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From the Liveblog of Tuesday, March 5, 2019

Israeli spacecraft Beresheet sends home first selfie from 23,364 miles away

5 March 2019, 2:06 pm

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At a distance of 37,600 kilometers (23,364 miles) from Earth, the Moon-bound Israeli spacecraft Beresheet turns slowly to snap a photo of its plaque against a background of a distant Earth.

The background shows the Australian continent.

The plaque shows the Israeli flag with the inscriptions, “Am Israel Hai,” or “the Jewish People Lives,” and in English, “Small Country Big Dreams.”

Photo taken by the Beresheet spacecraft in which an Israeli flag can be seen on a plaque with the inscription, “Am Israel Hai,” or “The Jewish People Lives,” and in English, “Small country, big dreams,” taken 37,600 kilometers from Earth. (Courtesy SpaceIL/IAI)

Beresheet is the first Israeli spacecraft to be launched to the Moon. If it lands successfully as planned on April 11, little Israel will be only the fourth nation in history to land a craft on Earth’s satellite.

— Melanie Lidman

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