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Cartography

All articles tagged with #cartography

UN Endorses Equal Earth Map, Sparking Diplomatic Friction Over Disputed Territories
world1 month ago

UN Endorses Equal Earth Map, Sparking Diplomatic Friction Over Disputed Territories

The UN General Assembly recently passed a non-binding resolution endorsing the Equal Earth projection to replace the Mercator map, aiming to correct the visual distortion that minimizes Africa's size. While 164 nations supported the move, the United States dissented, and several countries including Japan, India, and Ukraine raised concerns over how disputed territories are depicted in the new projection. The resolution encourages, but does not mandate, the adoption of Equal Earth in education and media, though it does not affect navigational tools that still rely on Mercator.

via The Conversation|
#cartography#equal-earth-projection#geopolitics
Trump's Renaming Spree Sparks Global Naming Crisis
politics1 month ago

Trump's Renaming Spree Sparks Global Naming Crisis

President Trump's recent executive orders renaming the Gulf of Mexico and Lake Ontario have created a fragmented global naming landscape. While US federal databases and some digital maps now display 'Lake America' and 'Gulf of America,' Canada, international bodies, and many private mapping services retain the original names. This divergence highlights the limits of unilateral geographic renaming and exacerbates diplomatic tensions with Canada.

via CNN|
#cartography#executive-orders#geopolitics
France and UN shift to equal-area maps to correct historical distortions
world1 month ago

France and UN shift to equal-area maps to correct historical distortions

France’s foreign ministry is replacing the Mercator projection with the Eckert IV projection in diplomatic communications, following a UN General Assembly vote to endorse the Equal Earth map. The UN resolution, passed 164-1 with six abstentions, aims to correct historical distortions that minimize equatorial regions like Africa. While the US opposed the measure as ideological, France and other nations are adopting equal-area maps to reflect true continental sizes, though Mercator remains standard for navigation and digital platforms.

via Euronews|
#cartography#equal-earth-map#france-foreign-ministry
UN General Assembly adopts Equal Earth map to correct Africa's size, with US as sole dissenter
world1 month ago

UN General Assembly adopts Equal Earth map to correct Africa's size, with US as sole dissenter

The UN General Assembly passed a non-binding resolution endorsing the Equal Earth map projection to replace the Mercator projection, which distorts continental sizes. The vote, led by African nations, passed 164 to 1, with the US as the only opponent and six nations abstaining. The resolution frames accurate cartography as a matter of 'cognitive justice' and urges member states to adopt the new map in schools and institutions.

via politico.eu|
#africa#cartography#equal-earth-projection
UN Endorses Equal Earth Projection to Correct Africa’s Scale
international1 month ago

UN Endorses Equal Earth Projection to Correct Africa’s Scale

The UN General Assembly has adopted a non-binding resolution encouraging the use of the Equal Earth map projection, which accurately depicts Africa’s size relative to other continents. The decision aims to replace the traditional Mercator projection, which distorts landmasses near the poles, thereby correcting long-standing geographical misconceptions in education and media.

via AP News|
#africa#cartography#equal-earth
UN adopts Equal Earth map to correct Mercator distortions
world1 month ago

UN adopts Equal Earth map to correct Mercator distortions

The UN General Assembly voted 164-1 to adopt the Equal Earth projection, replacing the Mercator map to accurately reflect continental sizes. The resolution, sponsored by Togo and backed by the African Union, aims to correct historical distortions that minimized Africa. France announced it will abandon Mercator for the Eckert IV projection, while the US opposed the change.

via BBC|
#africa#cartography#france
UN Vote Set to Phase Out Mercator Map in Favor of Accurate Global Projections
international1 month ago

UN Vote Set to Phase Out Mercator Map in Favor of Accurate Global Projections

The UN General Assembly is set to vote on a resolution to formally phase out the traditional Mercator world map in favor of projections that accurately represent Africa's size. Sponsored by Togo and backed by the African Union, the move aims to replace the 1569 standard, which distorts equatorial regions, with the 2018 Equal Earth design. While non-binding, the resolution could influence education and technology, marking a shift in how global power dynamics are visually represented.

via The Guardian|
#africa#cartography#geopolitics
Apple Maps adopts 'Lake America' name for US users, sparking cross-border debate
technology1 month ago

Apple Maps adopts 'Lake America' name for US users, sparking cross-border debate

Apple has updated its Maps application to display 'Lake America' instead of 'Lake Ontario' for users in the United States, complying with a recent executive order from President Donald Trump. This change follows similar updates by Google Maps and occurs amid escalating trade tensions with Canada. While US users see the new name, international users continue to see 'Lake Ontario,' and some mapping services have refused to make the change, leading to a surge in popularity for dissenting apps.

via The Guardian|
#apple-maps#cartography#geopolitics
AI in Google Earth rattles the centuries‑old trust in maps
technology2 months ago

AI in Google Earth rattles the centuries‑old trust in maps

A Conversation analysis argues that adding a generative AI tool to Google Earth threatened the long‑standing trust in maps, tracing how historical map errors (like the Mountains of Kong) shaped our view of the world, the role of copyright in mapmaking, and how Google's AI integration produced plausible but fake imagery that was rolled back with stronger guardrails, underscoring how critical trust is to the use of satellite maps in journalism, OSINT, and public understanding.

via The Conversation|
#ai#cartography#google-earth
NASA’s gravity-based geoid visual reveals Earth's irregular surface
science2 months ago

NASA’s gravity-based geoid visual reveals Earth's irregular surface

NASA released a gravity-based geoid visualization showing how the ocean surface would look under gravity alone (tidal and wind effects removed). Exaggerating gravity differences 10,000× highlights irregularities caused by dense interior regions, with the geoid peaking near Iceland (about 279 feet above the global average) and dipping south of India (about 348 feet below). Derived from over a billion measurements from the GOCE and GRACE satellites across ~15 years, the highly detailed geoid is not Earth’s physical shape but a tool to improve navigation, topographic surveys, and our understanding of the planet’s interior.

via Diario AS|
#cartography#earth#geoid
Storm-Struck Antarctic Mission Uncovers Uncharted Island in the Weddell Sea
science6 months ago

Storm-Struck Antarctic Mission Uncovers Uncharted Island in the Weddell Sea

During a storm-evading leg of its mission, Germany’s RV Polarstern sighted what looked like a dirty iceberg that proved to be a rocky island rising from ice in the northwestern Weddell Sea, measuring about 130 by 50 meters. The feature, hidden under ice for decades in a region labeled an ‘unexplored danger zone,’ was confirmed using multibeam sonar and a drone, and its true position differs from existing charts by roughly one nautical mile. It currently has no official name, but will be submitted for international approval and added to nautical charts, underscoring the value of direct bathymetric surveys in polar regions.

via The Daily Galaxy|
#antarctica#cartography#exploration