Tuesday, June 20, 2017

Total Eclipse Stamps Available Today


Tens of millions of people in the United States hope to view this once-in-a-lifetime event  — the August 21 total solar eclipse. The approximate 70-mile-wide “path of totality” of the Moon’s shadow will cross portions of 14 states from Oregon to South Carolina. This is the first total solar eclipse to cross the entire country for the first time since 1918. The last eclipse seen on the U.S. mainland was 1979.

To determine your city’s proximity to the eclipse, click this link or review the state listing of more than 1,100 towns and cities that will fall in the eclipse’s path.

To commemorate the event, the U.S. Postal Service will release the Total Eclipse of the Sun Forever stamps June 20. This first-of-its-kind stamp, for the US, transforms into an image of the Moon from the heat of a finger. Two stamp images are shown throughout this messaging for illustrative purposes only to demonstrate what will be seen when transformed. This is a single design issuance offered and sold in a pane of 16 stamps. 
 
The eclipse and Moon images were photographed by retired NASA Astrophysicist Fred Espanak, a.k.a. Mr. Eclipse, of Portal, AZ. The back of the stamp pane provides a map of the eclipse path and times it may appear in some locations.
 
Visit NASA’s website to view detailed maps of the path. The public is asked to share the news on social media using the hashtag #EclipseStamps

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