Is The Great Wall Of China Visible From Space?
After countless missions to space by astronauts from all over the world, nobody has been able to see the wall from space
A popular notion about The Great Wall of China is that it is visible from space. Now here’s the truth: You can’t easily see the Great Wall with the unaided eye, even from a lower Earth orbit.
The Apollo astronauts couldn’t see the majestic man-made structure from the Moon either, even though that legend has been widely communicated.
Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, spent five months aboard the International Space Station (ISS) in 2012-2013, and reiterated the facts about The Great Wall’s visibility from space. “The Great Wall of China is not visible from orbit with the naked eye,” Hadfield said via Twitter. “It’s too narrow, and it follows the natural contours and colours [of the landscape].”
Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield, spent five months aboard the International Space Station (ISS) in 2012-2013, and reiterated the facts about The Great Wall’s visibility from space. “The Great Wall of China is not visible from orbit with the naked eye,” Hadfield said via Twitter. “It’s too narrow, and it follows the natural contours and colours [of the landscape].”
It is difficult to spot the structure with a naked eye because there didn’t exist any distinguishable features; unlike those of the pyramids of Giza that are easily identified by astronauts, from the ground surface.
Astronaut photograph of the Giza Pyramids, taken August 18, 2003 with a Kodak DCS760 digital camera equipped with an 800mm lens and provided by Cynthia A. Evans (Lockheed Martin / Earth Observations Laboratory, Johnson Space Center). Credit : NASA
But in 2004, NASA confirmed that American astronaut Leroy Chiao took the first ever verifiable image of the Great Wall of China from space. He focused his zoom lens from his window aboard the ISS.
He photographed a region of Inner Mongolia, around 200 miles north of Beijing, but in his report back to NASA, he said 'he didn’t see the wall with his unaided eyes, and wasn’t sure if the picture showed it either.'
This photo of central Inner Mongolia, about 200 miles north of Beijing, was taken on Nov. 24, 2004, from the International Space Station. Credit: NASA. 
The yellow arrow points to an estimated location of 42.5N 117.4E where the wall is visible. The red arrows point to other visible sections of the wall. Credit: NASA
So why are we convinced that the Chinese historical landmark can be seen from space?
Some of the confusion probably arises from high-resolution space photographs, which can be processed to show manmade features distinctly. An existing satellite with radar imaging and very high resolution could probably detect the Great Wall of China.
But for our eyes, even from space —such a feat is impossible.
But for our eyes, even from space —such a feat is impossible.
You'll can look at it here:
While the Great Wall of China is very difficult to see or photograph from low Earth orbit, sections of the wall can be seen readily in radar imagery. Credit: NASA. 
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