It’s China!
China is now officially the second-ever country in history to plant its flag on the moon.
After over 50 years, China has done something America did, technically.
While the United States of America had Buzz Aldrin to place their flag on the moon, however, China did not.
The flag that China placed on the moon was carried out by an ascent vehicle.
The Chang’e 5’s ascent vehicle touched down on the moon’s surface on Tuesday, December 1, 2020, to collect 4 pounds of rocks and bring them back to our planet.
During its visit to the moon, the space vehicle popped the flag of China and made its way back.
The journey of Chang’e-5 to come back to our planet started on December 4, 2020.
The returns of the samples collected from the moon will be the first one to come back to our planet in the last 40 years.
The last ones to arrive on our planet were by the Soviets, which got done in 1976.
In 2013, China planted its flag on the moon during its first lunar landing mission of Chang’e-3. They did the same on the dark side of the moon last year after the Chang’e-4 lander went to the unvisited region of the moon.
China Space Sanjiang Group, which works under the State-owned China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation, said that they hope the flag will keep its red color.
Researchers with the group spent over a year choosing the right materials for it, which would reportedly help the flag stand on the moon for a longer time.
The flag that they placed on the moon is capable of surviving under extreme coldness and heat.
This is something the other flags that are on the moon failed to do.
5 of the 6 flags that were placed on the moon in the late 1960s and early 1970s during the 6 US crewed moon landings are still standing. However, due to solar radiation, they have been bleached.