Is Texas truly as massive as Europe? A captivating map circulating on social media in October 2024 certainly suggested so, positioning the outline of the Lone Star State over Europe and encompassing significant portions of five Western European nations. This visual quickly garnered attention, sparking curiosity and reaffirming Texas’s reputation for being big. But how accurate is this viral depiction?
While the sensationally shared map slightly inflates the dimensions of Texas, it does tap into a fundamental truth: Texas is indeed vast. This comparison, while not perfectly precise in the viral image, serves as a powerful illustration of the sheer scale of the second-largest state in the United States, only surpassed by Alaska.
The Viral Texas-Europe Map: Fact vs. Exaggeration
The Facebook post, which ignited widespread interest, presented a map claiming to accurately compare Texas’s size to Europe. Captioned “After Seeing These 15 Maps You’ll Never Look At The World The Same,” it aimed to highlight the often-underestimated size of geographical entities. The visual impact was undeniable: Texas appeared to stretch across France, Spain, Italy, and parts of Germany and Switzerland, creating a striking image of American bigness juxtaposed with the European continent.
Hayley Drennon, a senior research assistant at Columbia University’s Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, confirmed the underlying message: “Texas really is THAT big.” However, her expert analysis revealed a nuance. While the viral map conveyed a mostly accurate impression, it moderately exaggerated Texas’s borders. Therefore, the claim is rated as “Mostly True”—correct in spirit, but slightly off in precise execution.
To understand the subtle distortion, Drennon recreated the comparison using official geographic data. By downloading the “Texas State Boundary shapefile” from the Texas Department of Transportation (TDT) and utilizing ESRI’s ArcPro Software, a geographic information system, she generated a more precisely scaled map overlay. This process involved reprojecting the state, a crucial step in accurately representing a three-dimensional object (the Earth) on a two-dimensional surface (a map).
Map comparing Texas to Europe from Facebook page My America
Unpacking the Map Discrepancies
Comparing Drennon’s accurately generated map with the viral Facebook image reveals the subtle exaggerations. For instance, the viral version positions El Paso County, Texas’s westernmost region, close to the border of Spain and France. In contrast, Drennon’s map places it further north. Similarly, the southernmost point of Cameron County in the viral image nearly reaches Rome, Italy, while it appears more northward in the accurate rendition.
(Snopes compilation Facebook/@myamericatravel, Drennon)
This size variation stems from “projection,” the method cartographers employ to translate the Earth’s curved surface onto a flat map. Drennon likens it to wrapping a spherical object—different wrapping techniques will lead to slightly different appearances and paper draping. “Depending on what type of projection a person uses, their shape map might be slightly different,” she explained. She also noted that the Facebook map exhibits shape variations and greater detail compared to her version, derived from official TDT data.
The viral map likely originated from “The True Size” website, a tool designed to combat map projection distortions, particularly the Mercator projection. The Mercator projection, while widely used, notoriously inflates the size of areas closer to the poles (like Europe and North America) while shrinking regions near the equator. As “The True Size” website explains, “Every map projection introduces distortion.” This app aims to provide a more realistic sense of size by allowing users to drag and drop country outlines across a map, adjusting for projection distortions.
Texas Size in Numbers: A State of Immense Scale
Regardless of minor map exaggerations, the core message remains valid: Texas is geographically enormous. The Lone Star State boasts a land area of 261,193.9 square miles and an additional 7,330.9 square miles of water, totaling a combined area of 268,524.8 square miles within its borders, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
To put this into perspective, Texas is larger than many countries in Europe. For example, it dwarfs the United Kingdom, Italy, or Poland individually. While Europe as a continent is significantly larger than Texas, the comparison highlights that Texas alone possesses a landmass comparable to a substantial portion of Western Europe. The feeling of vastness in Texas is palpable for anyone who has driven across the state, experiencing its diverse landscapes and seemingly endless horizons.
Conclusion: Texas’s Size and Map Projections
In conclusion, the viral map comparing Texas to Europe, while slightly exaggerating the state’s size due to projection distortions, effectively communicates the impressive scale of Texas. The “Mostly True” rating acknowledges the minor inaccuracies but affirms the central point: Texas is indeed a massive geographical entity, comparable in size to a significant portion of Europe. The comparison serves as a compelling reminder of how map projections can shape our perception of size and underscores the importance of understanding these distortions when visualizing global geography.
It’s clear that whether through viral maps or statistical data, the sheer size of Texas continues to capture the imagination and spark comparisons on a global scale.
Sources
An Introduction to ArcGIS Online—ArcGIS Online Help | Documentation. https://doc.arcgis.com/en/arcgis-online/get-started/what-is-agol.htm. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.
‘Compare Countries With This Simple Tool’. The True Size, https://www.thetruesize.com/#?borders=1~!MTQ3MTM5NTk.MTI2NTMyMjU*MjEwNzQ2NjM(MTUyMjExNDc~!US-TX*ODcyMDI1NQ.MjIyNjA0NzQ(MTQ3)NA. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.
‘—‘. The True Size, https://www.thetruesize.com/#/aboutModal. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.
Explore Census Data. https://data.census.gov/profile/Texas?g=040XX00US48. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.
Map of Four Regions – North, South, East, West. Texas Department of Transportation, https://ftp.dot.state.tx.us/pub/txdot-info/fin/sib/regions-map.pdf. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.
Texas State Boundary Detailed. https://gis-txdot.opendata.arcgis.com/datasets/texas-state-boundary-detailed/explore?location=30.807276,-98.916283,5.61. Accessed 24 Oct. 2024.
