Africa's True Size vs Greenland: Map Distortions

The Truth is in the Map

Africa's size has long been skewed due to the design of our world maps. The vignette shows a definitive 14-times size ratio between Africa and Greenland. Common maps can distort this reality due to their projection methods. In a Mercator projection, for example, Greenland is often depicted as slightly larger than Africa. However, Africa’s true expanse is far from puny. To understand why, the creator of the vignette, Earth Signal, uses crunching map projections to distort geographical data. Projection mechanics enable Greenland to mimic sizes of the tropics—this stretches the African continent closer to its true size. Depending on the projection, Greenland can vary greatly from Greenland's correct size. Without visual aids, it’d be hard to grasp the true scale of the continents. The distortion of proportions isn't always immediately apparent. Cartographers often choose projections that benefit their region. Then, the map fails to hold up to scrutiny. The North Pole, specifically the Greenland region, swells to demonstrate its geographic relationship to the globe.

The Nature of Distortion

Some maps enlarge the polar regions while shrinking equatorial areas. Map projections are mathematical ways to flatten a 3D globe into a 2D surface. However, all projections have some level of distortion. The Mercator projection, for instance, distorts landmasses far from the equator, exaggerating Greenland's size. This projection became widely used because it is handy for navigation. Yet, many still use it today, which is unfortunate. Africa's size often appears similar to Greenland's. Africa appears the same way as Greenland while it is 14 times larger, which can mislead many people. The delimitation of Africa spans too far to exploit its large size. Greenland is the world's largest island, covering almost 2.2 million square kilometers. Africa, by contrast, covers about 30.37 million square kilometers.

Shifting Perceptions

The human eye isn't capable of grasping the true extent of Africa and Greenland's proportions. The size comparison of Greenland and Africa shatters the conventional falsehood. Greenland is around 14 times smaller than Africa. As many maps would mislead the viewer to believe, the two continents appear similar in size. The comparison side-by-side draws light to the truth. The discrepancy between the two continents in size is concerning. We rely on maps to make the earth comprehensible. Here, they mislead. We can improve how we understand geography. Africa is the second-largest continent in the world, and Greenland is merely the largest island. The Earth Signal analysis suggests a flawed perception of geography common to many of us today. It's not our fault. Many of our school textbooks and products have the flawed maps with the distortions. Put simply, Greenland is 14 times smaller than Africa. We’ve been misled by our maps.