Editing Transverse Mercator projection (section)

==Standard and transverse aspects==
[[File:comparison_of_cylindrical_projections.svg|thumb|right|Comparison of tangent and secant forms of normal, oblique and transverse Mercator projections with standard parallels in red]]
The transverse Mercator projection is the [[map projection#Aspect of the projection|transverse aspect]] of the standard (or ''Normal'') Mercator projection. They share the same underlying mathematical construction and consequently the transverse Mercator inherits many traits from the normal Mercator:
* Both [[map projection|projections]] are [[map projection#Cylindrical|cylindrical]]: for the normal Mercator, the axis of the cylinder coincides with the polar axis and the line of tangency with the equator. For the transverse Mercator, the axis of the cylinder lies in the equatorial plane, and the line of tangency is any chosen meridian, thereby designated the ''[[Meridian (geography)|central meridian]]''.
* Both projections may be modified to secant forms, which means the scale has been reduced so that the cylinder slices through the model globe.
* Both exist in spherical and [[Figure of the Earth|ellipsoidal]] versions.
* Both projections are [[conformal map projection|conformal]], so that the [[Scale (map)|point scale]] is independent of direction and ''local'' shapes are well preserved;
* Both projections have constant scale on the line of tangency (the equator for the normal Mercator and the central meridian for the transverse).

Since the central meridian of the transverse Mercator can be chosen at will, it may be used to construct highly accurate maps (of narrow width) anywhere on the globe. The secant, ellipsoidal form of the transverse Mercator is the most widely applied of all projections for accurate large-scale maps.