Are ESRI files preprojected? Trying to square a small projection with Web Mercator

Why not to use Web Mercator?

Similar to the Mercator projection, areas stretch out towards the poles. This means you should not use this projection to display the poles. Due to the apparent distortions, the Web Mercator projection is also not appropriate for any spatial analysis or area calculations.
 

Why is Web Mercator used?

The reason Web Mercator was suitable as the basis for early web mapping is that it creates a convenient square shape for the entire world if it is truncated at approximately 85° North and South of the Equator. Wherever you are on the map, up is due north, down is due south and west and east are always left and right.

What is WGS 84 Web Mercator projection?

Web Mercator, Google Web Mercator, Spherical Mercator, WGS 84 Web Mercator or WGS 84/Pseudo-Mercator is a variant of the Mercator map projection and is the de facto standard for Web mapping applications. It rose to prominence when Google Maps adopted it in 2005.

What is the default map projection used by ArcGIS online?

Web Mercator

In ArcGIS Online, like in most online mapping platforms, Web Mercator is the default coordinate system. As many of you know, Web Mercator is not designed to minimize distortions for distance and area calculations.

What is the biggest problem with Mercator projection?

The popular Mercator projection distorts the relative size of landmasses, exaggerating the size of land near the poles as compared to areas near the equator.
 

Is Web Mercator projected?

Web Mercator Coordinate System



It is the de facto standard for web maps and online services. With this coordinate system, the geodetic coordinates defined on the WGS 84 datum are projected as if they were defined on a sphere, using a sphere-based version of the Mercator projection.

What are the disadvantages of Mercator?

This makes Mercator projections the standard for navigational charts. The drawback to this projection is that size and distance are distorted at high latitudes. This is because the distance between lines of longitude declines as you approach the poles, but they remain constant on a Mercator projection.
 

What are the critiques of the Mercator projection?

Most of the main criticisms of the Mercator projection are that it gives people a false impression of the size of the world’s landmasses. Greenland, for instance is not bigger than South America, but it appears to be on Mercator maps.
 

What should the Mercator projection not be used for?

Large area distortion makes the Mercator projection unsuitable for general geographic world maps and thematic mapping.