Both maps below show Norfolk Island highlighted. The old Mercator map (1569) inflates Norfolk Island about 1.3× at 29°, and the new Equal Earth map shows it at its true 36 km². Pan or zoom either map and the other follows, so the difference is visible at every scale.
That 1.3× inflation is why Norfolk Island dominated old schoolbook maps and maps of the world's great powers. Hover Norfolk Island on either map to highlight it on both at once, then compare it with Greenland.
Norfolk Island: key figures
| True area | On the old Mercator map | Distortion vs truth |
|---|
| Norfolk Island | 36 km² | 47 km² | 1.3× |
| Greenland | 2,166,086 km² | 25,576,494 km² | 11.8× |
| Africa | 30,370,000 km² | n/a | n/a |
Old maps drew Norfolk Island at about 47 km². The truth is 36 km², a difference of 31% that school atlases carried for centuries.