The

United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U ...

issued the Total Eclipse of the Sun

Forever stamp Non-denominated postage is postage intended to meet a certain postage rate that retains full validity for that intended postage rate even after the rate is increased. It does not show a monetary value, or denomination, on the face. In many Engli ...

on June 20, 2017. The stamp includes two superimposed images, one showing a total

solar eclipse A solar eclipse occurs when the Moon passes between Earth and the Sun, thereby obscuring the view of the Sun from a small part of the Earth, totally or partially. Such an alignment occurs during an eclipse season, approximately every six month ...

and the second showing a

full moon The full moon is the lunar phase when the Moon appears fully illuminated from Earth's perspective. This occurs when Earth is located between the Sun and the Moon (when the ecliptic coordinate system, ecliptic longitudes of the Sun and Moon opp ...

that is revealed upon heat being applied. This stamp commemorates the

solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 The solar eclipse of August 21, 2017, dubbed the "Great American Eclipse" by the media, was a total solar eclipse visible within a band that spanned the contiguous United States from the Pacific to the Atlantic coasts. It was also visible as a ...

which was visible across the

continental United States The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...

from coast to coast, weather permitting.

Details

In the first U.S. stamp application of

thermochromic ink Thermochromic ink (also called thermochromatic ink) is a type of dye that changes color when temperatures increase or decrease. Often used in the manufacture of many toys or product packaging, as well as thermometers. Thermochromic ink can also turn ...

, the Total Eclipse of the Sun Forever stamps reveal a second image. By rubbing a thumb or finger on the image, the heat imparted will cause an underlying image of the full moon to be revealed. Afterward, the image reverts to the dark image as it cools. The US Postal Service notes that exposure to

ultraviolet Ultraviolet (UV) is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelength from 10 nanometer, nm (with a corresponding frequency around 30 Hertz, PHz) to 400 nm (750 Hertz, THz), shorter than that of visible light, but longer than ...

(UV) light causes degradation of thermochromic inks, so the eclipse stamps should be shielded from sunlight to preserve their thermochromic behavior. To help with this, the Postal Service sends panes of this stamp to purchasers in special UV-blocking envelopes. In addition, UV-protective sleeves for the eclipse stamps are available from post offices for 25¢ each. The photograph of the total solar eclipse on the stamp was taken at

Jalu Jalu, Jallow, or Gialo ( ar, جالو) is a town in the Al Wahat District in northeastern Libya in the Jalo oasis. An oasis, a city, and it is the main center of the oasis region in eastern Libya. It is located at the confluence of longitude an ...

Libya Libya (; ar, ليبيا, Lībiyā), officially the State of Libya ( ar, دولة ليبيا, Dawlat Lībiyā), is a country in the Maghreb region in North Africa. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya bo ...

on March 29, 2006 by

Fred Espenak Fred Espenak is a retired emeritus American astrophysicist. He worked at the Goddard Space Flight Center. He is best known for his work on eclipse predictions. He became interested in astronomy when he was 7–8 years old, and had his first tel ...

. The stamp's alternate image is a photo of the full moon taken by Espenak at his observatory in

Portal, Arizona Portal is an unincorporated community in Cochise County, Arizona, United States. It lies south-southeast of San Simon and at the mouth of Cave Creek Canyon on the east side of the Chiricahua Mountains. Often called the Yosemite of Arizona, the ...

in 2010. Known as "Mr. Eclipse", Espenak is a retired

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

astrophysicist. The stamp was designed by USPS art director Antonio Alcalá of

Alexandria, Virginia Alexandria is an independent city (United States), independent city in the northern region of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. It lies on the western bank of the Potomac River approximately south of Downto ...

. The stamp is printed in a

pressure-sensitive adhesive Pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA, self-adhesive, self-stick adhesive) is a type of nonreactive adhesive which forms a bond when pressure is applied to bond the adhesive with a surface. No solvent, water, or heat is needed to activate the adhesive ...

pane of 16 stamps, in one design.

Denomination

The stamp is a Forever stamp so has no defined denomination which means it will always be equal in value to the current First-Class Mail 1-ounce price, regardless of any future rate changes.

First day ceremony

The stamp's First-Day-of-Issue ceremony took place on June 20, 2017 at the

University of Wyoming The University of Wyoming (UW) is a public land-grant research university in Laramie, Wyoming. It was founded in March 1886, four years before the territory was admitted as the 44th state, and opened in September 1887. The University of Wyoming ...

's Art Museum in conjunction with its annual

summer solstice The summer solstice, also called the estival solstice or midsummer, occurs when one of Earth's poles has its maximum tilt toward the Sun. It happens twice yearly, once in each hemisphere ( Northern and Southern). For that hemisphere, the summer ...

celebration. That building was designed with an architectural feature whereby, on the day of the summer solstice each year, a single beam of sunlight moves across the floor and shines on a silver dollar embedded in the floor in the center of the Rotunda Gallery at noon.

References

External links

Solar Eclipse Stamps
on the MrEclipse.com website {{Postage stamps of the United States 21st-century solar eclipses Postage stamps of the United States Thermochromism 2017 07 20 2017 works Works about the Moon Sun in culture

Details

Denomination

First day ceremony

See also

References

External links