Preface To On The Moon: Flags On The Moon

The picture above is from this article: What Happened To The American Flags On The Moon?  So far the moon is the only other part of the solar system humans have put flags on.  No flags on Mars or Venus.  No flags on that comet we landed on a while back.  Voyager didn't drop flags when it flew by Jupiter.

Which makes me think - those flags look kind of bulky.  What did they have to leave out of the lunar lander to make room for the flags?  Maybe the astronauts would have preferred more dehydrated ice cream.

But they kept bringing flags along!  American put six flags on the moon, & the article says that the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter has taken pictures of shadows of five of the six flags.  One of my favorite parts of the article: "While the flags are still there, it's doubtful whether the distinctive stars & stripes are still visible, said ASU professor Mark Robinson, the chief scientist for the cameras. 'I can only guess they are badly in need of replacement after 50-ish years of UV, hot-cold cycles, & micrometeorite bombardment,' he said."

The one Buzz & Neil left apparently was too close to the lander & was blown down in the exhaust of liftoff.  Stupid flag.

But I didn't really want to talk about flags on the moon today!  I wanted to tell you that there'll be only a two hour Self Help Radio tomorrow.  But I guess I can tell you in the next post.