Hubble Space Telescope Being Deployed

In celebration of the Hubble Space Telescope's 25th anniversary in space, this postcard was made out of a photograph taken by the crew of the STS-31 space shuttle mission on April 25, 1990. The Hubble Space Telescope was suspended above shuttle Discovery's cargo bay some 332 nautical miles or 615 kilometers above Earth. The Canadian-built Remote Manipulator System (RMS) arm, controlled from in-cabin by the astronaut crew members, held the huge telescope in this position during pre-deployment procedures, which included extension of solar array panels and antennae.

Image and caption source: NASA

Eagle Nebula Pillars

25 years ago on April 24, 1990, Space Shuttle Discovery blasted off the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on mission STS-31 with the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) on board. Fitting with a 2.4-meter or 7.9 feet mirror and instruments observing in the near ultraviolet, visible, and near infrared spectra, the telescope has since recorded some of the most detailed images ever, leading to breakthroughs in astrophysics, such as accurately determining the rate of expansion of the universe.

The Eagle Nebula (NGC 6611) is a young open cluster of stars in the constellation Serpens, discovered by Jean-Philippe de Cheseaux between 1745 and 1746. It contains several active star-forming gas and dust regions that became famous when NASA release a HST image "Pillars of Creation" in 1995, capturing three dusty pillars in the Eagle Nebula. HST recently took another photograph at the star-forming pillars with its newest camera, providing much greater details.

In celebration of HST’s 25th anniversary, 32 of the best HST images were competing against each other in a series of head-to-head competitions, with popular votes deciding the winner of each round. Ultimately, with over 17,000 votes the Eagle Nebula Pillars triumphed over all other competitors to become the winner of Hubble Mania 2015.

In this NASA released image that can be made into a 5"x7" postcard under NASA's copyright notice, three pillars of cold hydrogen gas and dust in the Eagle Nebula are shown as the birthplace of new stars, 6,500 light years away. The pillars are bathed in the blistering ultraviolet light from a grouping of young, massive stars located off the top of the image. Streamers of gas can be seen bleeding off the pillars as the intense radiation heats and evaporates it into space. Denser regions of the pillars are shadowing material beneath them from the powerful radiation.

I was fortunate for being able to witness the Space Shuttle Discovery's launch for the 3rd Hubble Space Telescope Servicing Mission STS-103 at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on December 19, 1999. 

Saint Basil's Cathedral, Moscow, Russia

RU-3443849 came from Russia with two postcards showing various landmarks in Moscow, one of which features Saint Basil's Cathedral, once a Orthodox church and now a part of the State Historical Museum in Red Square in Moscow, Russia. The building, located in immediate proximity of the Kremlin Palace, is officially known as the Cathedral of the Intercession of the Most Holy Theotokos on the Moat. Built from 1555 to 1561 on orders from Ivan the Terrible to commemorate the siege of Kazan, it was once the tallest building in Moscow until the completion of the Ivan the Great Bell Tower in 1600. Shaped as a flame of a bonfire, the Cathedral has a unique design with eight side churches surrounding around the ninth church of Intercession in the center. It was recognized as part of the Kremlin and Red Square UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990.

Burg Giebichenstein und die Giebichensteinbrücke

Postcard DE-3903996 from Germany shows Giebichenstein Castle and the Giebichensteinbrücke bridge in Halle (Saale), an economic and educational center in eastern Germany, located in the southern Saxony-Anhalt state.

Giebichenstein Castle, seen on the right on the postcard, was a royal residence of Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor in the 9th century. It is used by the Kunsthochschule Halle (Academy of Arts) of the Burg Giebichenstein Art School.

The Giebichensteinbrücke bridge, also known as Kröllwitzer bridge, is one of three Saale River crossings in Halle, located in the north part of the city below Giebichenstein Castle. The Giebichensteinbrücke bridge in its current form was built between 1926 and 1928 as a replacement for a steel bridge with large truss arch from 1892. The bridge's main arch was blown up during the final days of World War II on April 14, 1945. It was re-built in 1949 and renovated from 1993 to 1995.

On February 13, 1990, an agreement was announced on a two-stage plan to reunite Germany.

Fur Traders Descending the Missouri

Outgoing postcard US-3139095 to Russia shows one of the most famous paintings by George Caleb Bingham, a 19th century American artist. Depicting American life in the frontier lands along the Missouri River using the Luminist style, the painting was originally entitled French-Trader, Half-breed Son. It reflected the reality of fur traders' common marriages with Native American women. However, the name was changed to Fur Traders Descending the Missouri to avoid potentially controversial when it was first exhibited. Painted around 1845, this art piece is now owned by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.

The stamped card was one of the EXTRAordinary Art Card series issued by USPS at the Saint Louis Art Museum in St. Louis, Missouri on May 4, 1990. It has a 15-cent postage pre-printed with a reproduction of the 1845 painting and sells for 50 cents at the time.

The liberty cap or Phrygian cap worn by the older man was the symbol of freedom and liberty commonly used in the 19th century. The animal in the boat was actually a bear cub, not a cat.

German Unity Day

Today is the German Unity Day (Tag der Deutschen Einheit), the national day of Germany. Celebrated on October 3 every year, it is a public holiday that commemorates the anniversary of German reunification in 1990. The reunification process started as the Berlin Wall came down on November 9, 1989, and was formally completed on October 3, 1990. The German Unity Day, the national holiday of the Federal Republic of Germany, had been previously celebrated on June 17 since 1954. It was celebrated twice in 1990, once on June 17, 1990 and the other on October 3, 1990.

Postcard DE-1272658  was a lenticular 3D postcard. When viewing from different angles, it shows the reunified Germany by Day or by Night from space. It was also the first official PostCrossing postcard I received from Germany.

Memories

Postcard BY-1337780 from Belarus features an oil painting on canvas made with a palette knife by artist Leonid Afremov, born in the city of Vitebsk, Belarus in 1955. Leonid Afremov graduated from the famous Vitebsk Art School in 1978. The school was founded by Marc Chagall (July 6, 1887 – March 28, 1985), a Belarussian-Russian-French artist, in 1921. Leonid Afremov moved to Israel in 1990, and became known as a Israeli modern painter of landscapes, cityscapes and figures. "The scorching southern sun filled with colors and brightness made Leonid's paintings positive and joyous."

American Papermaking 1690 - 1990

Postcard US-2849009 to the Netherlands was a postal stamped card to celebrate 300-years of American Papermaking from 1690 to 1990, issued by USPS at the annual meeting of the American Paper Institute in New York City on March 15, 1990. The American Paper Institute and the National Forest Products Association merged on January 1, 1993 and formed the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA).

The card shows a painting of the Rittenhouse Paper Mill, established near Germantown, PA in 1690. The painting was based on black and white photographs, circa 1770, of the most recent mill that lasted until the late 1800s. The original paper mill, first in America, was washed away by flood in 1700;  a second mill constructed in 1702, was destroyed by a fire. A reproduction of the original Rittenhouse watermark is featured on the left side of the card with a note "This watermark appears on the first paper made in the United States on this site in 1690."

According to an article in Times-News from Hendersonville, NC on April 1, 1990 and an article in Lawrence Journal-World from Lawrence, Kansas on April 8, 1990, collectors had until April 12, 1990 to obtain the first-day cancellations. It also noted that the Postal Services gave preferential service to customers who bought cards at a local post office, self-addressed them before sending them in for cancellation. If customers preferred to have the Postal Service supply the card, they needed to send, for each card ordered, payment of 15 cents in the form of a check or money order and a self-addressed, peelable label to a New York City post office. Now a days, USPS sells a postal stamped card for the face value plus a mark up. For example, a Tree Stamped Single Stamped Card sells for 38 cents with a first-class FOREVER postcard rate (currently at 34 cents) postage.

Coincidentally, the postcard arrived in the Netherlands yesterday when the Dutch National Soccer Team defeated Costa Rica 4:3 in Penalties at the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia

The International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHO) is celebrated every year on May 17. According to Wikipedia, "the day aims to coordinate international events that raise awareness of LGBT rights violations and stimulate interest in LGBT rights work worldwide."

The date of May 17 was chosen to commemorate the decision to remove homosexuality from the International Classification of Diseases of the World Health Organization (WHO) in 1990.

Coincidentally, Massachusetts became the first state in the U.S. to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples on May 17, 2004. Since then, more states have followed suit, and public awareness and support has increased. Nationwide, same-sex marriage is now legal in 17 states and the District of Columbia. Bans have been struck down in Michigan, Oklahoma, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and most recently, Arkansas and Idaho, pending appeals.

Locally, the Las Vegas steering committee of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) is celebrating its Ninth Annual Gala Dinner with Golden-Globe and Emmy Award-Winning actor John Lithgow at Wynn on May 17, 2014. Celebrity appearances by screenwriter of the HBO “Big Love,” Dustin Lance Black; the cast members of Le Rêve, Melody Sweets of Absinthe, TV personality Chris Saldaña are expected with red carpet at 4:30 p.m. and the gala at 6 p.m.

Meanwhile, businesses are taking notes and have been increasingly embracing LGBT friendly approaches. The advertising card from the Tropicana Las Vegas promotes the hotel as a transformed LGBT friendly destination and boasts a score 90 out of 100 on the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) 2013 Corporate Equality Index on their website. The Tropicana has also been hosting Xposed!, a new weekly LGBTQ beach party at at Tropicana Beach Club, on Saturdays since March 29, 2014.

International Mountain Day

International Mountain Day was designated as December 11 by the United Nations General Assembly in 2003. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) that leads the observance, it is an opportunity to create awareness about the importance of mountains to life, to highlight the opportunities and constraints in mountain development and to build partnerships that will bring positive change to the world’s mountains and highlands. The theme for 2013 is "Mountains - Key to a Sustainable Future".

Postcard US-2260961 to Belarus showcases one of the most beautiful mountains and major tourist destinations.in China -- Huangshan. Huangshan (黄山), literally Yellow Mountain, is a located in Anhui Province. The mountain ranges were a result of the uplift movement from an ancient sea during the Mesozoic era, about 100 million years ago; then they were carved by glaciers during the Quaternary. The area is now well known for its scenery, sunsets, peculiarly shaped granite peaks, Huangshan Pine trees, and views of the clouds from above. Huangshan is a frequent subject of traditional Chinese paintings and literature, as well as modern photography (source: Wikipedia). It was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990.

Grand Cascade, Peterhof, Russia

I received Postcard RU-1237795 last year on October 11, 2012, showing the Grand Cascade in front of the Grand Peterhof Palace near Saint Petersburg, Russia. This imperial summer residence in Peterhof is also known as Russian Versailles, which is part of the Historic Center of Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments that was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1990.

Peterhof is perhaps most famous for its remarkable array of decorative fountains -- 173 fountains, 4 cascades, numerous sculptures and charming pavilions -- including the unmistakable and incredibly impressive ensemble of the Grand Cascade. The Grand Cascade runs from the northern facade of the Grand Palace to the Marine Canal, comprising 64 different fountains, and over 200 bronze statues, bas-reliefs, and other decorations. The first sight for visitors arriving in Peterhof by sea will be the vista of the Grand Cascade with the Grand Palace behind it, which is truly breathtaking.

Image Schématique du Soleil

Schematic Image of the Sun and its Environment

This postcard from my space related collection shows the schematic image of the Sun and its environment. It provides a blue print showing the wide range of phenomena studied by the various experiments on board the spacecraft Ulysses.

Ulysses, decommissioned on June 30, 2009, was a joint robotic space probe to study the Sun by NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). The launch of Ulysses was delayed until October 6, 1990 aboard Discovery (mission STS-41) due to the loss of its initially assigned carrier Challenger. It studied the Sun at all latitudes, breaking the limitation that the Sun had been only observed from low solar latitudes due to the Earth's orbit confined on the ecliptic plane. The mission was managed by JPL.

World Turtle Day

May 23rd has been the World Turtle Day since 2000. It was initiated by American Tortoise Rescue to celebrate and protect turtles and tortoises and their ever shrinking habitats around the world.

The postcard US-1532121 was issued by SFWMD, featuring a Florida box turtle living in moist woodlands and floodplains in the greater Everglades. Turtles are the only toothless reptiles, but have beaks with biting edges.

Before I moved to Las Vegas, NV from Florida in 2006, I was aware of the problem caused by street lights to the baby sea turtles during the hatchling season. Those baby sea turtles mistook street lights as the rising sun, so they moved towards city streets and were often crashed by cars, rather than headed to the ocean. I knew there were efforts to install turtle-friendly lights along A1A, a Florida State Road running mostly along the Atlantic Ocean. However, to my surprise, I found out the problem is still serious today. A Youtube video documented disoriented sea turtle hatchlings in Broward County Florida caused by illegal lighting in the summer of 2011. It was estimated that one in every three hatchlings had gone to the street lights instead of the ocean.

In Florida, sea turtles come ashore to nest from May to late October. You can learn how to help this season in 2013 by visiting their web site SeaTurtleOP.org.

What is the difference between a tortoise and a turtle since they are both reptiles from the family of Testudines? Tortoises dwell only on land while turtles can dwell well in the water. Therefore, in the Mojave Desert around Las Vegas, we only have tortoises.