The cartographic projection or geographic projection is a system of graphic representation that establishes an ordered relation between the points of the curved surface of the Earth and those of a flat surface (map). These points are localized by helping in a network of meridians and parallels, in the form of a mesh. The only way to avoid the distortions of this projection would be using a spherical map.
In a system of projected coordinates, the points are identified by the Cartesian coordinates (x and y) in a mesh whose origin depends on the cases. This type of coordinates are obtained mathematically from the geographic coordinates (longitude and latitude), which are not projected.
The flat representations of the terrestrial sphere are called maps, and those in charge of elaborating them or specialists in cartography are called cartographers.
