Google map mystery of giant lines spotted by satellite in Gobi desert
(source: dailymail.co.uk)
![Unidentified: This bizarre structure was spotted by a Google Maps satellite on the borders of Gansu province and Xinjiang](http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/11/15/article-2061424-0ECC75B700000578-364_964x463.jpg)
The internet is buzzing with theories about what their purpose is, with suggestions ranging from giant QR readers to practise targets for military satellites.
To add to the intrigue, they are located on the borders of Gansu province and Xinjiang in northwestern China - an area that the superpower uses to build military, space and nuclear equipment.
![Speculation: Some internet users have been overlaying the strange strange structures over maps of U.S cities](http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/11/14/article-2061424-0ECC723200000578-658_470x664.jpg)
Some internet users have been trying to overlay one of the strange structures on to various U.S. city maps, worried that there may be a sinister military purpose behind them.
Others have pointed out that if China wanted to attack a U.S. city, it doesn’t need a practise map in the desert.
What’s also fuelling the mystery is that it’s just too difficult to tell what the structures are made of – whether they are painted on or dug into the landscape.
![A closer look: When you zoom in closer you can spot burnt out vehicles in the Gobi desert, raising questions about what China might be building in a region it uses for its military, space and nuclear programmes](http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/11/14/article-2061424-0ECC748A00000578-984_470x664.jpg)
Last week it published pictures of Iranian facilities which the UN says may be used to develop nuclear weapons.
Satellite images of Arak and Natanz show changes to the facilities in the areas when compared with images taken in October 2010.
![Close-up: A zoomed in version of the grid has fueled speculation over the purpose of the structures](http://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/pix/2011/11/16/article-2061424-0ECC792F00000578-471_964x728.jpg)
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