It is often said that the Moon is made of cheese, and when inventor Wallace and his trusty canine companion Gromit, visited the Moon in their first adventure ‘A Grand Day Out’, they tasted the Moon and concluded it was like no other cheese they’d tasted before!

Wallace and Gromit tasting the Moon. Credits: Aardman

We’re pretty sure the Moon isn’t made of cheese, but obviously more investigations need to be done – one of the objectives for Shaun the Sheep on his Artemis I mission.

As far as we know no Apollo astronaut or intrepid scientist on Earth has deliberately tried to taste Moon dust and, to be clear, this is not particularly recommended because of the potential health hazards.

While scientists wait for Shaun’s observations from lunar orbit, ESA is inviting everyone to send in their thoughts they think he’ll find, or more specifically ‘What cheese is the Moon made of?’

There are many cheeses to choose from, and Europe has many on offer. The British Cheese Board states that there are over 700 types of British cheeses, France has cheeses for each region, and The Netherlands is known in France as ‘being the other country of cheese’, not to mention the many Spanish, German, Scandinavian and Eastern European cheeses.

Shaun’s ‘Moon cheese challenge’

Send Shaun a photo of your favourite cheese, or even a cheese you don’t like, through Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or Pinterest, that is linked to the Moon, for example a Moon-shaped cheese, or a lunar cheese-scape (you can also send drawings, music or even well-reasoned scientific essays).

The best three entries will receive an Artemis European Service Module goodie.

The editors of this blog are showing their cheesy colours by giving two examples showing the real cheese deal, so obviously they are disqualified but they might inspire you!

Reblochon Moon in the French Alps

Reblochon. This cheese from the Haute-Savoie region in France is shaped like a full Moon and has the characteristic marks that look like impact craters on our natural satellite. This picture, taken over the mountains that are typical of the region where Reblochon is made, shows a resemblance to the Moon. In reblochon we trust, the cheese is often mixed with potatoes, onions and bacon to make a ‘tartiflette’, an ideal meal after a mountain trek or even a lunar spacewalk. We are sure that ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet will agree, despite coming from Normandy, a region that has its own excellent cheeses.

Say cheese: Queso Flor de Valsequillo with Paxi

Queso Flor de Valsequillo

The queso Flor de Valsequillo is a cheese from the Spain’s Canary island of Gran Canaria, where goat milk is greatly appreciated. We shaped this semi-cured goat cheese as a crescent Moon to make the composition  more realistic and to show some of its spicy paprika coating. It’s a perfect pairing for soups, nuts or red wine. Unlike the Reblochon, the whole piece would support the weight of ESA’s mascot Paxi, even in lunar gravity which is 1/6 of the gravity on Earth.

How to enter

Depending on the platform you use, the recipe for success is different. If you join on Twitter, use the hashtag #ShaunMoonCheese, send a direct message on Facebook and Instagram, and share your creations under our ideas pin on Pinterest.

Deadline for submissions is midnight CET (23:00 GMT) on 9 December.

Terms and Conditions

Please check our Terms and Conditions before joining Shaun’s Moon Cheese Challenge.

A condition of being featured as a winner is that the entrant declares their consent in writing, in accordance with the privacy notice of this contest. Please also see ESA’s privacy notice for social media.

If you win a prize, we will connect with you via private message so we can make arrangements for your prize. You *must* declare that you agree with our privacy notice before providing your personal details and receiving any prizes.