Mercator Projection Sea Chart

Timeline

1. 1569Düsseldorf · RhinelandMercator published a revised and augmented description of the world for navigators, first systematically applying a conformal cylindrical projection to draw world sea charts with rhumb lines as straight lines.
2. c. 1580–1600European coastal ports · Atlantic coastThe Mercator projection was adopted by cartographers in the Netherlands, Portugal, England, and elsewhere for harbor charts and ocean route maps, becoming the mainstream technique of European nautical cartography by the late 16th century.