William Atkins
Sunday, 17 May 2009 20:42
Science -
Climate
Page 1 of 3
According to a comprehensive Chinese research project on the Great Wall of China, it has been found that the famous wall is longer than previously thought. However, the Chinese researchers also found that parts of the Great Wall are likely to disappear in a few more decades due to human encroachment.
The Chinese government is reporting that its researchers have completed the most comprehensive and technologically advanced survey ever performed on the Great Wall, which consists of a series of earthen and stone fortifications in northern China.
It was built to protect the northern borders of the Chinese Empire during various dynasties that reigned in the country.
The Wall was begun in the fifth century B.C. Previous research has estimated that as many as three million Chinese died while building the Wall.
The research consisted of two years of study by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage (
SACH), an administrative agency of the Ministry of Culture and the State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping (
SBSM), which is the administrative organization in charge of the surveying and mapping work for all of China.
The researchers used global positioning system (GPS) hardware, along with infrared radiation technology to accomplish their analysis of the Wall.
According to the AFP article
China's Great Wall far longer than thought: survey,
“The wall, built over centuries to keep foreigners out of China, stretches for 8,851.8 kilometres (5,488.1 miles), much further than common estimates of 5,000 kilometres, according to the findings of the survey.”
The previous length of this ancient monument was primarily based on historic records, not advanced measurement techniques as was used in the Chinese survey.
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