NASA astronaut Nicole Stott, The Isle of Man Post Office, Glazier Design and key figures in ocean science have joined forces to launch a stamp collection that draws a direct and urgent line between the crisis facing the world's oceans and humanity's future in space.
-- NASA astronaut Nicole Stott and the Isle of Man Post Office have joined forces with creative agency Glazier Design and key figures in ocean science to launch a stamp collection that draws a direct and urgent line between the crisis facing the world's oceans and humanity's future in space.
From the Oceans to the Stars: Essays on Our Place in Space is issued on 9th March 2026 and comprises six stamps, each personally curated by Stott and designed by Glazier Design, that take collectors on a visual journey from the deepest, least explored parts of the ocean floor to the furthest reaches of the known galaxy.
The collection arrives at a moment when the health of the world's oceans has never been more precarious, and when the case for a fundamental shift in how human beings understand their relationship to the planet has never been more pressing. Stott, who flew in Space Shuttle missions and spent 104 days in space aboard the International Space Station, has made that case the central project of her post-NASA life. This collection is its most visible expression yet.
The stamps move progressively outward from the deepest ocean floor. The first features a glass octopus, Vitreledonella richardi, photographed during a Schmidt Ocean Institute deep-sea expedition in the Pacific Islands - one of the rarest images in marine science, of a creature so transparent that only its optic nerves, eyeballs and digestive tract are visible to the camera. The second features a Cumanotus beaumonti, an aeolid nudibranch from the Isle of Man's own Douglas Bay Marine Nature Reserve, connecting the global ambition of the collection to the extraordinary biodiversity of the island's coastal waters.
The third stamp introduces Mahina, a juvenile albino humpback whale photographed off the coast of Australia by royal photographer Matt Porteous - beautiful, rare and representative of everything that ocean conservation is working to protect. From there the collection ascends: we see the Isle of Man from orbit, captured from the International Space Station.
“Mahina reminded me that the ocean is not separate from us, it sustains us. A stamp may be small, but when it carries precious ocean life, it becomes a messenger traveling the world with a reminder of what we must value and protect.”
Matt Porteous
This stamp is titled Overview Effect; a reference to the profound feelings experienced by many astronauts, and the subject of the book of the same name by Space Philosopher Frank Wright.
“The Overview Effect offers us a new perspective that needs to be shared widely about our place in the universe. This Isle of Man stamp collection does just that, and in such a beautiful way.”
Frank Wright.
Next, we see ‘the Blue Marble’ - NASA's definitive photograph of Earth as a remote and fragile object in space. Finally the collection's closing image is the Trifid and Lagoon Nebulae as captured by the Vera C. Rubin Observatory, one of the first images released by the facility to global attention. This stamp is titled The Wall of Light after Apollo 15 astronaut Al Worden's description of his view of the galaxy as seen from the Moon's far side.
Each stamp is accompanied by a personal essay written by Stott and other contributors, giving the collection a literary and educational dimension that sets it apart from anything previously attempted in commemorative philately. The result is a stamp issue and artistic collaboration that functions simultaneously as a collector's item, an educational resource, and a sustained argument for environmental responsibility grounded in the perspective that only spaceflight can provide.
Glazier Design, who have previously collaborated on an issue with Professor Stephen Hawking also created the ‘One Small Step, One Giant Leap, Back to the Moon’ trilogy of stamp issues. His work gives the collection its distinctive visual identity, depicted in first day covers and supporting materials that match the scale of the imagery and the ambition of the ideas behind it. Glazier says “We’ve been in a privileged position to work with Nicole, whose achievements in space and the deep oceans are driving recognition of the need for us to see our planet from a different perspective. It is inspiring to listen to Astronauts talk about the Earth as a fragile vessel in the vastness of space, and as we return to the Moon, I hope that these stamps give a timely reminder of how we should respect the place we call home.”
Stott, who is an honorary Manxwoman through her marriage to Manxman Chris Stott, is the only person to have spoken the Manx language in space; she painted the first watercolour painted in space, and is heavily involved in education through her charity. Nicole said: "When you see Earth from space, you understand immediately that the ocean and the stars are not separate worlds. They are part of the same story. I hope these stamps open hearts and minds to that connection, and to our responsibility as crewmates on this planetary home we share."
From the Oceans to the Stars is curated by astronaut, aquanaut and artist Nicole Stott, with stamps and first day covers designed by Ben Glazier of Glazier Design, issued by Isle of Man Post Office on 9th March 2026. The full collection is available at iomstamps.com/collections/NicoleStott.
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