In China, It's A Matter of Principle

Ouyang Ziyuan, the Chief Scientist of China's Chang'e lunar probe project, commented on the rumors and discussions surrounding the authenticity and quality of Chang'e moon picture. He said:

Whether the picture is real or fake is a matter of principle. Any doubt on this is intolerable and can not be allowed. To doubt the picture's authenticity is an insult to our Country. It is an affront to the work of 17,000 people who had worked on the project.

There you have it.

It's worth pointing out that the said Chief Scientist had publicly claimed the proof of the picture's authenticity is that there is a new meteorite site in the picture that was not present in the NASA pictures. However, amateur astronomers in Shanghai and USA quickly figured out that the new site was a defect in the data-processing of the picture itself. A mistake that had evaded the Chief Scientist and the 17,000 workers.

Ironically, the presence of the defect also proved the picture's authenticity, just not the way the Chief Scientist had wanted. So, now he no longer feels that he needs to present any evidence at all.

But then again, it is simply a matter of principle.