[ad_1]
China is the second country in the world to place its flag on the moon after more than 50 years. The country’s national space administration has released images of its flags on the surface of the moon. This information has been reported in a report by the British media BBC.
According to the report, the images were taken with the camera of the Chang’i-5 spacecraft before returning with rock samples from the moon last Thursday. Earlier, during the Apollo 11 mission in 1989, the United States hoisted a country’s flag on the Moon for the first time. Five more American flags were subsequently flown on the moon during various missions until 1962.
Citing satellite images, NASA said in 2012 that all five flags were still there. However, experts believe that they are likely to be turned white by the intense rays of the sun.
The state-run Global Times reported that the Chinese flag recalled the excitement and inspiration felt during the Apollo missions in the United States. The flag is two meters wide and 90 centimeters long, Li Yunfeng, who led the project, told the Global Times.
The Chinese flag was first seen on the surface of the moon in a photo taken from China’s first lunar spacecraft, Chang’e-3. In 2019, the Chang’e-4 spacecraft was able to carry the Chinese flag on the dark surface of the moon.
However, neither of those two occasions was literally a flag made of cloth. At that time, the Chinese flag was painted on the surface of the spacecraft.
The Chang’e-5 mission is China’s third successful lunar mission in seven years. The spacecraft is currently on its way to Earth with samples of lunar pebbles and sand.
[ad_2]
