Fundamentals of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Practice Test

The azimuthal projection is specifically designed to maintain direction from a central point to any other point on the map. This type of projection allows for accurate representation of angles, which is crucial for navigation and other applications where preserving direction is essential. Because of its properties, it is often used in applications such as aviation and radio transmission, where the true direction from a central point needs to be maintained accurately.

While the conformal projection preserves shapes and angles locally, the equidistant projection maintains distances accurately from one or two specific points but does not guarantee that direction will be preserved throughout the entire map. The equal area projection focuses on preserving the proportional size of areas on the map, sacrificing directionality in the process. Each of these alternatives serves a different purpose, emphasizing aspects like shape, distance, or area rather than direction, which is the primary feature of the azimuthal projection.