18

Ask HN: Which common map projections make Greenland look smaller?

I see an urgent need for a map projection that makes Greenland look as small as possible. What are the options?

Download QGIS and you can just play with hundreds of projections. If you want Greenland as small as possible, pick a conical or planar projection meant for the southern hemisphere. It’ll pretty much stop existing if done right. If done wrong, it’ll grow to gargantuan proportions and surround us all. But I’m sure you’ve got additional criteria.

(Horray I reached my annual use of my geography degrees early this year!)

2 days agoWaterluvian

I’m not sure what your intent is, but I think the interest in Greenland is more about location than size.

This projection makes it look small, but highlights how Greenland sits right between Russia and the lower 48 of the US.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_map_projections#/media...

2 days agoal_borland

It looks like there’s Canada to cross before reaching the US. Am I missing something?

2 days agocode_martial

A conformal conic projection centered around the north pole would draw subequatorial land at a larger scale than Greenland. It doesn't affect the first three rules of real estate, though: location, location, and location

a day agodlcarrier

I suggest the Goode Homolosine, which thinks so little of Greenland that it bisects it.

2 days agorecursivecaveat

I've found the Peters projection to be good and fascinating

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gall%E2%80%93Peters_projection

2 days agodeeg

Now I just need to get a copy to the Whitehouse...

2 days agojimnotgym

No, then he'll want to buy the Sahara Desert or something.

a day agorsynnott

What's Whitehouse?

a day agoiberator

Well-played, well-meaning presidential advisor!

2 days agogrim_io

The ones that make Africa look small.

2 days agochistev

Globes are real. Remember globes? Hand him one

20 hours ago1attice

Not exactly a map projection, but on this site you can move countries (including Greenland on its own) onto other parts of the world for comparison. You can see that Greenland still looks pretty massive when you move it further south

https://thetruesize.com/