FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 10, 2004

Media Contacts: USPS Mark Saunders 202-268-6524

usps.com

The Weather Channel: Kathy Lane 770-226-2102

klane@weather.com

weather.com

American Meteorological Society: Stephanie Kenitzer 425-432-2192

kenitzer@dc.ametsoc.org

ametsoc.org

NOAA’s National Weather Service: Greg Romano 301-713-0622 x169

Greg.Romano@noaa.gov

weather.gov

Stamp News Release Number 04-062

‘Reach for the Sky and Collect Stamps!’ with Cloudscapes

during national stamp collecting month

Collaboration with The Weather Channel, American Meteorological Society and

National Weather Service

WASHINGTON – The world’s most popular hobby will rise to greater heights when the U.S. Postal Service issues the 37-cent Cloudscapes commemorative postage stamps, postal cards and philatelic collectables on Oct. 4, during the launch of National Stamp Collecting Month. This year’s theme, “Reach for the Sky and Collect Stamps!” includes an alliance with The Weather Channel, the American Meteorological Society and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Weather Service to educate stamp collectors about atmospheric sciences.

The first-day-of-issue dedication ceremony is free and open to the public, and will take place at the historic Blue Hill Observatory ( bluehill.org) in Milton, MA, on Monday, Oct. 4 at 1 p.m. Stamp products will be available on-site from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., and weather-related activities for students will take place throughout the day.

"With these spectacular images, we've captured the wonder of nature and the power of the world's weather to shape our lives and our land," said William Johnstone, Secretary, Board of Governors, U.S. Postal Service. "These cloudscapes are beautiful reminders of our ties to the larger environment we live in — an environment of air and water that sustains us all."

The Cloudscapes stamp sheet includes 15 stamps based on photographs of nine cloud formations and are arranged on the stamp pane according to altitude. Information about each cloud is on the back of the pane behind the stamp. A booklet of twenty 23-cent Cloudscape stamped postal-card booklets of the 15 stamp designs also will be issued.

During October — National Stamp Collecting Month — the focus of the Postal Service is on stamp collectors — both long-term and those who are new to the hobby. Stamp collecting is a great way to learn about the world and its many wonders, opening the door to an exciting world of history, science, geography, the arts, technology and sports.

The Weather Channel (weather.com), the American Meteorological Society (AMS) (ametsoc.org) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Weather Service (weather.gov) will include the Cloudscapes stamps to promote atmospheric sciences.

Many of the nation’s television meteorologists, as AMS members, will highlight the stamps during their televised October forecasting segments, and incorporate the Cloudscapes stamps into their community outreach initiatives. The Cloudscapes stamps also will be included in the National Weather Service’s outreach programs.

An educational kit celebrating weather and teaching students to become “weather-wise” was created by the Postal Service, working in conjunction with The Weather Channel and Dr. Jacqueline Hansen, Assistant Professor of Education, MurrayStateUniversity. The kit, available later this month, will be linked through weatherclassroom.com and usps.com.

Howard Paine, Delaplane, VA, is art director and designer for the Cloudscapes commemorative postage stamps. The cloud types shown on the stamp pane are: Cirrus radiatus, Cirrostratus fibratus, Cirrocumulus undulatus, Cumulonimbus mammatus, Cumulonimbus incus, Altocumulus stratiformis, Altostratus translucidus, Altocumulus undulatus, Altocumulus castellanus, Altocumulus lenticularis, Stratocumulus undulatus, Stratus opacus, Cumulus humilis, Cumulus congestus and Cumulonimbus with tornado.

Clouds develop when moist air cools to its dew point by rising to a higher altitude or by moving over a cooler surface. Water vapor in the air then condenses in liquid or frozen form around minute particles such as pollen or dust. The shapes and altitudes of clouds, as well as the sequence in which they develop, are a sign of changing weather patterns and aid in forecasts. The prefixes “cirro” and “alto” distinguish high and middle-altitude clouds, respectively.

In the early 19th century, Englishman Luke Howard—chemist by trade and meteorologist by avocation—created a system for classifying clouds using Latin names. He described the three most common shapes as cirrus (curl of hair), stratus (layer) and cumulus (heap); he also defined four compound cloud forms that derive from the three primary shapes, including nimbus (rain). Later scientists added terms such as humilis (small) and incus (anvil) to designate other cloud properties. The International Cloud-Atlas, first published in 1896, is based on this classification system.

As Milton is a branch of the Boston Post Office, Boston Post Offices will be the only locations in the nation where the stamps and postal cards will be available that day. Customers in the Boston area may obtain first-day-of-issue postmarks on-site at the Blue Hill Observatory, the Milton Branch postal facility and the Boston Main Post Office that day. In addition, customers may also obtain First-Day postmarks by mail (see: How to Order First-Day-of-Issue Postmark).The Cloudscapes stamps and postal cards will be available in Post Offices and Philatelic centers nationwide on Tuesday, Oct. 5.

A unique philatelic product created to celebrate National Stamp Collecting Month — the “Cloudscapes Stamp Collecting Scrapbook” — will be available at the Blue Hill Observatory on Oct 4. On October 5 the scrapbook will be available through the USA Philatelic catalog, online at the Postal Store at www.usps.com/shop or by calling toll free 1-800-STAMP 24. This soft cover book features cloud-type references for each of the stamps, as well as fun facts and ideas for preserving cloud-related keepsakes.

To see the Cloudscape stamps and other images from the 2004 commemorative stamp program, visit the Postal Store at www.usps.com/shop and click on “Release Schedule” in the Collector’s Corner.

Current U.S. stamps and stationery, as well as a free comprehensive catalog, are available by toll-free telephone order at 1-800-STAMP 24. A wide selection of stamps and other philatelic items also are available at the Postal Store www.usps.com/shop. And www.postalartgallery.com offers beautifully framed prints of original stamp art for delivery straight to the home or office.

Since 1775, the U.S. Postal Service has connected friends, families, neighbors and businesses by mail. An independent federal agency, the Postal Service makes deliveries to about 141 million addresses every day and is the only service provider to deliver to every address in the nation. The Postal Service receives no taxpayer dollars for routine operations, but derives its operating revenues solely from the sale of postage, products and services. With annual revenues of more than $68 billion, it is the world’s leading provider of mail and delivery services, offering some of the most affordable postage rates in the world. Moreover, today’s postage rates will remain stable until at least 2006. The U.S. Postal Service delivers more than 46 percent of the world’s mail volume—some 202 billion letters, advertisements, periodicals and packages a year—and serves seven million customers each day at its 38,000 retail locations nationwide.

TECHNICAL DETAILS

Issue: Cloudscapes

Item Number: 456800

Denomination & Type of Issue: 37-cent Commemorative

Format: Pane of 15 (15 designs)

Series: N/A

Issue Date & City: October 4, 2004, Milton, MA02186

Designer: Howard E. Paine, Delaplane, VA

Art Director: Howard E. Paine, Delaplane, VA

Typographer: John Boyd, New York, NY

Photographers: Cirrus radiatus, ©David Rosenfeld/Photo Researchers, Inc., New York, NY (for most of his life Mr. Rosenfeld, who died in 1994, resided in The Bronx, NY)

Cirrocumulus undulatus, ©Richard A. Keen, Golden, CO

Cumulonimbus mammatus, ©David Hoadley 1977, Falls Church, VA

Altostratus translucidus, ©Richard A. Keen, Golden, CO

Altocumulus undulatus, ©H. Michael Mogil, Rockville, MD

Altocumulus lenticularis, ©Carlye Calvin, Nederland, CO

Stratocumulus undulatus, ©Richard A. Keen, Golden, CO

Cumulus humilis, John Day, Oregon Nature Photographer, McMinnville, OR

Cumulonimbus with tornado, ©Edi Ann Otto, Osnabrock, ND

Engraver: Keating Gravure

Modeler: Avery Dennison, SPD

Manufacturing Process: Gravure

Printer: Avery Dennison (AVR)

Printed at: AVR, Clinton, SC

Press Type: Dia Nippon Kiko (DNK)

Stamps per Pane: 15

Print Quantity: 125,040,000 stamps

Paper Type: Nonphosphored type III

Adhesive Type: Pressure-sensitive

Processed at: AVR, Clinton, SC

Colors: Yellow, Magenta, Cyan, Black, PMS 322 (Green)

PMS 295 (Blue)

Stamp Orientation: Horizontal

Image Area (w x h): 1.085 x 1.085 in./27.599 x 27.599 mm

Overall Size (w x h): 1.225 x 1.225 in./31.115 x 31.115 mm

Pane Size (w x h): 7.15 x 5.4375 in./181.61 x 138.1125 mm

Plate Size: 180 stamps per revolution

Plate Numbers: “V” followed by six (6) single digits

Marginal Markings:

Price · Header “CLOUDSCAPES”

Back: Barcode on lower left of pane · At the top of the pane are paragraphs describing cloud formations and how they are named · Each stamp has a descriptive paragraph about the cloud type that appears on the stamp.

Catalog Item Number(s): 456840 Full Pane of 15 — $5.55

456862 First Day Cover — $8.05

456864 Canceled Full Pane — $8.05

456866 Stamped Postal Cards — $9.75

456893 Full Pane w/FDC — $13.60

456894 Scrapbook — $19.95

TECHNICAL DETAILS

Issue: Cloudscapes

Item Number: 884600

Denomination & Type of Issue: 23-cent stamped postal card

Format: $9.75 stamped postal card booklet of 20 (15 designs)

Series: N/A

Issue Date & City: October 4, 2004, Milton, MA02186

Designer: Howard E. Paine, Delaplane, VA

Art Director: Howard E. Paine, Delaplane, VA

Typographer: John Boyd, New York, NY

Photographers: Cirrus radiatus, ©David Rosenfeld/Photo Researchers, Inc., New York, NY (for most of his life Mr. Rosenfeld, who died in 1994, resided in The Bronx, NY)

Cumulus humilis, John Day, Oregon Nature Photographer, McMinnville, OR

Engraver: N/A

Modeler: Donald Woo

Manufacturing Process: Offset

Printer: Banknote Corporation of America, Inc./SSP

Printed at: Browns Summit, NC

Press Type: Man Roland, 300

Cards per Set: 20

Print Quantity: 45,000 booklets (900,000 cards)

Paper Type: Phosphored Tagged

Adhesive Type: N/A

Colors: Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black

Stamp Orientation: Vertical

Card Size (w x h): 6.00 x 4.25 in./152.40 x 107.95 mm

Booklet Size (w x h): 6.75 x 4.25 in./171.45 x 107.95 mm

Plate Size: 18 cards per revolution

Plate Numbers: N/A

Marginal/Backside Markings:

Front: Header · Stamp Design Images · “20 Stamped Postal Cards” “Fifteen Designs $9.75”

How to Order First-Day-of-Issue Postmark

Customers have 30 days to obtain the first-day-of-issue postmark by mail. They may purchase new stamps at their local Post Office, by telephone at 1-800-STAMP-24 and at the Postal Store Web site at www.usps.com shop. They should affix the stamps to envelopes of their choice, address the envelopes (to themselves or others), and place them in a larger envelope addressed to:

CLOUDSCAPES COMMEMORATIVE STAMPS

POSTMASTER

P.O. Box 9996

Boston, MA02205-9996

After applying the first-day-of-issue postmark, the Postal Service will return the envelopes through the mail. There is no charge for the postmark. All orders must be postmarked by
November 1, 2004.

How to Order First-Day Covers
Stamp Fulfillment Services also offers first-day covers for new stamp issues and Postal Service stationery items postmarked with the official first-day-of-issue cancellation. Each item has an individual catalog number and is offered in the quarterly USA Philatelic catalog. Customers may request a free catalog by calling 1-800-STAMP-24 or writing to:

INFORMATION FULFILLMENT

DEPT 6270

POBOX 219014

KANSAS CITY MO 64121-9014

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