The Israeli probe bound for the Moon has posted its first photo - a "selfie" of itself carrying the national flag, with the Earth in the background, 23,363 miles away.
The Beresheet (Hebrew for "In the Beginning") probe, which blasted off from Florida on February 24, is due to reach the Moon on April 11, which would make Israel the fourth country to land a probe there.
On Tuesday, its camera took the photo, which included the words: "Am Yisrael Chai".
At a distance of 37,600 km from Earth, #Beresheet’s selfie camera took a picture of #Earth. Australia can be clearly seen! This photo was taken during a slow spin of the #spacecraft & for the first time see the #Israeli flag 🇮🇱 & text, "am yisrael chai." #IsraelToTheMoon #SpaceIL pic.twitter.com/ELFZsaShXg
The craft is orbiting the earth before it begins its final trajectory. It is carrying a 585kg robotic lander.
It is also set to be the first privately-funded mission to reach the Moon. SpaceIL built Beresheet together with Israel Aerospace Industries but the £70 million mission was primarily financed by Jewish philanthropists.
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