Work in progress. Still trying to figure out what I have / don’t have, and the Solar Covers numbering system which is not always written on the insert.
In a 1973 copy of ‘Explorer’, the International Association of Space Philatelists (IASP) journal, I read that Roger Jarrell from Huntington, West Virginia was responsible for the brand ‘Solar Covers’. That’s all I know at this stage. Can anyone shed any more light on this brand or the producer himself ?
It is possible that i’m missing one or two of the earliest Solar Covers between # 1 and # 6 (these early covers are not numbered). I’m not sure what event it could be for, but candidates include the following: Intelsat 3 F6 (14th Jan 1970), ITOS 1 (23rd Jan 1970), Sert 2 (3rd Feb 1970), NATO 2A (21st Mar 1970), Apollo 13 (13th April 1970), RAM C-3 (30th Sep 1970), Secede III Barium release (5th Oct 1970) and possibly the other ‘secret satellite’ launches in 1970 including Rhyolite 1, Canyon 3, DSP1, etc. Can anyone help ? Based on the letters that accompanied some of the earlier covers shown below, Solar Covers didn’t form until after mid-Apr 1970.
Solar Cover (Not marked as a Solar Cover, but it came with the letter from Solar Covers, shown below) – Vela 11 & Vela 12 – 8th Apr 1970:
Solar Cover (Not marked as a Solar Cover, but seems very similar to the above & below) – Nimbus 4 – 8th Apr 1970:
Solar Cover (Not marked as a Solar Cover, but it came with the letter from Solar Covers, shown below) – S-IVB Impact on the Moon – 14th Apr 1970:
Solar Cover (possibly # 1?) – Intelsat III F7 – 22nd Apr 1970:
Solar Cover (possibly # 2?) – Intelsat III F8 – 23rd Jul 1970:
Solar Cover (possibly # 3? Not marked as a Solar Cover but the note from Huntington WV is a clue) – Poseidon C3 Launch – 3rd Aug 1970:
Solar Cover (possibly # 4?) – SKYNET B – 19th Aug 1970:
Solar Cover (possibly # 5?) – SPED 2 – 9th Oct 1970:
Solar Cover # 6 (?) – OAO B – 30th Nov 1970:
Solar Cover # 7 – ITOS A – 11th Dec 1970:
Solar Cover # 8 (?) – Intelsat IV – 25th Jan 1971:
Solar Cover # 9 – Apollo 14 Launch – 31st Jan 1971:
Solar Cover # 9.5? – NATO B – 2nd Feb 1971:
Solar Cover # 10 – Apollo 14 Lunar Landing – 5th Feb 1971:
Solar Cover # 11 – Apollo 14 Recovery – 9th Feb 1971:
Solar Cover # 12 – WANTED
Solar Cover # 13 – WANTED
Solar Cover # 14 – ISIS B – 31st Mar 1971:
Solar Cover # 15 – Decade of Man in Space – 5th May 1971:
Solar Cover # 16 – Mariner 8 – 9th May 1971:
Solar Cover # 17 – Mariner 9 – 1st Jun 1971:
Solar Cover # 18 – Apollo 15 Launch – 26th Jul 1971:
Solar Cover # 19 – Apollo 15 Lunar Landing – 30th Jul 1971:
Solar Cover # 20A – Apollo Lunar Rover – 31st Jul 1971:
Solar Cover # 20B – Decade of Achievement – 2nd Aug 1971:
Solar Cover # 21 – Apollo 15 Sub-satellite – 4th Aug 1971:
Solar Cover # 22 – Apollo 15 Space Walk – 5th Aug 1971:
Solar Cover # 23 – Apollo 15 Recovery – 7th Aug 1971:
Solar Cover # 24 – WANTED
Solar Cover # 25 – ITOS B – 21st Oct 1971
Solar Cover # 26 – Al Worden Hometown (Jackson, Michigan)
Solar Cover # 27 – EOLE 1 – 16th Aug 1971:
Solar Cover # 28 – OSO H – 29th Sep 1971:
Solar Cover # 29 – UK 4 – 11th Dec 1971:
Solar Cover # 30 – Intelsat IV F3 – 19th Dec 1971:
Solar Cover # 31 – Mariner 9 Mars Orbit – 15th Nov 1971:
Solar Cover # 32 – Intelsat IV F4 – 24th Jan 1972:
Solar Cover # 33 – Apollo 16 Rollback – 27th Jan 1972:
Solar Cover # 34 – Heos A2 – 31st Jan 1972:
Solar Cover # 35 – ESRO TD 1A – 11th Mar 1972:
Solar Cover # 36 – Apollo 16 Launch – 16th Apr 1972:
Solar Cover # 37 – Apollo 16 Lunar Landing – 20th Apr 1972:
Solar Cover # 38 – Apollo 16 Sub-satellite – 24th Apr 1972:
Solar Cover # 39 – Apollo 16 Man’s Second Walk in Deep Space – 25th Apr 1972:
Solar Cover # 40 – WANTED (possibly Apollo 16 Return to Earth ?)
Solar Cover # 41 – Opening Day Neil Armstrong Air and Space Museum – 20th Jul 1972:
Solar Cover # 42 – ERTS A – 23rd Jul 1972:
Solar Cover # 43 ? – WANTED
Solar Cover # 44 ? – WANTED
Solar Cover # 45 – OAO C – 21st Aug 1972:
Solar Cover # 46 – ANIK 1 – 9th Nov 1972:
Solar Cover # 47 – Slogan Cancellation FDI Bellwood, IL / Home of Astronaut Gene Cernan – 6th Dec 1972:
Solar Cover # 48 – Apollo 17 Launch – 7th Dec 1972:
Solar Cover # 49 – WANTED
Solar Cover # 50 – WANTED
Solar Cover # 51 – WANTED
Solar Cover # 52 – ITOS D – 15th Oct 1972:
Solar Cover # 53 – WANTED
Solar Cover # 54 – Apollo 17 Moon Landing – 11th Dec 1972:
Solar Cover # 55 – Apollo 17 Transearth EVA – 17th Dec 1972:
Solar Cover # 56 – WANTED (possibly Apollo 17 Return to Earth?)
Solar Cover # 57 (?) / Swick (?) – Copernicus – 23rd Apr 1973:
