Which projection is especially suitable for portraying countries extending north-south such as the Philippines and Chile?

• A. Polyconic Projections
• B. Mercator projections
• C. Gnomonic projections
• D. Cylindrical projections

Answer: (A)

For countries that stretch a lot from north to south, you want a projection that keeps distortion in check along that length rather than pushing it into the poles. The polyconic projection achieves this by using a separate cone for each parallel, so each latitude is treated with its own distortion pattern. This keeps the scale and shape along the long north-south axis reasonably consistent, which makes tall, narrow regions like the Philippines and Chile look more natural along their length.

Other projections aren’t as well suited for this purpose. A cylindrical projection (which includes the common Mercator) tends to exaggerate distances and shapes far from the equator, making tall north-south countries look distorted as you move toward the poles. Gnomonic maps everything along great circles as straight lines but distorts areas and shapes severely, so it’s not good for general country maps.