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National Parks

Some national parks are bigger than entire countries — but you would never guess it from a world map. The Mercator projection inflates land the further it sits from the equator, so a compact European nation gets drawn far larger than an equatorial park many times its size.

Each park here is a real footprint you can drag across the map. Drop it over Europe or North America and watch it balloon to its true scale — the same illusion that shrinks the tropics and puffs up the north, told with something other than a country.

  • Chiribiquete National Park, to scale

    Chiribiquete National Park covers 42,956 km². On the equator the map draws it honestly — which is exactly why it looks so small. Drag it north and watch its real scale appear.

    Chiribiquete National Park · 42,956 km²

  • Montanhas do Tumucumaque National Park, to scale

    Montanhas do Tumucumaque National Park covers 38,343 km². On the equator the map draws it honestly — which is exactly why it looks so small. Drag it north and watch its real scale appear.

    Montanhas do Tumucumaque National Park · 38,343 km²

  • Munga-Thirri–Simpson Desert National Park, to scale

    Munga-Thirri–Simpson Desert National Park covers 36,206 km². On the equator the map draws it honestly — which is exactly why it looks so small. Drag it north and watch its real scale appear.

    Munga-Thirri–Simpson Desert National Park · 36,206 km²

  • Namib-Naukluft National Park, to scale

    Namib-Naukluft National Park covers 50,987 km². On the equator the map draws it honestly — which is exactly why it looks so small. Drag it north and watch its real scale appear.

    Namib-Naukluft National Park · 50,987 km²

  • Salonga National Park, to scale

    Salonga National Park covers 36,001 km². On the equator the map draws it honestly — which is exactly why it looks so small. Drag it north and watch its real scale appear.

    Salonga National Park · 36,001 km²

  • Sanjiangyuan National Park, to scale

    Sanjiangyuan National Park covers 153,272 km². On the equator the map draws it honestly — which is exactly why it looks so small. Drag it north and watch its real scale appear.

    Sanjiangyuan National Park · 153,272 km²

  • Wood Buffalo National Park, to scale

    Wood Buffalo National Park covers 45,423 km². On the equator the map draws it honestly — which is exactly why it looks so small. Drag it north and watch its real scale appear.

    Wood Buffalo National Park · 45,423 km²

  • Wrangell–St. Elias National Park, to scale

    Wrangell–St. Elias National Park covers 42,529 km². On the equator the map draws it honestly — which is exactly why it looks so small. Drag it north and watch its real scale appear.

    Wrangell–St. Elias National Park · 42,529 km²

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