Classifications
pseudocylindric
equal-area
Graticule
Meridians: Complex curves shaped to make the projection equal-area.
Parallels: Straight parallel lines, spaced the same as the equatorial stereographic projection.
Poles: Points.
Symmetry: About the central meridian and the equator.
Distortion
Free of distortion on the central meridian at 39°23′N/S. Distortion accelerates rapidly away from the equator and central meridian, with extreme in the high latitudes away from the central meridian.
Similar projections
Sinusoidal does not stretch the poles vertically as much. Tobler-Mercator is even more extreme, with poles at infinity.
Origin
H.-C.-A. De Prépetit Foucaut, 1862.