This type of projection is used for mapping mid-latitude regions, such as Canada and the United States. The result is less overall shape distortion of land and water areas. The Lambert Conformal Conic projection is a commonly used version of the conic type. The parallels are non- concentric , while the central meridian is straight. Other meridians are complex curves.
Scale is true along each parallel and along the central meridian.
In the cylindrical case, the Earth is projected on to a tangent or secant cylinder which is also cut lengthwise and laid flat. The result is an evenly spaced network of straight, horizontal parallels and straight, vertical meridians. A straight line between any two points on this projection follows a single direction or bearing, called a rhumb line . This feature makes the cylindrical projection useful in the construction of navigation charts. When the cylinder is used as a surface to project the entire World on to a single map, significant distortion occurs at the higher latitudes, where the parallels become further apart, and the poles cannot be shown.