AP GEO MAPS

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Mercator Projection

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Peters Projection

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Goode Homolosine Projection

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Polar Projection

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Robinson Projection

Mercator Projection

Useful for navigation but land distorts as farther from equator.

Peters Projection

Shows all landmasses w/ true area but distorts space.

Goode Homolosine Projection

Avoids shape distortion by creating “interruptions” but ends up splitting oceans.

Polar Projection

Looks down at Earth from N/S Pole but distorts as farther from pole.

Robinson Projection

Tries to be most visually appealing w/ low distortion.

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Topographic map

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Reference map

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Thematic map

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Choropleth map

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Cartogram

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Proportional/Graduated circle map

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Dot density/dot distribution map

Topographic Map

Shows 3D physical features like mountains, valleys, and elevation using contour lines. Useful for hiking, engineering, and land-use planning.

Reference Map

Focuses on geographic locations rather than data patterns. Displays cities, countries, roads, rivers, oceans, etc. Used for navigation or to locate specific places.

Thematic Map

Highlights spatial patterns of a specific theme or statistic (e.g., population, climate, language). Focuses on one topic rather than general geography.

Choropleth Map

Uses shading or colors to represent data values for defined areas (like countries or states). Darker/lighter colors show higher/lower values.

Cartogram

Distorts the size of geographic areas to represent a variable (e.g., population, GDP). Focuses on the relative importance of data, not actual land size.

Proportional/Graduated Circle Map

Places circles of different sizes over locations to represent numeric values. Easy to read for specific locations, but circle placement can reduce geographic accuracy.

Dot Density / Dot Distribution Map

Uses dots to represent individual occurrences or quantities of a variable. Shows distribution patterns and density differences across an area (one-to-one or one-to-many).