India celebrates planting its flag on moon

By GAVIN RABINOWITZ
The Associated Press
Saturday, November 15, 2008; 10:16 AM

NEW DELHI -- India rejoiced Saturday at joining an elite club by planting its flag on the moon as the country's space agency released the first pictures of the cratered surface taken by its maiden lunar mission.

A probe sent late Friday from the orbiting mother spacecraft took pictures and gathered other data India needs for a future moon landing as it plummeted to a crash-landing at the moon's south pole, said Indian Space Research Organization spokesman B.R. Guruprasad.

The box-shaped probe was painted with India's saffron, white and green flag, sparking celebrations in the country that is striving to become a world power.

"The tricolor has landed," the Hindustan Times said in a banner headline, while The Asian Age proclaimed "India is big cheese."

As India's economy has boomed in recent years, it has sought to convert its newfound wealth _ built on the nation's high-tech sector _ into political and military clout. The moon mission comes just months after it finalized a deal with the United States that recognizes India as a nuclear power, and leaders hope the mission will further enhance its prestige.


Rest of article found here: www.washingtonpost.com...

This should be considered a declaration of war on America by India. We already planted our flag there and it's our territory, India just can't come along and steal it like that.

First of all.. Meteorologist that was a pretty ignorant thing to say... WE DO NOT OWN THE MOON. Did they take our flag off the moon, fly back down to India and burn it? I didnt read that anywhere, so please stop war-mongering.



Yes, they planted their flag alright... planted it in a million pieces!

But while the celebrations conjured up images akin to that of the U.S. flag unfurled on the moon by Apollo astronauts, India's flag is most likely scattered over a wide swath of the moon's Shackleton crater after the probe slammed into the surface at more than 3,100 miles (5,000 kilometers) per hour.

No worries, they are still working the "kinks" out of their "space program".

Good thing it was an unmanned mission, or we'd have the first lunar grave yard. God bless em for tryin!






HEHE


(Not to be rude by why did you post this in the ALIENS and UFO forums...the only thing this story has in common with UFO's is how their probe crashed all over the moon...)







[edit on 15-11-2008 by Alter-Ego]

Planting a flag by crashing a probe on the surface and actually putting it in the lunar surface by hand are two completely different things. I will give India credit though; at least they got a probe there.....how many countries can say that? Not to mention....um how many other planets and moons and asteroids have we gone to now. Plus I believe the US is the first country to have a probe if not two now to have gone beyond the outer reaches of the Solar system at this point ....and still going. That's right they were sent in the 70's.

[edit on 11/15/2008 by CaptGizmo]

[edit on 11/15/2008 by CaptGizmo]

Outer Space Treaty

The Outer Space Treaty, formally known as the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, including the Moon and Other Celestial Bodies, is a treaty that forms the basis of international space law. The treaty was opened for signature in the United States, the United Kingdom, and the Soviet Union on January 27, 1967, and entered into force on October 10, 1967. As of January 2007, 98 countries are states-parties to the treaty, while another 27 have signed the treaty but have not yet completed ratification.

and especially

The treaty explicitly forbids any government from claiming a celestial resource such as the Moon or a planet, since they are province of mankind. Art. II of the Treaty states, in fact, that "outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, is not subject to national appropriation by claim of sovereignty, by means of use or occupation, or by any other means". The pendant for giving up sovereignty in outer space is the jurisdiction and control that the State that launches a space object retains. According to Manfred Lachs jurisdiction and control is giving the means to the State to conduct a mission of space exploration.

Signed at Washington, London, Moscow, January 27, 1967

Ratification advised by U.S. Senate April 25, 1967

Ratified by U.S. President May 24, 1967

U.S. ratification deposited at Washington, London, and Moscow October 10, 1967

Proclaimed by U.S. President October 10, 1967

Entered into force October 10, 1967

98 countries are states-parties to the treaty, while another 27 have signed the treaty but have not yet completed ratification.

Since the US signed the Treaty on Principles Governing the Activities of States in the Exploration and Use of Outer Space, they can't claim the sovereignty of the Moon.

www.state.gov...


[edit on 15/11/2008 by internos]

Originally posted by Meteorologist
This should be considered a declaration of war on America by India. We already planted our flag there and it's our territory, India just can't come along and steal it like that.

Unfortunetly both the nations signed the outer space treaty, so India cannot declare war on the US over it nor can America consider it a declaration of war.

Edit: damn internos was too fast

[edit on 15-11-2008 by merka]

Originally posted by merka

Originally posted by Meteorologist
This should be considered a declaration of war on America by India. We already planted our flag there and it's our territory, India just can't come along and steal it like that.

Unfortunetly both the nations signed the outer space treaty, so India cannot declare war on the US over it nor can America consider it a declaration of war.

Edit: damn internos was too fast

[edit on 15-11-2008 by merka]

One can never be 100% sure here on ATS, but I think Meteorologist was kidding. You were kidding, right?

This should be considered a declaration of war on America by India. We already planted our flag there and it's our territory, India just can't come along and steal it like that.

No its not US territory and no not war,India have no interest to conquer America or any other country.

reply to post by internos


Thankyou for that bit of information...I had heard about something like that a while ago but that just confirmed it for me

Heres my point in regards to it - if this international treaty was ratified by so many nations -

1) why wasn't there agreement to 1 Global Flag to represent mankind and earth and all that live upon it?

&

2) why wasnt there a combined effort to sent a probe onto the moon to remove the american flag that is there and replace it with the flag of mankind and earth?

This would help to unit the nations, and take one step towards getting rid of the differences amongst us, dont you think?

reply to post by Melbourne_Militia


Well, imho, U.S. deserve the credit for having been the first country to send the Men to the Moon: they have paid for their own programs, so i find it fully correct that the flag in Mare Tranquillitatis is the US one. That said, in my opinion we should see the events in their own temporal contest: there was an ongoing race with USSR, and both USSR and USA were convinced to be able to win the race (move the first step on the Moon soil): an agreement with other countries would have even been possible, but the world was politically more divided than it is presently (actually, now every mission has some foreign technology, including the Indian one):
more important, the plaque left on the Moon reads: We came in peace for all mankind.


Another point is that combined efforts would almost automatically mean sharing technologies: and no one would be available to share too much know-how: that's likely one of the reasons why there's not a huge global space program: i completely agree with you: that would be extremely helpful in order to unit the nations, it would be a huge step toward a peaceful coexistence: we are so small if compared to the universe, and we have so many conflicts, within our world, within each Country, within each town, even within each house

In my opinion, that was also Ronald Reagan's point in his Speech from the 42d Session of the United-Nations General Assembly, N.-Y. 09/21/1987: we all need to improve

«...In our obsession with antagonisms of the moment, we often forget how much unites all the members of humanity. Perhaps we need some OUTSIDE, UNIVERSAL THREAT to make us recognize this common bond. I occasionally think how quickly our differences worldwide would vanish if we were facing an ALIEN THREAT from outside this world. And yet, I ask you, is not an ALIEN FORCE already among us? What could be more alien to the universal aspirations of our peoples than war and the threat of war?...»

[edit on 15/11/2008 by internos]

Ok maybe it's just me but I once hit a barn with a pumpkin shooter once, 1/2 mile away, isn' this just a bit like that? I mean even an old PC today has more power then all of the Apollo missions combined. Good shot India!

The treaty explicitly forbids any government from claiming a celestial resource such as the Moon or a planet, since they are province of mankind.

What about the earth?

reply to post by internos


Hey Internos, that picture of the plaque is one of my favorites.

1. 'Cause it was a space race. First one there wins, and got to plant their flag.
2. 'Cause that's PC to the max. And, removing the flag would be, in my humble opinion, a insult to the people that tried so hard to get their in the first place.


When a United group of astronauts from the countries of Earth meet under one flag and make it to the moon, they'll probably put their flag next to Old Glory.

reply to post by Alter-Ego


It's commonly known as sarcasm, fool.

ummmmmmmmmmmmmm

Is it just me or are there no pictures of any flag in that story?

This is what news has become, now they just say how it is without any evidence. Bizzare.

The 2 obscure SMALL out of focus pictures I have seen look about as a 4th generation copy of a youtube that has been photographed with a 1mp phone camera.

C'mon you guys can't accept this as truth can you??? You seriously believe if they did go there, they'd at the very least have clear sharp colour pictureS of this event? So far this "mission" has produced a myth and an example that anyone can say they flew to the moon without anyone actually questioning it.

NASA is run by the illuminati, not the people you think run it. What makes you think India is any different?

wZn

A related discussion is in session on the news forum.

www.abovetopsecret.com...


1)The flag was an emblem imprint on the sides of the probe shell.
2)The probe was an impactor probe.. It was meant to smash into the lunar surface. So no accident there..

Originally posted by watchZEITGEISTnow
ummmmmmmmmmmmmm

Is it just me or are there no pictures of any flag in that story?

This is what news has become, now they just say how it is without any evidence. Bizzare.

The flag would have been vaporized when the impactor hit the moon. It's just a sentimental kind of thing, relax. My name was also vaporized when the deep impact mission hit comet tempel 1. It's common to put sentimental items or symbols on an impactor even though it's destined to be vaporized on impact.

The 2 obscure SMALL out of focus pictures I have seen look about as a 4th generation copy of a youtube that has been photographed with a 1mp phone camera.

Terrain camera images:
www.isro.org...
www.isro.org...
www.isro.org...
Impactor images:
www.isro.org...
www.isro.org...

Doesn't look out of focus to me, and the first two from the terrain camera look high res.

C'mon you guys can't accept this as truth can you??? You seriously believe if they did go there, they'd at the very least have clear sharp colour pictureS of this event?

No one puts a color CCD on a space probe's main camera these days, you can always get better quality and more versatility with a monochrome imager.

So far this "mission" has produced a myth and an example that anyone can say they flew to the moon without anyone actually questioning it.

I'd say it's proof that some people don't look hard enough before declaring something doesn't exist.

NASA is run by the illuminati, not the people you think run it.

Can you prove that?

[edit on 18-11-2008 by ngchunter]