Experiment 03 · Coordinates
Where did the poles go?
Follow latitude and longitude through an unfamiliar view. Learn why the top of a map is not always the North Pole.
Before you unfold
If a map is centered on a different place, must the North Pole still be at the top?
Try it yourself
- Open the experiment. Follow the longitude lines toward the geographic poles. A pole on the far side of Earth may be hidden.
- Unfold Earth and look for the North Pole and South Pole labels. Follow the geographic grid around them.
- Select “Classic orientation” below the map. Notice how the grid and the map’s top and bottom change.
- With classic orientation still selected, switch from Plate carrée to Mercator. Read the note below the viewer about its missing polar regions.
Opens in another tab so you can keep these steps nearby. Use the slider to explore at your own pace.
Sources & further reading
Original MapStudy activities, informed by these projection references. Country boundaries in the explorer come from Natural Earth. The animation illustrates a transition; its intermediate shapes are not separate named projections.