what do the five stars on the australian flag stand for
the Southern Cross
title: Flag of Australia text: Flag of Australia The flag of Australia is a defaced Blue Ensign: a blue field with the Union Jack in the canton (upper hoist quarter), and a large white seven-pointed star known as the Commonwealth Star in the lower hoist quarter. The fly contains a representation of the Southern Cross constellation, made up of five white stars – one small five-pointed star and four, larger, seven-pointed stars. There are other official flags representing Australia, its people and core functions of government. The flag's original design (with a six-pointed Commonwealth Star) was chosen in 1901 from entries in a competition held title: Flag of Australia text: of the flag's designers, intended the Southern Cross to also refer to the four moral virtues ascribed to the four main stars by Dante: justice, prudence, temperance and fortitude. The number of points on the stars of the Southern Cross on the modern Australian flag differs from the original competition-winning design, in which they ranged between five and nine points each, representing their relative brightness in the night sky. The stars are named after the first five letters of the Greek alphabet, in decreasing order of brightness in the sky. In order to simplify manufacture, the British Admiralty standardised the title: Flag of Australia text: following Federation, and was first flown in Melbourne on 3 September 1901, the date proclaimed as Australian National Flag Day. A slightly different design was approved by King Edward VII in 1903. The seven-pointed commonwealth star version was introduced by a proclamation dated 23 February 1908. The dimensions were formally gazetted in 1934, and in 1954 the flag became recognised by, and legally defined in, the "Flags Act 1953", as the "Australian National Flag". The Australian flag uses three prominent symbols: the Union Flag, the Commonwealth Star (also the "Federation Star") and the Southern Cross (or "Crux"). In its original title: Flag of Australia text: by 66%, with 5% uncommitted. The connection with the Australian flag is also notable the highest response to it is "extremely proud" and it is the "most embraced Australian symbol." Flag of Australia The flag of Australia is a defaced Blue Ensign: a blue field with the Union Jack in the canton (upper hoist quarter), and a large white seven-pointed star known as the Commonwealth Star in the lower hoist quarter. The fly contains a representation of the Southern Cross constellation, made up of five white stars – one small five-pointed star and four, larger, seven-pointed stars. There are other title: Flag of Australia text: four larger outer stars at seven points each, leaving the smaller, more central star with five points. This change was officially gazetted on 23 February 1903. A complete specification for the official design was published in the "Commonwealth Gazette" in 1934. Under the Flags Act, the Australian National Flag must meet the following specifications: The location of the stars is as follows: The outer diameter of the Commonwealth Star is of the flag's width, while that of the stars in the Southern Cross is of the flag's width, except for Epsilon, for which the fraction is . Each star's inner