These 4 are the ONLY man-made objects on Earth visible from Space; Great Wall of China NOT on list

Humanity has created some astonishing structures in its brief time as the most dominant species on the Earth. From the Taj Mahal to the Great Wall of China, these are some awe-inspiring objects that have stood the test of time and still manages to impress us every day. But some of these structures are even more impressive than we realised. And it was noticed after International Space Station was launched and astronauts working aboard the spacecraft would report seeing these man-made objects from the vastness of space above Earth. ISS is a multinational collaborative project involving NASA, Roscosmos, JAXA, ESA, and CSA. So, which are the structures that can be seen from space either using unaided eyes or a camera? Read on to find out.

Before we get to the list, here is a fun fact. For ages, it was said that the Great Wall of China can be seen from space with an unaided eye. However, it has now been established that it is a myth and the wall in fact cannot be seen from even the lower orbit of Earth without specialised instruments. Former astronaut Chris Hadfield revealed it in a tweet. He said, “The Great Wall of China is not visible from orbit with the naked eye. It's too narrow, + follows the natural contours & colours”.

Man-made objects that are visible from Space

1. Palm Jumeirah, Dubai - The Palm Jumeirah is a work of art. It is a man-made island situated in the Dubai coastline and is home to glitzy hotels, posh apartment towers and upmarket global restaurants. Shaped like a palm tree, it is one of the only man-made objects that can even be seen from the Karman line (boundary between Earth's atmosphere and outer space).

2. The Three Gorges Dam, China - While the Great Wall of China cannot be seen from space, this humongous dam is definitely visible. The dam is built along the Yangtze River, the third largest in the world, stretching more than 3,900 miles across China. NASA’s Landsat satellite pictured the dam from space after its inception in 1994.

3. Pyramids of Giza - While not the largest man-made object, but according to many astronauts, the Pyramids of Giza are actually visible from space. According to former ISS commander Leroy Chiao, the mystifying structure is visible like small dots from space. A camera does a better job of capturing the details of it, however.

4. Bingham Canyon Mine, Salt Lake City - This one is a surprise addition as normally people do not think of a mine to be visible from Space. That is because a mine goes inward inside the Earth and not outward, protruding from the Earth, making it easy to spot. However, the vastness of the copper mine has created such a unique structure that it is now easily viewable from space, where it looks like a vortex on the ground.