Australia

The national flag of Australia is based on the British Blue Ensign—a blue field with the Union Jack in the upper hoist quarter—featuring a large white seven-pointed star and a representation of the Southern Cross constellation, made up of five white stars. Australia also has a number of other official flags representing its states and territories, indigenous peoples and government bodies.

The Australian flag uses three prominent symbols: the Union Jack, Southern Cross, and Commonwealth Star. Adopted in its current form in 1801, the Union Jack incorporates three heraldic crosses representing the nations of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland as they were constituted at the time: Located in the canton, the position of honour in the flag, the Union Jack acknowledges the history of British settlement in Australia. Further, the British Admiralty required a flag based on the Blue or Red Ensign for maritime use. The Commonwealth Star, also known as the Federation Star, is located in the lower hoist quarter. It originally had six points, representing the six federating colonies. In 1908, a seventh point was added to symbolise the Territory of Papua, and any future territories. The Commonwealth Star does not have any official relation to Beta Centauri, despite the latter's brightness and location in the sky; however, the 1870 version of the flag of South Australia featured the pointer stars, Alpha and Beta Centauri. The Southern Cross is located in the fly half of the flag. It is one of the most distinctive constellations visible in the Southern Hemisphere,…