Galaxy Pair Priority Mail Express (U.S. 2026)

Announced by the USPS on December 12, 2025:

This new Priority Mail Express stamp features another astounding image captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. The stamp features a composite image from the Webb and Hubble Space Telescopes titled Galaxy Pair. It reveals a view of two interacting galaxies, IC 2163 and NGC 2207, located approximately 80 million light-years from Earth, offering a glimpse into the dynamic processes that shape our universe. Greg Breeding, an art director for USPS, designed the stamp, using a photo courtesy of NASA. Upon favorable review by the Postal Regulatory Commission, the stamp will be denominated at the new Priority Mail Express Flat Rate Envelope rate and an issue date will be announced.

Further information will appear below the line, with the most recent information at the top.


Updated February 10th:
Here are the first-day postmarks for this issue:The Digital Color Postmark measures 3.07″ x 1.39″

There is no Pictorial Postmark for this issue, just the FDOI “killer bars.”

Updated February 5th:
This stamp will be issued February 24 without a ceremony.

On February 24, 2026, in Kansas City, MO, the United States Postal Service® will issue the $33.25 Galaxy Pair Priority Mail Express® stamp, in one design, in a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) pane of four stamps (Item 129600). This stamp will go on sale nationwide February 24, 2026, and must not be sold or canceled before the first-day-of-issue.

This new Priority Mail Express® stamp celebrates America’s continued exploration of deep space with another breathtaking image captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. The stamp features a composite James Webb Space Telescope (Webb) and Hubble Space Telescope image titled Galaxy Pair. This image reveals a view of two interacting galaxies, IC 2163 and NGC 2207, located approximately 80 million light-years from Earth, offering a glimpse into the dynamic processes that shape our universe. Art director Greg Breeding designed the stamp, using a photo courtesy of NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration).

Item 129600, $33.25 Galaxy Pair Priority Mail Express Stamp

No automatic distribution.

How to Order the First-Day-of-Issue Postmark:
The first-day-of-issue postmark is a postmark notating the day a stamp is first authorized for use by the Postal Service™. Customers have 120 days to obtain the first-day-of-issue postmark by mail. All requests for first-day-of-issue postmarks (Traditional or Digital Color Postmark) should be sent to the following address with the choice of Traditional or DigitalColor Postmark identified. All orders must be postmarked by June 24, 2026.

FDOI – Galaxy Pair Stamp
USPS Stamp Fulfillment Services
8300 NE Underground Drive, Suite 300
Kansas City, MO 64144-9900

Technical details are not yet available.

Crab Nebula Priority Mail (U.S. 2026)

Announced by the USPS on December 12, 2025:

This new Priority Mail stamp celebrates America’s continued exploration of deep space with a breathtaking image captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. One of the most frequently observed celestial bodies, the Crab Nebula is one of the brightest remnants of an exploded star in the night sky. Located 6,500 light-years away in the constellation Taurus, Webb captured this new Crab Nebula image in vivid infrared detail revealing previously unseen features that contribute to our broader understanding of stellar life cycles. Greg Breeding, an art director for USPS, designed the stamp using a photo courtesy of NASA. Upon favorable review by the Postal Regulatory Commission, the stamp will be denominated at the new Priority Mail Flat Rate Envelope rate and an issue date will be announced.

Further information will appear below the line, with the most recent information at the top.


Updated February 10th:
Here are the first-day postmarks for this issue:The Digital Color Postmark measures 3.12″ x 1.39″There is no Pictorial Postmark for this issue, just the FDOI “killer bars.”

Updated February 5th:

This stamp will be issued February 24 without a ceremony.

On February 24, 2026, in Kansas City, MO, the United States Postal Service® will issue the $11.95 Crab Nebula Priority Mail® stamp, in one design, in a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) pane of four stamps (Item 129700). This stamp will go on sale nationwide February 24, 2026, and must not be sold or canceled before the first-day-of-issue.

This new Priority Mail® stamp celebrates America’s continued exploration of deep space with another breathtaking image captured by NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope. One of the most frequently observed celestial bodies, the Crab Nebula is one of the brightest remnants of an exploded star in the night sky. Located 6,500 light-years away in the constellation Taurus, Webb captured this new Crab Nebula image in vivid infrared detail revealing previously unseen features that contribute to our broader understanding of stellar life cycles. Art director Greg Breeding designed the stamp using a photo courtesy of NASA (National Aeronautics Space Agency).

Item 129700, $11.95 Crab Nebula Priority Mail Pane of Four Stamps

No automatic distribution.

How to Order the First-Day-of-Issue Postmark:
The first-day-of-issue postmark is a postmark notating the day a stamp is first authorized for use by the Postal Service™. Customers have 120 days to obtain the first-day-of-issue postmark by mail. All requests for first-day-of-issue postmarks (Traditional or Digital Color Postmark) must be sent to the following address with the choice of Traditional or Digital Color Postmark identified. All orders must be postmarked by June 24, 2026.

FDOI – Crab Nebula Stamp
USPS Stamp Fulfillment Services
8300 NE Underground Drive, Suite 300
Kansas City, MO 64144-9900

Technical details are not yet available.

Mellone Cachet Catalogues Republished

[press release] [click on any of the pictures for larger versions]
AFDCS Republishes Mellone Cachet Catalogues

All 18 volumes of the Mellone’s Planty Photo Encyclopedia of Cacheted First Day Covers, encompassing issues from 1901 through 1939, are now available from the American First Day Cover Society, either as digital downloads or computer-printed unbound copies punched for looseleaf notebooks. That includes the long out-of-print Volume 17 that catalogues the Baseball Centennial issue of 1939, Scott 855.

The AFDCS obtained permission from Michael A. Mellone’s estate to reprint his important books on first day covers. Eventually, the society hopes to expand and update the listings. Already, Volumes 1 through 6 include updates that were published in First Days, the official journal of the society. The catalogues may be ordered from the AFDCS website, www.afdcs.org/catalogs.

“First day cover catalogs are essential for any collector of first day covers,” said Publications Committee chair Mick Zais. “They identify cachet makers and establish rough measures of scarcity and desirability. Providing these catalogs online is a great service that the American First Day Cover Society provides to its members and the public.”

Also available are reprints of Mellone’s Specialized Cachet Catalog of FDCs of the 1940s and the 1950s. A reprint of the 1960s catalogue should be available soon.

The cachet catalogues by Prof. Earl Planty first appeared in the 1970s, but Mellone’s FDC Publishing Co. was responsible for refining and expanding the concept and making the books available to a wider audience. The knowledge contained in these books revolutionized first day cover collecting, allowing philatelists to know what they had and what they didn’t have.

The AFDCS is the largest not-for-profit first day cover society in the world, with members in more than half a dozen countries. It publishes its award-winning journal, First Days, six times a year, as well as original handbooks, catalogues and YouTube videos, and is a co-sponsor of the annual Great American Stamp Show. It holds an annual cachetmaking contest and encourages philatelic exhibiting and writing about FDCs.

The AFDCS Publications Committee —Zais, Education Department chair Michael Lake, Tris Fall, Doug George and Pat Morgan —is working on reprints of other FDC Publishing works. The AFDCS also offers catalogues for specific issues, ranging from the 1969 Moon Landing stamp (Sc. C76) to Cats and Elvis.

There are lower prices for AFDCS members. Membership begins at $24 a year. The different options are listed at www.afdcs.org/Join-AFDCS

For more information about the AFDCS, visit www.afdcs.org, e-mail afdcs@afdcs.org or write the AFDCS at Post Office Box 57, Somerset, WI 54025-0057.