Science

Jim__

(14,075 posts) Tue Feb 16, 2021, 11:13 AM Feb 2021

Astrophysicists re-imagine world map, designing a less distorted, 'radically different' way ...

... to see the world

From phys.org:

Gott, Goldberg and Vanderbei’s revolutionary, double-sided disk map minimizes all six types of map distortions. They used an equidistant azimuthal projection: a compromise projection, like the Winkel Tripel, with small errors in both local shapes and areas, instead of optimizing one at the expense of the other. Antarctica and Australia are more accurately represented than in most other maps, and distances across oceans or across poles are both accurate and easy to measure, unlike one-sided flat maps. Goldberg-Gott error score: 0.881 Credit: Map by J. Richard Gott, Robert Vanderbei and David Goldberg

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For centuries, mapmakers have agonized over how to accurately display our round planet on anything other than a globe.

Now, a fundamental re-imagining of how maps can work has resulted in the most accurate flat map ever made, from a trio of map experts: J. Richard Gott, an emeritus professor of astrophysics at Princeton and creator of a logarithmic map of the universe once described as "arguably the most mind-bending map to date"; Robert Vanderbei, a professor of operations research and financial engineering who created the "Purple America" map of election results; and David Goldberg, a professor of physics at Drexel University.

Their new map is two-sided and round, like a phonograph record or vinyl LP. Like many radical developments, it seems obvious in hindsight. Why not have a two-sided map that shows both sides of the globe? It breaks away from the limits of two dimensions without losing any of the logistical convenience—storage and manufacture—of a flat map.

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