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China Says Moon Pictures Not Faked From NASA
Reuters ^ | December 2, 2007 | Reuters

Posted on 12/03/2007 2:49:51 AM PST by JACKRUSSELL

(BEIJING) - China has dismissed Internet gossip that its first photo of the moon taken from a lunar orbiter might have been plagiarised from NASA, local media said on Monday.

The country launched its first lunar probe, the Chang'e 1, in October and released a photo featuring a patch of grey moon surface splotched with craters last week, hailing the mission as a "complete success".

But some Chinese Internet users have questioned its originality after comparing it with an almost identical lunar image from the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration in 2005.

"There is absolutely no forgery," Ouyang Ziyuan, chief scientist for the lunar probe, told the Beijing News.

The Chinese and U.S. lunar images looked similar only because they had aimed at the same area of the moon's southern hemisphere, Ouyang was quoted as saying.

"But a careful examination will tell some small differences," Ouyang said. There were two craters on a certain spot of the Chinese photo, but there was only one on that same spot of the American picture, the Beijing News quoted him as saying.

"Maybe it's because the resolution of the American photo was not high enough, or a new pit might have been generated by an asteroid hitting the moon between 2005 and 2007," Ouyang said.

"I understand the doubts of the Internet surfers. They hope the Chinese lunar probe can do well so they don't want the photo to turn out to be fake," he said.

A three-dimensional image of the moon surface taken by the Chang'e 1 was released on Sunday and some data collected by the satellite would be shared with the public, the Beijing News said.

China has an ambitious space programme, eyeing its scientific and military benefits as well as domestic political gains from its boost to patriotism.

In 2003, China became only the third country to put a man into space using its own rocket after the former Soviet Union and the United States. It then sent two astronauts on a five-day flight on its Shenzhou VI mission in October 2005.

It plans to launch a third manned mission, Shenzhou VII, into space next year which would involve a space walk.

Other Asian powers have also announced lunar plans. Japan launched its first lunar satellite in September and India plans one in 2008.


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: china; moon; nasa

1 posted on 12/03/2007 2:49:53 AM PST by JACKRUSSELL
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To: Duchess47; jahp; LilAngel; metmom; EggsAckley; Battle Axe; SweetCaroline; Grizzled Bear; ...
Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket
”MADE IN CHINA” Ping.

(Please FReepmail me if you would like to be on or off of the list.)
2 posted on 12/03/2007 2:50:11 AM PST by JACKRUSSELL
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To: JACKRUSSELL
Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket
3 posted on 12/03/2007 2:54:30 AM PST by JACKRUSSELL
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To: JACKRUSSELL
"Maybe it's because the resolution of the American photo was not high enough, or a new pit might have been generated by an asteroid hitting the moon between 2005 and 2007," Ouyang said.

That's news! Was that pit made by photoshop copy and paste function?
4 posted on 12/03/2007 2:59:52 AM PST by Wiz
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To: JACKRUSSELL

Chang’e 1 = Chinese for Capricorn One


5 posted on 12/03/2007 3:00:23 AM PST by Darkwolf377 (...sigh...)
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To: JACKRUSSELL
When are they planning on building the Hwang Ho?
6 posted on 12/03/2007 3:26:07 AM PST by samtheman
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To: JACKRUSSELL

The ChiComs got caught stealing photo images from NASA and are now in full denial mode.


7 posted on 12/03/2007 3:37:08 AM PST by Virginia Ridgerunner (“We must not forget that there is a war on and our troops are in the thick of it!” --Duncan Hunter)
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To: Virginia Ridgerunner

The chicoms steal and deny... it is what commies do.

LLS


8 posted on 12/03/2007 3:46:57 AM PST by LibLieSlayer (Support America, Kill terrorists, Destroy dims and vote Fred!)
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To: Wiz

9 posted on 12/03/2007 3:51:22 AM PST by billorites (freepo ergo sum)
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To: JACKRUSSELL
They all look alike anyway.
10 posted on 12/03/2007 4:01:15 AM PST by BallyBill (Serial Hit-N-Run poster)
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To: BallyBill

Thats funny!


11 posted on 12/03/2007 4:08:55 AM PST by abovethefray
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To: JACKRUSSELL

All your moon are belong to us!


12 posted on 12/03/2007 4:29:24 AM PST by flowerplough (America is the most benign hegemon in history, according to Mark Steyn.)
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To: JACKRUSSELL
Japan launched its first lunar satellite in September ...

Well, Reuters again strikes out. I believe that Hiten-Hagoromo was Japan's first lunar satellite mission back in 1990. Since it was a rather amazing story (part of which involves Hiten achieving lunar orbit via the first low energy transfer), it's hard to imagine that any person paid to be a writer on the subject would be completely unaware of it, but apparently Reuters sees fit to employ such.

(The Washington Post apparently cares even less about appointing people with expertise: their current bureau chief in Tokyo, Blaine Harden, appears to have virtually no expertise about Japan.)

13 posted on 12/03/2007 5:56:31 AM PST by snowsislander
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To: abovethefray

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_trip_to_the_moon


14 posted on 12/03/2007 5:57:10 AM PST by #1CTYankee (That's right, I have no proof. So what of it??)
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To: JACKRUSSELL

If you look closely you can see the little moon man holding up a picture of the Lunar Times with today’s date on it.


15 posted on 12/03/2007 6:07:50 AM PST by Larry Lucido (Hunter 2008)
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To: JACKRUSSELL

Look at the source of this story ...Reuters. If anyone knows about faked photos it is Reuters.


16 posted on 12/03/2007 6:41:31 AM PST by The Great RJ ("Mir we bleiwen wat mir sin" or "We want to remain what we are." ..Luxembourg motto)
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To: JACKRUSSELL

Any links to the accused photo, and the supposed source NASA photo?


17 posted on 12/03/2007 7:44:36 AM PST by Atlas Sneezed ("We do have tough gun laws in Massachusetts; I support them, I won't chip away at them" -Mitt Romney)
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To: JACKRUSSELL

Well, if the photo is fake, then it demonstrates China inability for space exploration. So, no need to worry about their space program.


18 posted on 12/03/2007 12:32:36 PM PST by ponder life
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To: JACKRUSSELL

Capricorn II?


19 posted on 12/03/2007 12:37:32 PM PST by art_rocks
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To: Beelzebubba
Photo Sharing and Video Hosting at Photobucket

China's lunar probe pictures taken last week, left, and the 2005 NASA pictures, right. The extra hole in the Chinese pictures could suggest it was hit by an extra meteorite.

From: China Defends Lunar Probe Pictures
20 posted on 12/03/2007 4:17:35 PM PST by JACKRUSSELL
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To: Larry Lucido

And I can read the headline: “Moon Pie Fight in the Mars Bar”.


21 posted on 12/04/2007 8:03:32 AM PST by Calvin Locke
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To: Virginia Ridgerunner

Some of the rubbish posted here reminds me of a joke. After working many years as a journalist in Beijing, a Chinese man returned to his home village to visit his relatives. He showed them a photograph of the late U.S. President Nixon who visited China in 1972. All the relatives of the Chinese journalist claimed that the photo was a fake because Nixon did not look like Mao Zedong, or rather, Nixon did not look like a Chinese.

The journalist’s home village was situated in a remote part of western China where the people had never seen a white foreigner in their lives. To them, Nixon was an alien from the outer space.

In order to convince them, the Chinese journalist took out a Beijing newspaper that published the news of Nixon’s China visit. He pointed to a photo of Nixon in the newspaper and asked them to compare it with his photo. However, the villagers accused him of trying to hoodwink them by publishing a fake photo in the newspaper. They argued that both photos were created by him because they looked alike even though the photo in the newspaper showed a smiling face while the journalist’s photo showed a solemn-looking face.

By now, most of those villagers should have gone to heaven or hell. If you happen to pass by their graves at night, you may still hear them arguing about the fake photos.


22 posted on 12/04/2007 10:49:40 AM PST by IMCCjoke
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To: JACKRUSSELL

Made in Taiwan or made on the Chinese mainland? The Chinese character for “guo”(nation)is not the simplified form of Chinese used on the mainland.


23 posted on 12/04/2007 11:15:15 AM PST by IMCCjoke
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To: Wiz

Perhaps you can show us how to photoshop copy and paste a chimney on the roof of the White House. After that, you may get many calls from some big companies to create fake images.


24 posted on 12/04/2007 12:17:49 PM PST by whatsTheFuss
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To: whatsTheFuss
Re: Perhaps you can show us how to photoshop copy and paste a chimney on the roof of the White House. After that, you may get many calls from some big companies to create fake images.

Brad Pitt... and I agree!

25 posted on 12/04/2007 12:34:43 PM PST by Bender2 ("I've got a twisted sense of humor, and everything amuses me." RAH Beyond this Horizon)
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To: JACKRUSSELL

The angle of the shadows in the craters in the upper right of the photos indicate the two are NOT the same photograph or that the two were taken some time apart from one another, as the shadow angle has a 5-7 degree variation.


26 posted on 12/04/2007 12:44:10 PM PST by azhenfud (The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God.)
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To: billorites

Haha, thanks for bringing back this memory. I had to watch this for my film class...interesting to see how they got to the moon by blasting themselves in a huge cannon.


27 posted on 12/04/2007 12:46:01 PM PST by cdbull23 ("If it's brown, drink it down. If it's black, send it back." - Homer on what's good to drink.)
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To: JACKRUSSELL

I’ll believe it when they bring back moon dust contaminated with lead...


28 posted on 12/04/2007 12:48:54 PM PST by hunter112 (Hillary Clinton - America’s Ex-Wife®)
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To: JACKRUSSELL
Good explanation of the "extra crater" HERE. The picture is NOT faked and they did NOT discover a new crater.
29 posted on 12/04/2007 12:51:32 PM PST by Cincinatus (Omnia relinquit servare Rempublicam)
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To: billorites

Instead of blasting the astronauts to the moon in a huge cannon, the following article in the website http://www.boston.com/news/world/articles/2003/10/15/china_puts_its_first_man_in_space/ reveals that a more modern method had been attempted long ago — literally rocketing to the moon! Excerpts follow:

(Begin excerpts)
.....President Hu Jintao was at the launch center to watch China’s bid to realize a dream that has a long history. A crater on the moon is named after a mythical Chinese explorer, Wan Hu, who, according to legend, died after strapping 47 rockets to a chair in an ill-fated attempt to reach the heavens. China’s program to reach the moon is code-named Chang’e, after a mythical fairy who traveled to the moon after mistakenly eating medicine that made her fly..... (End excerpts)


30 posted on 12/05/2007 6:36:06 PM PST by IMCCjoke
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To: Cincinatus

Thanks - very interesting article. Along with the better camera used by the Chicoms - It seems to me that the lighting angle of the new photos also is a huge aid in providing better definition of the features.


31 posted on 12/05/2007 6:45:21 PM PST by geopyg (Don't wish for peace, pray for Victory. ------ www.gohunter08.com ------)
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To: JACKRUSSELL

The China photos are not faked. The shadow angles are different between the two photos, and the resolution goes down towards the edges of the China photos (a common occurance in space optics — you can’t afford to send many “correcting” elements due to mass).


32 posted on 12/13/2007 7:17:44 PM PST by MikeD (We live in a world where babies are like velveteen rabbits that only become real if they are loved.)
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To: KevinDavis

:’)

US trailing China in military space race
OneNewsNow | 2-1-07 | Chad Groening
Posted on 02/01/2007 9:34:23 PM EST by DeweyCA
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1777725/posts


33 posted on 12/19/2007 3:59:49 PM PST by SunkenCiv (Profile updated Tuesday, December 18, 2007___________________https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: markman46; AntiKev; wastedyears; ALOHA RONNIE; RightWhale; anymouse; Brett66; SunkenCiv; ...

34 posted on 12/20/2007 7:00:26 PM PST by KevinDavis (Mitt Romney 08, WE ARE NOT ELECTING A PASTOR-IN-CHIEF!)
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To: JACKRUSSELL

35 posted on 12/20/2007 7:39:59 PM PST by anymouse
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