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Celebrating Flag Day

American flag in cupola window
NASA astronaut Jack Fischer took this photograph of an American flag in one of the windows of the International Space Station's cupola, a dome-shaped module through which operations on the outside of the station can be observed and guided. Throughout NASA's history, spacecraft and launch vehicles have always been decorated with flags.

NASA astronaut Jack Fischer took this photograph of an American flag in one of the windows of the International Space Station’s cupola, a dome-shaped module through which operations on the outside of the station can be observed and guided.

Throughout NASA’s history, spacecraft and launch vehicles have always been decorated with flags. When Ed White became the first American astronaut to perform a spacewalk on June 3, 1965, his spacesuit was one of the first to be adorned with a flag patch. White’s crewmate Jim McDivitt also wore a flag on his suit. The astronauts purchased the flags themselves, but following their flight, NASA made the flag patch a regular feature on the spacesuits. NASA astronauts still wear them today.

Image Credit: NASA