The World’s Population, Concentrated
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Today almost 8 billion people live on our planet. Half the world’s population lives in 7 countries: China, India, United States, Indonesia, Brazil, Pakistan, and Nigeria. More than half of the world’s population nowadays residing in urban areas. But urban areas vary greatly in population density. The map below shows if the world’s human population living in one city, how large would that city be?
According to this map Houston, with the lowest population density these cities, takes up the most geographic space, stretched almost to 2/3 of the United States, and holding approximately 4.7 million square kilometers (4.7 million sq mi). With nearly 332 thousand square kilometers (128 thousand sq mi), the smallest hypothetical city was based on a population density equivalent to Paris.
If the Earth’s population is to be more concentrated in one place, then it is fascinating to note that if the whole world population is made to stand shoulder to shoulder, everyone could fit into a space of Los Angeles.
