From the Oceans to the Stars stamps

Nicole Stott writes…

We live on an ocean planet in space. Blessed to experience our planetary home from the extraordinary vantage point of an orbiting spaceship, I am compelled to share this simple, yet powerful, message.

The most profound lesson I learned from my time OFF our planet was the fact that we live ON a planet ~ in space, spinning at 1000 mph, orbiting our Sun at 67,000 mph, and zooming through the universe at 1.3 million mph! Every morning when we wake up, when our feet touch the floor, we should remind ourselves that we are standing on a planet. The morning mantra I’ve adopted since flying in space could be your morning mantra too. It goes like this:

“We live on an ocean planet in space. We’re all Earthlings. The only border that matters is that veil thin blue line of atmosphere that blankets and protects us all. As I venture forth with my day, I will accept my role as a crewmate, not a passenger, of our planetary spaceship.”

To live on a spaceship is a lot like living on an island. On our spaceship we are isolated, we must actively consider our critical resources, we must check how much CO2 is in our atmosphere, how much clean drinking water we have, the integrity of our thin metal hull, and on the health and well-being of all our crewmates. In order to survive, we know we have to behave like crewmates, not passengers – this is a wonderful example for how we should behave together on our planetary spaceship.

To me, there’s no better island home to consider than the Isle of Man. My husband was born and raised there, and I consider myself an honorary Manxwoman. I’m in awe of the beauty of the Island, its rare and rich history, the people, and their respect for the nature of their Island home, a UNESCO Biosphere.

The Isle of Man presents us with a wonderful way to consider our place in space – from the depths of the sea that surround it and the coastal and ocean life that thrives in its waters. Our Island sits on a planet surrounded by the vast expanse of space, and the endless possibilities it affords us for exploration, and perhaps more importantly, a better understanding of who and where we all are, together, in space.

Stamp 1 – THE DEEP OCEAN

We begin our planetary journey at the deepest point of the oceans. This stamp encapsulates the wonder and mystery of our planet’s deep oceans, most of which remain unexplored. The ocean ecosystem is vital to sustaining life on Earth, and is teeming with its own undiscovered life and purpose. Nicole is grateful to the Schmidt Ocean Institute for sharing this image from one of their deep-sea missions of an incredibly rare and otherworldly appearing glass octopus.

Stamp 2 – COASTAL SEA LIFE

Sometimes tiny creatures have great significance, such as microscopic phytoplankton that create more than 50% of Earth’s oxygen. In the critically important Douglas Bay Marine Nature Reserve a 1-inch Cumanotus beaumonti; a rare, beautiful, and unusual translucent sea slug (nudibranch), is essential for maintaining the balance and functional diversity of the shallow-water communities it inhabits. Manx Utilities (gulf.have partnered with DEFA to monitor and research the Little Ness and Douglas Bay MNRs where undersea cables are surrounded by life.

Stamp 3 – PRECIOUS OCEAN LIFE

We arrive now to the surface of our ocean, a place where the marine life is most visible yet one of the most vulnerable ecosystems on our planet. In this image captured by Royal Photographer and co-founder of Ocean Culture Life, Matt Porteous, he offers us a glimpse of “one of the ocean’s rarest gifts, to swim in the turquoise waters of Tonga with “Mãhina”, the beautiful, albino humpback whale. Her name means Moon in Tongan ~ a symbol of wonder, protection, and the fragile beauty of our blue planet.

Stamp 4 – OVERVIEW EFFECT

As we leave Earth, we look back to the Isle of Man. Taken from the ISS, this image presents the Isle of Man set in a silver sea, offering perspective on the place we call home and our Biosphere status. Viewing Earth from space profoundly changes human perspective, a phenomenon that was introduced to humanity by space philosopher Frank White and is known as the Overview Effect. This image reflects Nicole’s own personal experience with the Overview Effect.

Stamp 5 – THE BLUE MARBLE

Now we venture far from Earth, looking back at our planet from well outside the hold of its field of gravity. This stamp celebrates the renowned ‘Blue Marble’ image captured by NASA, famously symbolising Earth’s isolated beauty and fragility. When astronauts beheld our planet from a distance for the first time, they remarked how much it looked like a small blue marble. Presenting the beauty and reality of who and where we all are together in space.

Stamp 6 – the WALL OF LIGHT

Finally, we turn to look out to the stars. The famous “Wall of Light” as was described by NASA Apollo Astronaut Al Worden, is presented here through this image of the Trifid and Lagoon Nebulae, one of the first images shared from the NSF-DOE Vera C Rubin Observatory. The Stars of our night sky represent our ultimate destination, the boundless possibilities of human achievement, and the infinite wonder about our place in space.