China: 'We Didn't Steal Nasa's Picture'

Updated:18:41, Tuesday December 04, 2007

China has denied swiping a photo of the Moon from Nasa and peddling it as the country's own achievement.

Spot the difference:
Chinese (left) and American (right)

The picture was unveiled last week by the Chinese prime minister amid much trumpeting and patriotic pats on the back.

Wen Jiabao said it was the first published image from the Chang-e 1 lunar probe mission.

But star-gazers disagree, flooding the internet with rumours that the picture might not be authentic.

Postings on messageboards claim it is suspiciously similar to one released by Nasa in 2005.

Ouyan Ziyuan, head scientist of the Chinese Lunar Exploration has defended the image's originality, insisting: "There is absolutely no forgery."

He said there is a simple explanation for the twin pictures: They are both of the same area of the Moon's southern hemisphere.

"Careful examination shows that there are some differences," he said.

"There were two craters on a certain spot of the Chinese photo. Yet there is only one on that same spot of the American picture."

Mr Ouyan suggested that the resolution of Nasa's shot was not high enough to show all the craters.

The Chang-e 1 Explorer was sent into space in October and marks China's long-term goal of putting a man on the Moon by 2020.

(http://news.sky.com)