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Great Wall of China is certainly the longest man-made object on earth， and also a top UNESCO World Heritage Site in Asia， and a requisite1 for any visit to mainland China. But much of what we commonly know about the Great Wall isn’t entirely accurate.
中国长城当然是世界上最长的人造物体，也是亚洲顶级的联合国教科文组织世界遗址，是到访中国大陆必须去的一个地方。但是我们通常所知的关于长城的很多常识并不都是完全准确的。
How Old Is the Great Wall of China？
中国的长城有多古老？
Construction of early parts of the wall began over 2，000 years ago. However， most of the existing walls were built during the Ming Dynasty in the 14th century to keep out Mongol2 raiders3.
城墙早期部分的建造始于2000多年前。然而，现存的大部分城墙是在十四世纪的明朝时期修建的，用以阻挡蒙古的侵略者。
Is the Great Wall of China Visible4 from Orbit5？
从地球同步轨道上看得到长城吗？
Under perfect conditions， maybe， but it’s doubtful. Despite the long-running myth that the Great Wall of China is the only man-made structure visible from space， astronauts disagree. Astronauts have mistaken other features for the wall but so far weren’t able to see the structure without help from technology.
While in low orbit， an astronaut did manage to grab a picture of the Great Wall， but pointing a powerful camera sensor6 at it and getting lucky doesn’t mean that it was seen with the naked7 eye.
Although waterways and many man-made objects—including roads—are visible from a low orbit， NASA says that entire continents blend together when viewed with the naked eye from both the moon and space. The Great Wall was constructed using local materials of similar color to the surrounding terrain8， making it indistinguishable9.
在完美的條件下，或许可以，但这仍值得怀疑。尽管有关中国长城是唯一一个可以从太空中看见的人造建筑的传言流传已久，但宇航员们并不认同这一点。宇航员们曾把其他特征误以为是城墙，但到目前为止，没有技术的帮助是看不见该建筑的。
在低轨道的时候，一个宇航员曾确实打算抓拍一张长城的照片，但是那是用一个强大的相机传感器对着它拍摄的，虽然有幸抓拍到，但那不是用肉眼看到的。
虽然河渠和许多人造物（包括道路）在低轨道上可见，但美国宇航局说，从月球和太空用肉眼望去，整个大陆混在了一起。长城是用与周围地形颜色相近的材料就地取材建造的，人们难以区分。
Why Did People Think the Great Wall Was Visible from Space？
为什么人们认为长城在太空中是可见的？
Back in 1754， way before space travel was a thing， an English clergyman10 wrote that the wall is so long that it must be visible from the moon.
Sir Henry Norman， an English journalist， decided to make the same claim in 1895. Both were impressed by the wall， but neither knew very much about space.
For decades to follow， the idea that the Great Wall of China must be visible from space was spread by writers. Finally， the idea became common belief.
早在公元1754年，在人类进入太空之前，一位英国牧师写道，长城如此长，在月球上肯定能看到它。 英国记者亨利·诺曼在1895年做出了同样的声明。虽然这两个人都对长城印象深刻，但都不太了解太空。
接下来数十载，能从太空看到中国长城的这一说法被作家们传播开来。最终，这种奇想成为了普遍认知。
Is the Great Wall One of the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World？
长城是世界古代七大奇迹之一吗？
Despite the age and size， the Great Wall of China never made it onto the list of seven ancient wonders. Perhaps that’s a good thing： The only remaining ancient wonder that has not been destroyed is the Great Pyramid at Giza！
The Great Wall of China was added to the so-called “New Seven Wonders of the World” by winning a poll11 conducted online and by telephone in 2007.
尽由于年代和大小的原因，中国的长城未跻身于世界古代七大奇观的榜单。但这也许是一件好事：唯一保存至今的没有被摧毁的世界古代七大奇迹就只剩吉萨的大金字塔了！
2007年，中国的长城在网上和电话投票中胜出，入选了“新世界七大奇迹”。
Is It Possible to Hike Along the Great Wall？
沿着长城徒步旅行是可能的吗？
Yes. Some adventurers have even walked or cycled the entire length of the wall. Much of the Great Wall is in ruins， however， tour companies offer opportunities to even sleep on top of less popular stretches of the wall.
Many stretches of the wall are closed off permanently12 for restoration13 work or archaeological14 studies which will most likely never finish， if they ever began in the first place.
可以的。一些冒险家甚至步行或骑自行车走完了长城全程。长城的大部分都已成为废墟，然而，旅游公司提供了机会，你甚至可以睡在较冷门的城墙上。
许多段城墙永久关闭，用于修复工作或考古研究，如果已经开始，这些研究很可能永远都不会结束。
Is the Great Wall Busy？
长城热闹吗？
Make no mistake and don’t believe what you see in photos： If you visit any stretch of the Great Wall within striking distance of Beijing， particularly Badaling， you’ll be in the company of hundreds—if not thousands—of other visitors. You may as well learn how to say hello！
The wall is incredibly busy during big holidays in China such as National Day and Chinese New Year.
不犯错误，不要相信你看到的图片：如果您到访北京附近的任何一段长城，特别是八达岭，你会有数百甚至数千其他游客的陪伴。你不妨学学如何同他們打招呼！
如果是在国庆节和春节之类的中国长假期间，长城将会异常地热闹。
Other Interesting Great Wall of China Facts
关于长城的其他趣闻
◎Mao Zedong once said， “He who has not climbed the Great Wall is not a true man.”
◎Sections of the wall contain bullet holes from the Second Sino-Japanese War.
◎President Nixon’s historic 1972 visit to China included a tour of the Great Wall at Badaling， a very popular part of the wall around 50 miles north of Beijing.
◎The Badaling stretch of the Great Wall， the section nearest to Beijing and the most visited， was used as the end of the cycling course for the 2008 Summer Olympics.
◎More than 25，000 watchtowers have been constructed along the wall throughout history.
◎毛泽东曾经说过：“不到长城非好汉。”
◎部分城墙上有中国抗日战争时期遗留下的弹孔。
◎尼克松总统1972历史性地访问了中国，行程包括游览八达岭长城。这是一段非常受欢迎的长城，位于北京以北约50英里处。
◎八达岭长城离北京最近、游客最多，是2008年夏季奥运会自行车赛的终点。
◎在历史上，沿着城墙，一共建起了超过25000座瞭望台。
Notes：
1. requisite n. 必需品
2. Mongol n. 蒙古人，蒙古语
3. raider n. 袭击者；侵入者
4. visible adj. 明显的；看得见的
5. orbit n. 轨道
6. sensor n. 传感器
7. naked adj. 裸体的；无装饰的
8. terrain n. 地形，地势；地带
9. indistinguishable adj. 不能区别的，不能辨别的
10. clergyman n. 牧师；教士
11. poll n. 投票；民意测验
12. permanently adv. 永久地，长期不变地
13. restoration n. 恢复；复位
14. archaeological adj. 考古学的；考古学上的
中国长城当然是世界上最长的人造物体，也是亚洲顶级的联合国教科文组织世界遗址，是到访中国大陆必须去的一个地方。但是我们通常所知的关于长城的很多常识并不都是完全准确的。
How Old Is the Great Wall of China？
中国的长城有多古老？
Construction of early parts of the wall began over 2，000 years ago. However， most of the existing walls were built during the Ming Dynasty in the 14th century to keep out Mongol2 raiders3.
城墙早期部分的建造始于2000多年前。然而，现存的大部分城墙是在十四世纪的明朝时期修建的，用以阻挡蒙古的侵略者。
Is the Great Wall of China Visible4 from Orbit5？
从地球同步轨道上看得到长城吗？
Under perfect conditions， maybe， but it’s doubtful. Despite the long-running myth that the Great Wall of China is the only man-made structure visible from space， astronauts disagree. Astronauts have mistaken other features for the wall but so far weren’t able to see the structure without help from technology.
While in low orbit， an astronaut did manage to grab a picture of the Great Wall， but pointing a powerful camera sensor6 at it and getting lucky doesn’t mean that it was seen with the naked7 eye.
Although waterways and many man-made objects—including roads—are visible from a low orbit， NASA says that entire continents blend together when viewed with the naked eye from both the moon and space. The Great Wall was constructed using local materials of similar color to the surrounding terrain8， making it indistinguishable9.
在完美的條件下，或许可以，但这仍值得怀疑。尽管有关中国长城是唯一一个可以从太空中看见的人造建筑的传言流传已久，但宇航员们并不认同这一点。宇航员们曾把其他特征误以为是城墙，但到目前为止，没有技术的帮助是看不见该建筑的。
在低轨道的时候，一个宇航员曾确实打算抓拍一张长城的照片，但是那是用一个强大的相机传感器对着它拍摄的，虽然有幸抓拍到，但那不是用肉眼看到的。
虽然河渠和许多人造物（包括道路）在低轨道上可见，但美国宇航局说，从月球和太空用肉眼望去，整个大陆混在了一起。长城是用与周围地形颜色相近的材料就地取材建造的，人们难以区分。
Why Did People Think the Great Wall Was Visible from Space？
为什么人们认为长城在太空中是可见的？
Back in 1754， way before space travel was a thing， an English clergyman10 wrote that the wall is so long that it must be visible from the moon.
Sir Henry Norman， an English journalist， decided to make the same claim in 1895. Both were impressed by the wall， but neither knew very much about space.
For decades to follow， the idea that the Great Wall of China must be visible from space was spread by writers. Finally， the idea became common belief.
早在公元1754年，在人类进入太空之前，一位英国牧师写道，长城如此长，在月球上肯定能看到它。 英国记者亨利·诺曼在1895年做出了同样的声明。虽然这两个人都对长城印象深刻，但都不太了解太空。
接下来数十载，能从太空看到中国长城的这一说法被作家们传播开来。最终，这种奇想成为了普遍认知。
Is the Great Wall One of the Seven Ancient Wonders of the World？
长城是世界古代七大奇迹之一吗？
Despite the age and size， the Great Wall of China never made it onto the list of seven ancient wonders. Perhaps that’s a good thing： The only remaining ancient wonder that has not been destroyed is the Great Pyramid at Giza！
The Great Wall of China was added to the so-called “New Seven Wonders of the World” by winning a poll11 conducted online and by telephone in 2007.
尽由于年代和大小的原因，中国的长城未跻身于世界古代七大奇观的榜单。但这也许是一件好事：唯一保存至今的没有被摧毁的世界古代七大奇迹就只剩吉萨的大金字塔了！
2007年，中国的长城在网上和电话投票中胜出，入选了“新世界七大奇迹”。
Is It Possible to Hike Along the Great Wall？
沿着长城徒步旅行是可能的吗？
Yes. Some adventurers have even walked or cycled the entire length of the wall. Much of the Great Wall is in ruins， however， tour companies offer opportunities to even sleep on top of less popular stretches of the wall.
Many stretches of the wall are closed off permanently12 for restoration13 work or archaeological14 studies which will most likely never finish， if they ever began in the first place.
可以的。一些冒险家甚至步行或骑自行车走完了长城全程。长城的大部分都已成为废墟，然而，旅游公司提供了机会，你甚至可以睡在较冷门的城墙上。
许多段城墙永久关闭，用于修复工作或考古研究，如果已经开始，这些研究很可能永远都不会结束。
Is the Great Wall Busy？
长城热闹吗？
Make no mistake and don’t believe what you see in photos： If you visit any stretch of the Great Wall within striking distance of Beijing， particularly Badaling， you’ll be in the company of hundreds—if not thousands—of other visitors. You may as well learn how to say hello！
The wall is incredibly busy during big holidays in China such as National Day and Chinese New Year.
不犯错误，不要相信你看到的图片：如果您到访北京附近的任何一段长城，特别是八达岭，你会有数百甚至数千其他游客的陪伴。你不妨学学如何同他們打招呼！
如果是在国庆节和春节之类的中国长假期间，长城将会异常地热闹。
Other Interesting Great Wall of China Facts
关于长城的其他趣闻
◎Mao Zedong once said， “He who has not climbed the Great Wall is not a true man.”
◎Sections of the wall contain bullet holes from the Second Sino-Japanese War.
◎President Nixon’s historic 1972 visit to China included a tour of the Great Wall at Badaling， a very popular part of the wall around 50 miles north of Beijing.
◎The Badaling stretch of the Great Wall， the section nearest to Beijing and the most visited， was used as the end of the cycling course for the 2008 Summer Olympics.
◎More than 25，000 watchtowers have been constructed along the wall throughout history.
◎毛泽东曾经说过：“不到长城非好汉。”
◎部分城墙上有中国抗日战争时期遗留下的弹孔。
◎尼克松总统1972历史性地访问了中国，行程包括游览八达岭长城。这是一段非常受欢迎的长城，位于北京以北约50英里处。
◎八达岭长城离北京最近、游客最多，是2008年夏季奥运会自行车赛的终点。
◎在历史上，沿着城墙，一共建起了超过25000座瞭望台。
Notes：
1. requisite n. 必需品
2. Mongol n. 蒙古人，蒙古语
3. raider n. 袭击者；侵入者
4. visible adj. 明显的；看得见的
5. orbit n. 轨道
6. sensor n. 传感器
7. naked adj. 裸体的；无装饰的
8. terrain n. 地形，地势；地带
9. indistinguishable adj. 不能区别的，不能辨别的
10. clergyman n. 牧师；教士
11. poll n. 投票；民意测验
12. permanently adv. 永久地，长期不变地
13. restoration n. 恢复；复位
14. archaeological adj. 考古学的；考古学上的