A Newman projection is a form of two-dimensional representation useful for visualizing conformations in a single carbon-carbon bond of an organic molecule. It consists in visualizing the structure along the bond that joins both carbon atoms and projecting it on the plane, so that the groups attached to the carbon atom closest to the observer are drawn linked to the center point of a circle, which would represent the atom, while those of the farther are drawn as if they were split from behind the circle, and therefore their bonds are only partially visible. From left to right: lateral view and along the C-C bond of the ball-and-rod model, and Newman's projection of a syncline or gauche conformation of 1-bromo-2-chloroethane. Br = Red ball, Cl = Green ball.
This projection is named after Melvin Spencer Newman, an American chemist at Ohio State University who created it in 1952.
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