How big is Gabon really?
Gabon covers 267,667 km² (103,000 sq mi). On the usual world map (the Mercator projection) it is drawn close to its true size: it lies near the equator, where the usual world map stretches little.
See Gabon at its true size on the map →True size vs the map
Both drawn at the same scale. The map keeps shapes but swells everything away from the equator.
Gabon in numbers
- Gabon is the 76th largest of the 196 countries and territories in Globegami.
- Countries of about the same true size: New Zealand (268,021 km²), Burkina Faso (274,200 km²), Ecuador (257,204 km²).
- Gabon is about 10% bigger than the United Kingdom.
Why the map gets Gabon wrong
Gabon lies around 1°S. A Mercator map stretches distances there by about 1.0 times in every direction, which barely changes its size. Most web maps use this projection because it keeps angles and shapes right for navigation, not because it shows sizes fairly.
In Globegami you can drag a copy of Gabon anywhere on Earth: it keeps its true size and grows or shrinks on the map as it moves, and you can fold the map back into a globe.
Areas: official totals including inland water (UN Statistics Division via Wikidata). Outlines: Natural Earth. How Globegami works