The world’s first digital franking of stamps in Lunar Orbit enroute to the Moon and their transmission back to Earth has been undertaken.
In a historic milestone for space commerce and regulatory innovation, Isle of Man Stamps & Coins are working in collaboration with Eayst Noa Ltd.
Together with local technology supplier, Arcube Limited, this pioneering effort, conducted in collaboration with the Department for Enterprise, also marks a ground-breaking test of the Isle of Man Government’s Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery regulations.
Space Stamps
The stamps selected for this landmark trial support the Isle of Man’s commitment to the future of secure business continuity and lunar exploration.
The Isle of Man Post Office 2023 Back to the Moon and Triskelion stamp collections were included in the Lonestar ‘Freedom’ Data Centre payload that travelled to the Moon; they were franked in space and transmitted back to Earth.
The software for executing digital stamp creation in lunar orbit was created by Arcube, in partnership with Luke Ramsden and Abdulla Al-Kamil.
While the craft experienced challenges when touching down on the lunar surface, Eayst Noa has confirmed receipt of the digital stamp data from the surface of the Moon post landing.
Commitment to Innovation
Stu Peters MHK, Isle of Man Post Office Chairman, said: “We are pleased to once again demonstrate our commitment to innovation with the first ever digitally franked stamps from Lunar Orbit.
“Our stamps have long captured historic moments so it is fitting that they are now part of history with this momentous project.”
Harvey Lowe, Founder and Director of Arcube Limited, said: “This is a world’s first achievement on many levels. It’s great to see the Isle of Man’s commitment to innovation, no matter the planet this occurs on.”
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