Astrophysicists create the most accurate 'flat map' of Earth ever

Earth is a sphere, so how can it be accurately portrayed on a 2D map? Simply flatten Earth into two pancakes, one depicting the Northern Hemisphere and the other the Southern, with the equator running around the edge, a new study finds.

These two "pancakes" represent the most accurate flat map of Earth ever made, the study researchers said. Unlike other flat maps, the new circular map doesn't downsize or supersize the area of certain oceans or landmasses — for instance, many 2D maps depict Greenland as about the same size as Africa, when in fact Africa is 14 times larger, Scientific American reported.

Plus, unlike some retangular maps that are very large, "this is a map you can hold in your hand," study lead researcher J. Richard Gott, an emeritus professor of astrophysics at Princeton University, said in a statement. "The map can be printed front-and-back on a single magazine page, ready for the reader to cut out."

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