Africa, China, & India are distorted despite access to accurate satellite data. The distortion is the result of the Mercator projection, the map most commonly seen hanging in classrooms and in text books, which was created in 1596 to help sailors navigate the world. The familiar 'Mercator' projection gives the right shapes of land masses, but at the cost of distorting their sizes.
Note: Click Link For More Maps & Daily Mail Article by Ellie Zolfagharifard