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China has planted a flag on the moon, the BBC reports, citing state media, following his trip to the lunar surface this week.
An image Posted by the China National Space Administration apparently shows the Chinese national flag on the lunar surface.
The state-run Global Times newspaper said the photo was aboard the Chang’e-5 lander before the ascender lifted off the moon.
The Chinese media said the spacecraft “displayed the red five-star national flag, a genuine one made of cloth.”
Spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China Hua Chunying too shared images representing the national flag on the moon.
Proud to have our national flag displayed on the moon. the # Change5 probe collected samples and took off from the moon. It will contribute to global scientific studies in fields such as the formation and evolution of the moon. pic.twitter.com/1UJskx3d9s
– China Mission (@ChinaEUMission) December 4, 2020
Two earlier Chinese lunar missions had flags on ship liners, the Global Times noted, rather than actual flags on a pole.
The Chinese flag was first seen on the moon during the country’s inaugural lunar mission, Chang’e-3, in 2013, the newspaper noted. In 2019, the lander and the Chang’e-4 rover carried the flag to an unvisited part of the moon.
The project leader, Li Yunfeng, told the Global Times that the system used to erect the flag was certain features, such as protection against drastic temperature differences.
“An ordinary national flag on Earth would not survive the harsh lunar environment,” Cheng Chang, a developer of the project, told the state newspaper.
NASA Associate Administrator Thomas Zurbuchen congratulated China on its lunar landing earlier this week.
“This is not an easy task. When the samples collected on the Moon are returned to Earth, we hope that everyone will benefit from being able to study this precious cargo that could advance the international scientific community,” he tweeted.
Congratulations to China on the successful landing of Chang’e 5. It is not an easy task. When the samples collected on the Moon are returned to Earth, we hope that everyone will benefit from being able to study this precious cargo that could advance the international scientific community. pic.twitter.com/2xoKouf3dq
– Thomas Zurbuchen (@Dr_ThomasZ) December 1, 2020
The United States was the first country to place a flag on the moon during the Apollo 11 mission in 1969. Another five flags were placed on subsequent missions until 1972.
NASA cited satellite images showing five of the flags still standing in 2012, but experts have said they were likely bleached white by the glare of the sun.
Astronaut Buzz Aldrin has said that the first flag was placed too close to the Apollo lunar module and was probably blown up when it exploded.
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