Apollo’s 6 Moon Flags Likely Bleached White After 53-56 Years of Solar Exposure
Updated
Updated · spacedaily.com · Jun 19
Apollo’s 6 Moon Flags Likely Bleached White After 53-56 Years of Solar Exposure
3 articles · Updated · spacedaily.com · Jun 19
Summary
Five of the six U.S. flags planted during Apollo missions likely still stand on the Moon, but their red and blue dyes have almost certainly faded to white after more than five decades.
53-56 years of unfiltered ultraviolet light, solar wind and temperature swings from about 120°C in daylight to deep cold would break down dyed nylon, weaken threads and leave brittle cloth.
Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter images support that view indirectly: they show standing flag shadows at Apollo 12, 14, 15, 16 and 17, but cannot resolve the fabric’s color.
Apollo 11 is the exception, with no standing-flag shadow seen; Buzz Aldrin said the first flag was blown over by the Lunar Module’s ascent engine during liftoff.
The likely bleaching underscores how the Moon’s environment is steadily degrading Apollo-era artifacts, from flags and plastics to rovers, instruments and even bootprints.