Gerardus Mercator, orig. Gerard Kremer, (born March 5, 1512, Rupelmonde, Flanders—died Dec. 2, 1594, Duisburg, Duchy of Cleve), Flemish cartographer. He received a master’s degree in 1532 from the University of Louvain (Belgium), where he settled. By 24 he was a skilled engraver, calligrapher, and scientific-instrument maker. He and his colleagues made Louvain a centre for construction of maps, globes (terrestrial and celestial), and astronomical instruments. He was appointed court cosmographer to Duke Wilhelm of Cleve in 1564, and in 1569 he perfected what has become known as the Mercator projection, in which parallels and meridians are rendered as straight lines spaced so as to produce at any point an accurate ratio of latitude to longitude. It permitted mariners to steer a course over long distances, plotting straight lines without continually adjusting compass readings. While the meridians are equally spaced parallel vertical lines, the lines of latitude are spaced farther and farther apart as their distance from the Equator increases; on world maps the projection greatly enlarges areas distant from the Equator.
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