USA Global Forever Issue Features Conteniental View
USA 2014-04-22As a very fitting observance of Earth Day, the US Postal Service issued “Sea Surface Temperatures,” a new global forever stamp on April 22, 2014. The circular self-adhesive is valid for the $1.15 international forever rate, and is the second Global Forever issue to be of interest to cartophilatelists. The stamp depicts a representation of sea surface temperatures brightly colored in the ocean areas, while the land masses of north and south America and covered by a natural color satellite mosaic. “The image is one frame in a 1,460-frame animation created from the output of a computer model of Earth’s climate by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory. The full animation shows how the surface temperatures of the oceans vary seasonally and change over time, and how surface ocean currents and eddies transport heat and water around the globe.” While the web site did not describe the data used, the sea surface temperatures could be derived from MODIS Aqua data and the natural color mosaic also MODIS or Blue Marble. [ please contact us if you know the details of the platforms/sensors/data depicted in this stamp –web admin ]
Seaweed Issue from NZ Features Map
New Zealand 2014-02-05 ($1.40)
On February 5, 2014 New Zealand Post issued a new set of five stamps depicting native seaweeds of New Zealand. From the web site, New Zealand’s unique marine environment is home to nearly 900 species of native seaweed, a third of which occur nowhere else in the world. Seaweeds are an essential part of the marine ecosystem, providing food, habitats and shelter to a wide variety of marine life. This stamp issue reflects New Zealand’s remarkable marine biodiversity, and the five unique seaweeds portrayed are Hormosira banksii (70cents), Landsburgia quercifolia ($1.40) [shown at right], Caulerpa brownii ($1.90), Marginariella boryana ($2.40) and Pterocladia lucida ($2.90). The mini-sheet contains the same set of stamps. What appears to be a monochrome relief map of New Zealand, surrounded by bathymetric contours is shown on each stamp. Bathymetric contours are partially visible on the left edge of the mini-sheet. [thanks for the information Ingwi! -admin]
Early 2014 Issues from Spain Feature CartoPhilatelic Themes
Spanish Post started 2014 out with two issues of interest to fellow CartoPhilatelists. The first issue, of January 3rd, 2014, marks the fifth centenary of the arrival of Juan Ponce de León to the coast of Florida. On Easter Sunday 1513, also called Pascua Florida (the Festival of Flowers), the Spanish expedition led by Juan Ponce de León discovered a new land which they named Florida, in honor of the day’s religious festival. The self adhesive issue has a denomination of 0,92 €. The stamp depicts a partial portrait of the explorer on the left of the design along with a sailing ship. What appears to be a nautical chart with a partial compass rose and possibly islands on the chart is shown in the background of the issue. The second issue, of January 20, 2014, commemorates the 300th anniversary of the birth of Franciscan friar Junípero Serra. In 1749, Friar Serra was sent with other Franciscans to New Spain, now Mexico, where he was a missionary, preaching the gospel in various parts of the country. In 1768 when the Jesuits were expelled from New Spain, Friar Serra and other monks were sent to Lower and Upper California to found a range of missions reaching up to the bay of San Francisco in the USA. Over the years, these missions became important cities, such as San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Sacramento. Friar Serra was beatified in 1988 by Pope John Paul II. The 0.92 € denomination stamp features a portrait of Friar Serra and an antique map showing Baja California cut into the shape of a cross.
[CartoPhilatelists will recognize previous issues of these themes namely USA sc2024 for Ponce de Leon, and then Spain sc2394 and USA scC116 for Friar Serra. If there are others, please tell us. In addition, the Spanish Post web site mentioned that the January 20, 2014 issue also was for Pedro Cieza de León, explorer and chronicler of the Indies. however I could not determine if there was an additional stamp or not Update: Julien from France informs us that there is a separate issue for Pedro Cieza de León however it does not have a map. Thanks! -admin]
100th Anniversary of the Belgium Royal Meteorological Institute
Belgium 2013-06-24
Fellow map stamp collector Julien writes from Europe to inform us of a very interesting and hidden map on the June 26, 2013 issue from Belgium Post which marks the 100th anniversary of the Belgium Royal Meteorological Institute and their forecasting of the weather. The souvenir sheet shown below contains five stamps. Along the top edge of the sheet are a series of weather condition icons. The foreground of the sheet is covered by a large grassy hill, and in upper center is a single stamp which depicts the institute’s headquarters located in Uccle. On the right side of the sheet is a researcher with a weather balloon and standing near an instrument station. Arranged along the bottom of the sheet are four evenly sized rectangle stamps depicting a tree with green foliage. Around the trees, in the background of each stamp, are weather conditions marking each of the four seasons, spring, summer, autumn and winter. Julien tells us that the hidden map can be found in the shape of the trees represent the outline of Belgium, rotated slightly counter-clockwise. However, there is another interesting point about this sheet. When you press your finger on each of the trees, or when the temperature is more than 77F (25C) the foliage of the trees will be transformed to a seasonal color and each tree will have a series of small images representing a common daily forecasts for each season visible in the leaves. This is shown in the image below. [ Thanks Julien for alerting us to this very important cartophilatelic issue! We know of one other map sheet from Iceland (sc1162) issued in 2009 for the International Polar Year which has a similar heat triggered coating, does anyone know of any others? — web admin ]
Detail of Belgium 2013-06-24 with temperature above 77F (25C)
Iceland 50th Anniversary of Surtsey Island
Iceland 2013-09-12
On September 12, 2013 Iceland Post issued a new stamp to mark the 50th anniversary of the emergence of the volcanic island Surtsey. The stamp does not outwardly show a denomination, but the face value of a single stamp is ISK 565 (approx USD 4.70) appears to be valid for domestic service up to 1500 grams. The stamp is issued in sheets of ten, with two rows containing five stamps. Having a fascinating history, Surtsey island emerged from the ocean on November 14, 1963 in a volcanic eruption that continued until June 1967. At its largest the area of the island was about three sq.km., however it has been eroded by ocean waves and is now only about half of its initial size. A diverse amount of vegetation can be found on the island which now resembles its neighboring islands. The island is a model site for biocolonisation research. The island is rich in bird life with fulmars, black guillemot, gulls, puffins and other bird species. In 2008, Surtsey island was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
