America took great pride in its achievements when it put the first man on the moon - and since then it's been back several times, conducting research missions. On every occasion, the crew of the successful mission has left the Stars and Stripes on the surface. Apollo missions 11, 12, 14, 15, 16 and 17 all left their mark on the surface.
Amazingly, all of these flags are still on the Moon's surface and can be seen by powerful telescopes. They're all still standing with the exception of one - the very first. By Buzz Aldrin's own admission, they planted it too close to the Command Module, and it was knocked over when it took off to rendezvous with its parent ship in orbit. There is however one drawback - they're no longer really American flags. Because the Moon has no atmosphere, the flags have had years of direct exposure to the Sun's UV rays - bleaching them completely white over time.