator_1569.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b2/Mercator_1569.png License: Public domain
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File:Mercator_projection_SW.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f4/Mercator_projection_SW.jpg License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: Mobile Trac Monetization Original artist: Strebe
File:Mercator_scale_plot.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a2/Mercator_scale_plot.svg License: Public
domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Peter Mercator
File:Mercator_y_plot.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/98/Mercator_y_plot.svg License: Public domain
Contributors: Own work Original artist: Peter Mercator
File:Tissot_mercator.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/87/Tissot_mercator.png License: CC-BY-SA3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Stefan Khn
File:World_Scale_from_DMA_Series_1150_map.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/25/World_Scale_
from_DMA_Series_1150_map.png License: Public domain Contributors: Scan of Defense Mapping Agency World Map, series 1150
Original artist: DMA
File:World_map_green.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/95/World_map_green.png License: CC-BYSA-3.0 Contributors: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/archive/c/cf/20051110080552!A_large_blank_world_map_with_
oceans_marked_in_blue.PNG Original artist: Derivative work: Gaaarg

8.3

Content license

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