Apollo Moon flags still standing
With a half-Earth in the background, the Lunar Module ascent stage with Moon-walking Astronauts Neil Armstrong and Edwin Aldrin Jr. approaches for a rendezvous with the Apollo Command Module manned by Michael Collins.
Images taken by a NASA spacecraft show that the US flags planted in the Moon's soil by Apollo astronauts are mostly still standing.
The photos, taken from Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO), which was designed to produce the most detailed maps yet of the lunar surface, show that all the flags — one planted in the soil at each Apollo mission's landing site — are still casting shadows, except the one left on the Moon during the Apollo 11 landing, according to BBC News. They match Buzz Aldrin's account of the flag being knocked over by engine exhaust when Apollo 11 lifted off.
More from GlobalPost: Big find: Amazon's Jeff Bezos to raise Apollo 11 engines from ocean (PHOTOS)
Scientists have previously examined images of each Apollo landing site for signs of the flags, but have only seen hints of what might be their shadows, reported Space.com. Now, researchers have looked at photos taken in the same spots at different times in the day, which showed shadows circling the points where the flags are thought to be. LROC principal investigator Mark Robinson said the photos were "convincing."
"Personally I was a bit surprised that the flags survived the harsh ultraviolet light and temperatures of the lunar surface, but they did," Robinson wrote in a blog post. "What they look like is another question (badly faded?)."
The LROC photos of each flag's supposed location at various times were combined by James Fincannon, a NASA engineer from Glenn Research Center, according to Universe Today.
"Combined with knowledge of the Apollo site maps which show where the flag was erected relative to the Lander, long shadows cast by the flags at the three sites show that the these flags are still 'flying,' held aloft by the poles," Fincannon wrote.
The story you just read is accessible and free to all because thousands of listeners and readers contribute to our nonprofit newsroom. We go deep to bring you the human-centered international reporting that you know you can trust. To do this work and to do it well, we rely on the support of our listeners. If you appreciated our coverage this year, if there was a story that made you pause or a song that moved you, would you consider making a gift to sustain our work through 2024 and beyond?