Twitter: Australia launched a new koala emoji to celebrate Australia Day

Twitter Australia launched a new emoji to celebrate Australia Day. The emoji shows a koala wearing green sunglasses with yellow frames.

The new emoji will appear automatically when a Twitter user posts a tweet using the hashtag #AustraliaDay. The new icon was released a week ahead of the national holiday on January 26. According to Sky News Australia, the emoji will only be available until the date of the holiday.

The official Australia Day emoji was released in Canberra, the nation's capital. According to 8CCC Community Radio, the emoji was released in an event on Tuesday with the Australia Day Ambassadors and #AustraliaDay Twitter Champion Reece Mastin.

Reece Mastin is a British-Australian singer made popular by The X Factor Australia. He won the third season of the show in 2011. He was also selected to represent the National Museum of Australia in regard of the celebration of Australia Day this year.

Besides Mastin, other Australian public figures including legendary marathon runner Steve Moneghetti, author Posie Graeme-Evans, and fashion expert Donny Galella was also present on Tuesday's event marking the beginning of the digital appreciation to celebrate Australia Day.

The event, held at the National Museum of Australia in Canberra, was also held to help encourage Australians to tweet more regarding the national celebration. The tweets including the hashtag #AustraliaDay will be kept in the Twitter Time Capsule, and the tweets would appear in the coming years. Some chosen tweets would even be exhibited in the holiday celebration next week in the National Museum of Australia in Canberra.

On the same day, the official account of Twitter Australia (@TwitterAU) also introduced the new emoji via their tweet. The introduction was followed by various responses by netizens, giving their comments about the new emoji. In a few hours, #AustraliaDay became a worldwide Trending Topic on Twitter, according toTrendsmap.

Adam Spence, a journalist and photographer based in Canberra, probably have one of the most shared comment on the koala emoji. He wrote in his Twitter account (@AdamSpenceAU): "The "official" Australia Day emoji has been launched in Canberra today... it's a Koala trying to hide a hangover." The comment inspired some media platforms shaping their view about the koala emoji. Mashable's piece on the topic is even titled "Twitter Australia Day emoji revealed: A koala that has partied too hard".

The revealing of this new emoji has started a vibe of celebration among the Australians. Australian netizens are also invited to share their stories and views regarding the Australia Day via Twitter.