Fifty stars appear on the United States flag during the America250 celebration, with one star representing each state.
The current 50-star design became official on July 4, 1960, after Hawaii joined the Union as the 50th state. Alaska had become the 49th state in 1959, so the flag changed twice in quick succession. The stars are arranged in nine horizontal rows, alternating between rows of six and five stars.
The stars differ from the flag’s 13 stripes in meaning. The stars represent the current states, while the stripes commemorate the original colonies. The flag’s appearance can therefore preserve both present-day political geography and the revolutionary origins celebrated in America250. U.S. territories do not receive individual stars on the national flag because the stars represent states.