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| − | ''Welcome to the | + | __NOTOC__{{DISPLAYTITLE:explain xkcd}} |
| + | <center> | ||
| + | <font size=5px>''Welcome to the '''explain [[xkcd]]''' wiki!''</font><br> | ||
| + | <span style="font size:210%;">We have an explanation for all [[List of all comics (full)|'''{{#expr:{{PAGESINCAT:All comics|R}}}}''' xkcd comics]], and only {{PAGESINCAT:Incomplete explanations|R}} ({{#expr: {{PAGESINCAT:Incomplete explanations|R}} / {{LATESTCOMIC}} * 100 round 1}}%) are incomplete. [[:Category:Incomplete explanations|Help us finish them!]]</span><!-- Note: the -1 in the calculation above has been removed (it was there to discount "comic" 404, but we've categorized it to be a comic and so has Randall.) --> | ||
| + | </center> | ||
| + | <!-- Go to this explanation button --><span style="position: absolute; right:0; padding-top:1.4em; font-size: 100%;"><span class="no-link-underline">[[{{LATESTCOMIC}}| </span>'''Go to this explanation''']]</span> | ||
| − | + | =Latest comic= | |
| + | <div style="border:1px solid grey; background:#f6f6f6; padding:1.5em;"> | ||
| + | {{:{{LATESTCOMIC}}}} | ||
| + | ---- | ||
| − | == | + | <span style="position: absolute; left:0; padding-top:1.35em; font-size: 105%;"><span class="no-link-underline"> [[File:new topic.png|21x21px|link={{LATESTCOMIC}}#Discussion]][[{{LATESTCOMIC}}#Discussion| </span>'''View comic discussion''']]</span><br><br></div> |
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| − | == | + | == New here? == |
| − | + | <div style="float:right; margin: 0 0 1em 1em">{{Special:ContributionScores/10/7/nosort,notools}}<div style="font-size:0.85em; width:28em; font-style:italic">[[Special:ContributionScores|Lots of people]] contribute to make this wiki a success. Many of the recent contributors above have [{{fullurl:Special:Contributions|contribs=newbie}} just joined]. You can do it too! Create your account [[Special:UserLogin/signup|here]].</div></div> | |
| − | + | You can read a brief introduction about this wiki at [[explain xkcd]]. Feel free to [[Special:UserLogin/signup|create an account]] and contribute to the wiki! We need explanations for xkcd [[:Category:Incomplete explanations|comics]], [[:Category:Characters|characters]], [[What If? chapters|''What If?'' articles]], and [[:Category:xkcd|everything in between]]. If it is referenced in an [[xkcd]] comic, it should be here. | |
| − | + | ||
| + | * If you're new to wiki editing, see the [[explain xkcd:Editor FAQ]] for a specific guidance to this wiki and the more general help on [[mw:Help:Editing pages|how to edit wiki pages]]. There's also a handy {{w|Help:Cheatsheet|wikicode cheatsheet}}. | ||
| + | |||
| + | * Discussion about the wiki itself happens at the [[explain xkcd:Community portal|Community portal]]. | ||
| + | |||
| + | * You can browse the comics from the [[List of all comics (full)|list of all comics]] or by navigating the category tree at [[:Category:Comics]]. | ||
| + | |||
| + | * The incomplete explanations are listed [[:Category:Incomplete explanations|here]]. Feel free to help out by expanding them! | ||
== Rules == | == Rules == | ||
| − | |||
| − | If you want to talk about a specific comic, | + | Don't be a jerk! |
| + | |||
| + | There are a lot of comics that don't have set-in-stone explanations; feel free to put multiple interpretations in the wiki page for each comic. | ||
| + | |||
| + | If you want to talk about a specific comic, use its discussion page. | ||
| + | |||
| + | Please only submit material directly related to xkcd and, of course, only submit material that can legally be posted and freely edited. Off-topic or other inappropriate content is subject to removal or modification at admin discretion, and users who repeatedly post such content will be blocked. | ||
| + | |||
| + | If you need assistance from an [[explain xkcd:Administrators|admin]], post a message to the [[explain xkcd:Community portal/Admin requests|Admin requests]] board. | ||
| − | + | [[Category:Root category]] | |
Latest revision as of 19:52, 31 July 2025
Welcome to the explain xkcd wiki!
We have an explanation for all 3216 xkcd comics, and only 64 (2%) are incomplete. Help us finish them!
Latest comic
| Bad Map Projection: Zero Declination |
 Title text: 'The zero line in WMM2025 passes through a lot of population centers; I wonder what year the largest share of the population lived in a zone of less than 5° of declination,' he thought, derailing all other tasks for the rest of the day. |
Explanation
This is the tenth comic in the Bad Map Projections series, displaying Bad Map Projection #216: Zero Declination.
While the Earth's magnetic field is broadly aligned North-South, the actual alignment of the magnetic field varies over time and position. The difference between True North (the axis of Earth's rotation) and Magnetic North (the direction a compass will point) will vary depending on your position, and is known as the Magnetic Declination of that point.
The comic shows a map that has been distorted based on the Magnetic Declination such that Magnetic North for every point is pointed toward the top of the map. If this were reality, then Magnetic North would always be aligned with True North, or in other words, there would be Zero Declination at all points.
The red arrows indicate the distortions from the starting map required to make Magnetic North be at the top.
In the title text, "WMM2025" refers to the 2025 version of the World Magnetic Model, a representation of the Earth's magnetic field. You can see it here. The "zero line" is in green, which shows where in the world magnetic declination is 0°. Randall has presumably wasted a day trying to figure out what year has had the most population living in an area of less than 5° declination by searching through previous WMM maps. He appears to have not found the answer, so explainxkcd requests its readers finish the job. Judging by magnetic declination historical data lines with 0 degree declination were near India and China at some points recently, so maybe it is reasonable to assume it happened. Unfortunately declination can easily go up to 15 degrees or even higher, so when one high population density area has declination close to 0, some other one often has an extremely high declination.
Transcript
View comic discussionNew here?
Last 7 days (Top 10) |
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You can read a brief introduction about this wiki at explain xkcd. Feel free to create an account and contribute to the wiki! We need explanations for xkcd comics, characters, What If? articles, and everything in between. If it is referenced in an xkcd comic, it should be here.
- If you're new to wiki editing, see the explain xkcd:Editor FAQ for a specific guidance to this wiki and the more general help on how to edit wiki pages. There's also a handy wikicode cheatsheet.
- Discussion about the wiki itself happens at the Community portal.
- You can browse the comics from the list of all comics or by navigating the category tree at Category:Comics.
- The incomplete explanations are listed here. Feel free to help out by expanding them!
Rules
Don't be a jerk!
There are a lot of comics that don't have set-in-stone explanations; feel free to put multiple interpretations in the wiki page for each comic.
If you want to talk about a specific comic, use its discussion page.
Please only submit material directly related to xkcd and, of course, only submit material that can legally be posted and freely edited. Off-topic or other inappropriate content is subject to removal or modification at admin discretion, and users who repeatedly post such content will be blocked.
If you need assistance from an admin, post a message to the Admin requests board.
