Have you ever wondered where you might end up if you started on the beach here at the Jersey Shore and then swam out in a straight line until you reached land again?

Okay, maybe you haven't before, but regardless, the answer will probably surprise you!

Point Pleasant Beach ocean
Liz Jeressi
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The Washington Post shared the work of a mapmaker named Andy Woodruff, who created a series of maps to show what's directly across from every beach in the world.

When you first look at them, it doesn't make a lot of sense because the maps look like they are full of twisting lines, but you have to take into account that Earth is in fact round, so they would actually be straight lines on a globe.

It also takes into account that coastlines twist and turn, and so when you face the ocean in New Jersey, you may not be facing exactly east, so your straight line may send you elsewhere!

A cool example he provides? If you got in the water at 30th Street in Ocean City, and swam out in a straight line, eventually you'd hit not Europe, but South America! Brazil, to be more specific.

Sounds crazy, right? Luckily he provides varying kinds of map projections to help wrap your brain around it!

Check out the maps HERE.

Pretty cool!

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