|
|
Which man made structure apart from the Great Wall of China can be seen from outer space?
Question
#69412. Asked by aisha99. (Aug 07 06 6:24 AM)
|
Allergic2Life
|
If we take "space" to mean a low Earth orbit such as the one travelled by the Space Shuttle (roughly 160 to 350 miles above Earth), the Great Wall claim fails twice. First of all, it's not the only object visible from that distance: NASA's Earth from Space photographic archive (particularly the Human Interactions section) shows that pictures taken from low orbit reveal human-built structures such as highways, airports, bridges, dams, and components of the Kennedy Space Center. Secondly, even though other objects are visible at this distance, according to Shuttle astronaut Jay Apt, the Great Wall is barely discernable, if not invisible:
We look for the Great Wall of China. Although we can see things as small as airport runways, the Great Wall seems to be made largely of materials that have the same color as the surrounding soil. Despite persistent stories that it can be seen from the moon, the Great Wall is almost invisible from only 180 miles up!
http://www.snopes.com/science/greatwal.htm
|
Find something useful here? Please help us spread the word about FunTrivia. Recommend this page below!
|