Cylindrical projection

A cylindrical projection maps the Earth's surface onto a cylinder, which is then unrolled into a flat map. Imagine wrapping a cardboard tube around a globe, marking points, and then laying it flat. This method preserves angles and shapes well near the equator but distorts sizes and distances toward the poles. You often see this in world maps like the Mercator projection, which is useful for navigation but not always accurate for real-world distances or land sizes. Overall, cylindrical projections provide a consistent way to visualize the world, balancing shape preservation with some distortion.