If you have ever opened WeChat, you must have seen the familiar launch screen: a small human silhouette standing on a tiny patch of land, looking at the huge blue Earth floating in the dark space. For years, users just took it for granted. But recently, the mysterious little figure sparked curiosity online. A Xiaohongshu user asked, “I’ve always been curious who this little person is.” Soon, people came up with all kinds of humorous guesses—some joked it was the founder Allen Zhang, others said it was a lonely astronaut, and a few even claimed it was a character from a movie.
However, the real answer is much simpler. According to WeChat’s official explanation, the silhouette does not stand for any specific real person. Instead, it symbolizes every user of the app. The idea behind it is poetic yet relatable: in the vast world, anyone can sometimes feel small, lonely, or like an isolated island. WeChat, as a communication tool, connects these “islands” and helps people feel closer to one another.
The Earth image behind the silhouette is not a modern digital drawing. It is the famous photograph called The Blue Marble, taken by the crew of Apollo 17 on December 7, 1972. At that time, the spacecraft was about 29,000 kilometers away from Earth. The astronauts used a Hasselblad camera with an 80mm lens to capture the whole sunlit planet hanging in the blackness of space. This single photo became one of the most recognizable images of Earth in human history.
WeChat did not use this picture from the very beginning. Earlier versions of the app had a slightly different background. Starting in 2017, the company replaced the old image with The Blue Marble and added the human silhouette in the foreground. The combination was designed to represent the human perspective—an ordinary person looking at the planet we all share.
Though artists have since created more detailed or artistic composite versions, the original launch screen remains almost unchanged. It is clean, quiet, and a little emotional. The next time you tap the WeChat icon and see that little figure, you might smile and remember: it is not a celebrity or a hidden mascot. It is just you, me, and every other person on this blue marble.
Reading Comprehension Questions
1. What recently caused online discussions about WeChat’s launch screen?
A. A new design of the app icon.
B. A user’s question about who the silhouette is.
C. A movie character appearing on the screen.
D. The founder of WeChat explaining the image.
2. According to the official explanation, the little silhouette stands for __.
A. the astronaut from Apollo 17
B. the designer of WeChat
C. every WeChat user
D. a fictional movie hero
3. What is The Blue Marble?
A. A painting drawn by WeChat designers.
B. A photo of Earth taken in 1972 by Apollo 17.
C. A small game inside WeChat.
D. A sculpture shown in a museum.
4. Which of the following is TRUE about the photo’s shooting condition?
A. It was taken with a mobile phone camera.
B. It was shot about 29,000 km from Earth.
C. It only shows part of the Earth’s surface.
D. It was taken in the year 2017.
5. Why was the human silhouette added to the launch screen in 2017?
A. To show the importance of WeChat’s founder.
B. To represent the human perspective of looking at Earth.
C. To make the photo look more like a cartoon.
D. To replace the Earth image with a person.
Answer Key:
1. B
2. C
3. B
4. B
5. B
