All maps are the product of a projection, this is due to the spherical nature of Earth that must be manipulated in order to be flattened into the form of a flat map. There are four common types of map projections: cylindrical projection, Mercator projection, planar projection, and equal-area projection. Each of these projections must struggle to represent three properties: scale, area, and shape. Scale is the ratio of the size of of an object on the map to the actual size of the object it represents. The area of a section of the earth’s surface is found by multiplying the distance west to east by the distance north to south. Shape is simply accurately representing the actual shape of the area represented on the map. Of these three properties, maps are only able to accurately represent one maybe two of them.
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