What is the Equidistant Cylindrical Projected Coordinate System?
The Equidistant Cylindrical Projected Coordinate System specifies a single standard parallel (line of latitude) which is used to determine the ratio of spacing between meridians (lines of longitude) and parallels. For a standard parallel of the Equator, the ratio is 1:1. For other latitudes, the ratio is determined by the cosine of the latitude of the standard parallel (i.e., increasing latitude results in decreasing spacing of the projected meridians). The projected surface can be viewed as being tangent to the Equator. When considered as secant, two rather than a single standard parallel would be required; alternatively this can be expressed as a “scale factor” at the Equator. Unlike the other PCS, the “scale factor” is applied identically to both dimensions. While the projection does not require that a reference longitude be specified, conventional usage is to define a standard meridian, such as Greenwich, thus allowing for relative offsets in the longitudinal direction. Additionall
