can u see the great wall of china from space, I heard recently its just a popular myth.?

Answer 1

According to space scientists, no you cannot see it from space. See this article from Space.com:
http://www.space.com/searchforlife/seti_shostak_seeing_031120.html

Also here is something from a Great Wall website, which says that it is just barely visible from the space shuttle (which is in a very low-earth orbit, technically yes in space but just barely):
http://www.greatwall-of-china.com/43-30/the-rise-and-fall-of-chinas-great-wall.html
Their quote says

But even that seems to be disproved by the fact that China's own first astronaut was unable to see the Great Wall from space:
http://www.rense.com/general43/greatwll.htm

My recollection of the issue from some time back was that one of the Space Shuttle astronauts (in an article or talk, I forget exactly whom or where or when but this was about 3 to 5 years ago) said that the wall itself is not visible without using binoculars, but that the AREA the wall travels through is in many places cleared of vegetation enough so that it stands out. That may have been this Chinese astronaut or it may have been someone else -- possibly astronaut Jay Apt as reported in the Snopes.com article that Dave Stark references two answers down from mine.

== EDIT ==

Some answerers here have been posting replies based on astronauts' photographs taken from space or photographs taken by satellites. Both of these situations involve telescopic lenses, so this is not the same thing as being "visible" in the normal sense of the phrase, which implies with the unaided eye. An 800mm lens is the equivalent of a good telescope (a 75mm lens is about equivalent to a nice pair of binoculars and a 35mm lens is about equivalent to the human eye, for reference). Google Earth actually uses all sorts of different image sources stitched together digitally including high-resulution satellites and aerial photography, so a lot of things are very clearly visible using Google Earth that would not be at all visible with the naked eye even from a low orbit. Think about it, when you are up in an airplane at 30,000 feet you cannot make out any roads smaller than the interstate freeways (so how could you possibly see them from orbit 150 miles up?), and yet Google Earth will show you the dirt road leading through the woods in a remote state park.

Answer 2

The reason you're getting a lot of different answers here is because 'Space' is a very relative term. Technichaly speaking, we're in space as we sit here now. We always are, we are as bound to it as we are to time. Now, I realize what you mean is 'out there'. But that's subject to interpertation too. It could mean in orbit, or it could mean outside the atmosphere. While the atmosphere isn't very thick, it doesn't exactly have a very well defined edge, either. And 'orbit' can go a long way out. So.. I guess I'd say that you can see the Great Wall from pretty high up. And you might not hear about motorways because that's not as dramatic sounding.

Answer 3

Here's a quote from astronaut Alan Bean (copied from snopes)--
*The only thing you can see from the moon is a beautiful sphere, mostly white (clouds), some blue (ocean), patches of yellow (deserts), and every once in a while some green vegetation. No man-made object is visible on this scale. In fact, when first leaving earth's orbit and only a few thousand miles away, no man-made object is visible at that point either."

You will probably want to check out snopes.com---use the search engine box and type in wall of china. This is a great site for evaluating truth/falsity of urban legends and various rumors/tales.

Answer 4

The Great Wall cannot be seen from space. The interstate highway system cannot be seen from space, and this is even wider and longer than the Great Wall.

Answer 5

It depends on how far you are up in space (needless to say, from the moon you cannot see it). It is not, however, the only man-made thing you can see from space. Highways, railroads, etc. can all be seen from space.

See the article below for more information on this.

Answer 6

Here is a way for you to see for yourself. If you dont have Google Earth get it. Look up "great wall of China." The answer becomes self evident.

Answer 7

Here's the article stating that "Chinese-American astronaut Leroy Chiao, who has been on three space flights and is currently coming to the end of his six-month stint on the joint US-Russian space station, has provided the first photographic evidence of sections of the Great Wall using commercially available equipment." The second like shows pictures from space of pyramids.

Answer 8

Usually this is asked as "is it true that the Great Wall of China is the ONLY man-made object you can see from orbit". And that is NOT true.

Yes, you can see the Great Wall of China from orbit -- though it is very difficult because the materials from which it is made match the local materials so well. But it is not the only man-made object that can be seen from orbit. (Check out the referenced site at snopes.com)

For example, the Kennecott Mine, just southwest of Salt Lake City, can be seen from orbit.

Answer 9

it depends how far out you are in space say if your 10 miles away from the atmosphere you probally couldnt (unless you had really good eyesight) but like just at the begining of space where space and earth meet you could

Answer 10

I Google Earthed it, and yes, you can make it out. And that's from a satellite's distance....is that the 'space' that you are referring to. Otherwise, from the moon or further, i doubt whether you can see it.