By Mukul Bhowmik
On 10 th August 2018 , Bhutan post has issued a 4 value 3 D SS to mark the entry of Bhutan in Space with the launch of its first satellite a nano–satellite or cube satellite { cube sat] called Bhutan 1. The satellite was sent in to space at 3.41 PM BST aboard a space X Dragon space craft on June 29, 2018 to be delivered to the International space station .
The face value of the 3D SS is 1000 Nu or Rs 1000.00. There are 4 stamps in the SS of each 250 NU or Rs 250.00. The sheet is unperforated
Bhutan post issued its First 3D stamps on space on October30, 1967 and since then issued many 3D stamp set and Paper stamp set on Space exploration which were done by developed countries like USA and USSR .Those stamp set are now in proud possession of serious collector of Bhutan Philatelic items . Issue of one 3D stamp to mark the launch of first satellite of Bhutan is an appropriate exercise which will be definitely welcomed by Stamp collectors .The satellite was developed and designed by a team of four Bhutanese engineers namely: Yeshey Choden, Kiran Kumar Pradhan, Cheki Dorji and Pooja Lepcha. They are pursuing a two-year masters degree in space engineering at the Kyushu Institute of Technology and the satellite project is part of their master’s program.
The satellite has a dimension of {10 x 10 x 10 } cubic cm also known as 1 unit or 1U . weighs 1.33 KG and is estimated to last for 9 months however it can last up to two years The satellite will operate at the altitude of 500 to 1,500 kilometres (310 to 930 mi) and will pass above Bhutan for three to four minutes four to five times a day. . BHUTAN-1’s two cameras will be used to capture satellite imagery of Bhutan to help assess the country’s glaciers, lakes, and forest cover. It will also provide basic communication services and will also be used to study radiation effects on satellites in general
Sheet size 170mm X 135mm
Stamp size 57.6mm X 40.9mm
Printing Offset Lithography, Paper Lenticulaire 320 gsm
Quantity – 5000 sheets {unperforated}, Single sheet of 4 value stamp
Printer – Cartor Security printing BNP, Paribas, Evry , FRANCE
Designer – Tashi wangchuk and Barun Gurung
