Cover Reveals Names of China’s Space Pilots

According to CollectSPACE News, two space experts recently discovered a philatelic cover [shown here] from 2010 that they believe was signed by seven Chinese space pilots. Until the discovery of this envelope, the names of China’s space pilots were kept secret.

Lisa, today's Round-Up guest blogger, writes, "Remarkably, the cover is signed by two female space pilots, Wang Yaping and Liu Yang. Space experts speculate that one of those women will be the first Chinese woman to go into space. Though it was already believed that Wang Yaping was one of the female space pilots, Liu Yang was a surprise."

Lisa points out "Space experts found the philatelic cover for sale on a German stamp collector’s online shop. Details about the German collector’s identity and how he obtained this signed envelope are still unknown. The philatelic cover was postmarked on May 10, 2010, the same day China officially chose its seven new space pilots. "

She goes on to say, "This discovery is of great interest to space observers. However, it also provides important insight into why stamp collectors, are so fascinated by stamps and philatelic covers. Stamps and philatelic covers are a big part of our history as people. They are tools we use to help us communicate with each other, and sometimes they even help us communicate messages that make history."

For more on this story, click here.

[Editor's Note: Lisa is a guest post writer from the Blog Content Guild. She writes about stamp collecting, recreation, and the Brooklyn storage industry.]