China becomes the second nation to plant the flag on the moon

China planted its flag on the moon, more than 50 years after the United States first planted the stars and stripes there.

Images from China’s National Space Administration show the five-star red flag hovering over the windless lunar surface.

They were taken by a camera on its Chang’e-5 spacecraft before it left the moon with rock samples on Thursday.

Two previous Chinese moon missions had flags on the linings of boats, so neither could be affixed to the moon.

The United States planted the first flag on the moon during the manned Apollo 11 mission in 1969. Five more US flags were planted on the moon’s surface during subsequent missions up to 1972.

In 2012, NASA cited satellite images to show that five of the flags were still standing, but experts quoted in media reports say they are likely to have been bleached by the sun’s glare.

Astronaut Buzz Aldrin said the first flag was placed too close to the Apollo lunar module and was, he said, likely blown away when the module exploded.

What did China say about its mission?

The state-owned Global Times newspaper said the Chinese flag is reminiscent of the “enthusiasm and inspiration” felt during the US Apollo missions.

The fabric flag was deployed by the Chang’e-5 lander vehicle just before its blocking vehicle took off using the lander as a launch pad.

It has taken soil and rock samples on the Chinese lunar orbiter 15 km (nine miles) above the lunar surface, which will then be encased in a module that will be aimed at the Inner Mongolia region of China.

The Chinese flag is 2m wide and 90cm high and weighs around one kilogram. All parts of the flag have been provided with features such as cold protection, project leader Li Yunfeng told the Global Times.

The story continues

“A normal national flag on Earth would not survive the harsh lunar environment,” said project developer Cheng Chang.

China’s national flag was seen on the Moon during its first lunar landing mission, Chang’e-3 in photographs taken by the lander and rover of each other. The Chang’e-4 lander and rover carried the flag to the dark side of the moon in 2019.

However, in both cases the flag was on the lining of the boats rather than being a real fabric flag on a pole.

The Chang’e-5 mission is China’s third successful moon landing in seven years.