We explain what a globe is, its history, elements and famous specimens. Also, differences with a planisphere.
What is a globe?
A globe or terrestrial globe is a three-dimensional representation of the planet Earth, made on a spherical support according to certain scales conventional.
Sometimes it is accompanied by textures and roughnesses to stage the relief, or arranged on an axis so that it can be rotated. It is a didactic tool, as well as a decorative object.
Globes are made in different sizes and using different scales, since it is not easy to translate the 40 million kilometers of the earth's circumference into an object that will fit on a desk.
Many of the educational balloons use a scale of 1 / 40,000,000, so by making a one-meter balloon perimeterThus, an equivalence of one centimeter for every 400 kilometers is obtained. Even so, it is known and accepted that there is some margin of distortion in the representation, and that the proportions are always approximate, not rigorously exact.
However, on any globe we can find all the continents, the oceans, the polar regions and the geographical-territorial division of the countries, as well as their capitals Y cities more important. Some models also include the largest rivers, the jungles more dense and the historical locations of importance.
History of the globe
From the 3rd century BC. C. the Earth is known to be a sphere. Ancient Greek astronomers, dedicated scholars of the geography and of the stars, they drew the first maps of the West.
Therefore, it is estimated that they also built the first spherical models of the known world, which at that time was limited to the Mediterranean, North of Africa, Middle East and part of Asia central.
However, no specimens from those times are preserved, so the first globes are of Islamic origin, such as the one presented in Beijing by the Muslim geographer Jamal al-Din in 1267.
For its part, the oldest known western globe dates from 1492 and was built by Martin Behaim (1459-1537), a German navigator and merchant. This specimen is known as the "Terrestrial Globe of Nuremberg" or the Erdapfel ("The apple of the Earth").
Since then, numerous versions have been made of the terrestrial globe, updated according to centuries of world and even space exploration. Currently we handle digital satellite models, made from a combination of technologies and perspectives that allow the highest possible degree of precision in the history.
Examples of famous globes
Eartha is the largest mobile globe in the world.Some of the most famous globes were:
- The Erdapfel. Created by Martin Behaim and painted by Georg Glockendon, it is as we said before the oldest terrestrial globe in the West. It represents the Eurasian continent, with an ocean between the two, the Asian islands and Japan (disproportionately large) and does not include the American continent, unknown in Europe for the time.
- Hunt-Lennox balloon. Another of the oldest preserved is today in the rare books division of the New York Public Library. America already appears in it, although restricted to its Central and South regions, and it is the only terrestrial globe in which the famous cartographic phrase appears Hic svnt dracones ("Here are dragons") to indicate unexplored territory.
- Globe of Gottorf (1654-1664). German made in the town of Gottorf, at the request of the Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, Frederick III, measures about 3 meters in diameter and is currently in the Kunstkamera in Saint Petersburg, Russia, as it was given to Tsar Peter the Great during the Great Northern War of the century XVIII. It has a hydraulic system that allows it to reproduce the movements terrestrial, and also a map of the constellations with astrological signs inside.
- Columbus globe for leaders from Condition and of the industry . Also known as the "Hitler's Globe" or the "Führer's Globe", it was designed in Germany especially for the Nazi party, and it remained in Hitler's office most of the time. WWII. He was mocked by Charles Chaplin in his film The great Dictator and there are two versions of it, the largest of which is the size of a Volkswagen car.
- Globe of Peace. Holder of the Guinness record for the world's largest globe until 1999, the Mappamondo della Pace It was built for six years by Orfeo Bartolucci, as a peace offering for the whole world. The balloon measures 10 meters in diameter and weighs 17,000 kilograms, and is reinforced with glass in the open air in Apecchio, Italy.
- Eartha. The world's largest globe is located within the facilities of the business from mapping DeLorme, in Maine, United States. Built to a scale of 1: 1,000,000, it weighs around 2,500 kilograms and has a diameter of 12.5 meters. It is mounted on an axis inclined 23.5 ° from the I usually, imitating the inclination on its elliptical path of the real planet, and allows to simulate the earth rotation every 18 minutes.
Parts of a globe
Globes are usually made up of:
- A smooth, spherical surface, usually made of wood or plastic, on which the spherical map of the world adheres.
- A foot or support in which the ball is inserted, allowing it to rotate and in some cases tilt. It is accompanied by an arm that connects the North Pole and the South Pole, and in which there may be inscriptions.
- In some cases, this model may include small representations of the Moon, rotating around the planet, or small disks at the North pole with inscriptions regarding the cardinal points, the orientation of the Sun, day and night, etc.
Continents
The globes present the six continents (America, Africa, Asia, Europe, Oceania and Antarctica) in its entirety known, with a fairly precise degree of its estimated physical form. This implies, in almost all cases, the need to slightly alter its proportions, to be able to present everything in the same sphere.
Planisphere
Unlike globes, which reproduce the sphericity of the planet, planispheres are world maps designed on a plane, through a projection of the planet. They contain the same information as any terrestrial globe, but organized according to other types of conventions and scales, which allow them to be printed on paper or other flat materials.
They are made with the general purpose of being political maps, since they allow a much lower degree of accuracy than the spherical model, working better as partial maps, than total ones.