The emblem on the flag is coloured white; it is a depiction of the world map in the azimuthal equidistant projection (centred on the North Pole and the International Date Line), surrounded by a pair of olive branches.The emblem depicts a azimuthal equidistant projection of the world map, centred on the North Pole, with the globe being orientated to the International Date Line.The azimuthal equidistant projection used in his design was heavily influenced by the maps created during World War II by Richard Edes Harrison, a popular cartographer working for Fortune and Life.[6][7].The blue that appears in the background of the insignia was chosen to be "the opposite of red, the war colour",[8] although the exact shade has never been officially specified by the United Nations.According to official explanations, the change was made to represent countries "as far as possible in their proper relationship to the cardinal points"[1] and "so the east and west were in balance".
Insignia displayed on the cover of the
United Nations Charter
, from 26 June 1945, predating the official adoption of a flag of the United Nations. Notably, the lower, upright part of the globe is centered on
100° West
, which places North America at prominence. Later versions of the United Nations insignia changes this to align closer to, and eventually at, the
prime meridian
(0° longitude).