Mauritania on five projections
Mauritania covers 1,056,023 km² of ground. Mercator draws it 1.14 times over. Area and shape readings on all five projections, each one measured.
This object
- True area
- 1,056,023 km²
- Anchor latitude
- 20.2° N
- Angular radius
- 7.4°
- Draggable latitude range
- -79.8° … 78.0°
On five projections
Each number is measured against its own projection's equator, not against another projection. These five rows do not share an axis - they are five answers to the same question: what did this map give up to lay this place flat?
| Projection | Area distortion | Shape distortion |
|---|---|---|
| Equirectangular | 1.07 | 1.07 |
| Mercator | 1.14 | 1.00 constant |
| Natural Earth | 1.05 | 1.11 |
| Equal Earth | 1.00 constant | 1.26 |
| Gall-Peters | 1.00 constant | 1.76 |
Mercator inflates it most, 1.14 times over. Gall-Peters stretches it most: its long axis is 1.76 times its short one.
The same size, drawn otherwise
Nothing in the catalogue is close to Mauritania's area at a far enough latitude to be worth the comparison.
Bigger than the map admits
These cover more ground than Mauritania and Mercator draws them smaller anyway.
- Colombia: Colombia is truly 1.10 times larger, and Mercator still draws this one 1.03 times bigger.
- Ethiopia: Ethiopia is truly 1.08 times larger, and Mercator still draws this one 1.03 times bigger.
- Bolivia: Bolivia is truly 1.03 times larger, and Mercator still draws this one 1.01 times bigger.
On an equal-area projection this section is empty, for every object there is. An equal-area map draws in proportion to true area, so it cannot draw a larger thing smaller. That is a definition, not a coincidence.
Open it in the tool
Drag Mauritania across the latitude bands and the readout follows.