Posts: 42985
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

posted 04-17-2015 02:15 PM               

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How many worldwide stamps have been issued for space exploration milestones in the same year that they happened AND by the country connected to the event?

For example, these U.S. stamps qualify:

• 4¢ Echo 1 (1960)
  
• 4¢ Project Mercury (1962)
  
• 10¢ First Man On The Moon (1969)
  
• 8¢ Decade Of Space Achievement (1971)
  
• 10¢ Skylab (1974)
  
• 10¢ Apollo-Soyuz Test Project (1975)
  
• 18¢ Space Achievement (1981)
  
• $3 Mars Pathfinder (1997)
  
• Forever MESSENGER (2011)

As an example of a stamp that doesn't qualify, the 6¢ Apollo 8 was issued in 1969, rather than 1968. The 10¢ Pioneer and 10¢ Mariner 10 were issued within the years that the probes were active, but not during the years that their pictured milestones were achieved. (The 10¢ Skylab is on the borderline, only because the 1974 stamp could be marking the departure of the final crew.)

Looking beyond the United States though, what other countries' postal services have marked their nations' space milestones as they happened? I know China has issued stamps for some of their Shenzhou flights either during or soon after the missions, and marked their ongoing Chang'e 3 (Yutu) moon roving mission with stamps. What others?

Posts: 1310
From: Staten Island, New York USA
Registered: Nov 2007

posted 04-17-2015 04:23 PM               

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The most obvious country that comes to mind is the former USSR/Russian Federation. They probably had stamps 'ready to go' on the date(s) or soon after a significant event (a LOT of them in the 60s and 70s); they even overprinted some old issue stamps with specific flight details to mark a space event.

Although the design details of, say, the Vostok and Voskhod capsules did not match the real hardware, all the cosmonauts were faithfully represented at that time. But as the 80s went on, and especially after the dissolution of the USSR, they really have not kept up with honoring individual cosmonauts or their flights. They do issue regular stamps on April 12 (Cosmonauts Day) every year.

Another country that regularly honors milestones (typically anniversaries) is Kazakhstan, the location of the Baikonur launch complex.

Posts: 42985
From: Houston, TX
Registered: Nov 1999

Posts: 1310
From: Staten Island, New York USA
Registered: Nov 2007

posted 04-20-2015 10:26 AM               

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Robert, I do know that the current issue of the Scott stamp catalog (volume 5), published in the US, covers all stamps for Russia (Imperial issues) through the USSR and today's Russian Federation, and lists them in date of issue order with a small illustration (b&w).

If you want a specialized catalog of just Space/Astronomy worldwide issues since the 1950s, then you can go to the French Lollini Conquete de l'Espace catalog, over 300 pages in color, available in the US from here (Altoona, PA). You can also buy stamps directly from Lollini.

There is also the WEEBAU catalog from Belgium; and the Weltraum Philatelie Space Catalog from Germany. All three of the specialized catalogs from Europe have numbering systems other than the traditional Scott or 'Sc' number assigned to stamps by US collectors and in general philatelic use.

Posts: 228
From: Boston MA, USA
Registered: Jun 2015

posted 06-17-2015 09:29 PM               

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Actually there are online catalogs for USSR/RF stamps, some of them with prices (especially for recent issues). Though, I'm not sure, any of them in English - but you can use Google translate function.

As for the covers and local issues — there is a mess, Lollini and Pfau tried to deal with it, but only to some extent — mostly local issues of early 90s and club covers around 50-60s.

I know some Russian collectors issue researches on different subjects, like Gagarin or Cosmodromes. Meanwhile, there are a lot of local covers and vignettes issues in recent years (Pskov is the most productive), yet to determine the value.