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Orbcomm
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| Orbcomm-X | Orbcomm-FM |
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Orbcomm
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|---|---|---|
| Orbcomm-X | Orbcomm-FM |
This page contains philatelic information on the Orbcomm (ORBital COMMunications) constellation satellites. Catalog numbers, years of issue, and notes on the satellites featured are given when available. If readers know of additional information or images, please contact the authors using the e-mail addresses at the bottom of this page.
| Launch information (found elsewhere) |
Launch covers (including anniversary-of-launch covers, and launch-related event covers) (farther below) |
Other postal items (stamps, souvenir sheets, aerogrammes, postal cards, etc.) (immediately below) |
|---|---|---|
| Orbcomm | Orbcomm | Orbcomm |
Below is a list of Orbcomm constellation satellite postal items (stamps, souvenir sheets, aerogrammes, postal cards, etc.).
| Country | Catalog Number | Type of Item | Year of Issue | Notes on Content |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orbcomm constellation | ||||
| No (non-launch cover) postal items found | ||||
Below is a list of Orbcomm constellation satellite launch covers (including anniversary-of-launch covers, and launch-related event covers).
| Country | Cancel Date | Cancel Location | Type of Item | Notes on Content |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Orbcomm constellation | ||||
| 1991-07-16: Orbcomm-X (and ERS-1 and Tubsat-A and SARA and OSCAR-22) | ||||
| French Guiana | 1991-07-15 | Kourou | (KPS) cachet on card | Orbcomm-X launch |
| French Guiana | 1991-07-15 | Kourou | (Lollini) cachet on cover | Orbcomm-X launch |
| French Guiana | 1991-07-16 | Kourou | (KPS) cachet on cover | Orbcomm-X launch |
| French Guiana | 1991-07-16 | Kourou | (Aérospatiale Philatélie) cachet on cover | Orbcomm-X launch |
| French Guiana | 1991-07-16 | Kourou (text cancel) | (Association philatélique du CNES) cachet on cover | Orbcomm-X launch |
| French Guiana | 1991-07-16 | Kourou (pictorial cancel) | (Association philatélique du CNES) cachet (different) on cover | Orbcomm-X launch |
| French Guiana | 1991-07-16 | Kourou | (ESA) cachet on cover | Orbcomm-X launch |
| French Guiana | 1991-07-16 | Kourou | (Blue printed and red rubber-stamp) cachets on cover | Orbcomm-X launch |
| French Guiana | 1991-07-16 | Kourou | (Green and blue rubber-stamp) cachets on cover | Orbcomm-X launch |
| French Guiana | 1991-07-16 | Kourou | (KPS?) cachet on postcard | Orbcomm-X launch |
| French Guiana | 1991-07-16 | Kourou | (C.E. SEP Section Philatélie) cachet on cover | Orbcomm-X launch |
| French Guiana | 1991-07-16 | Kourou | (Lollini) cachet on cover | Orbcomm-X launch |
| France | 1991-07-17 | Paris Victor Hugo | (Lollini) cachet on cover | Orbcomm-X launch |
| 1997-12-23: Orbcomm-FM05/FM12 | ||||
| United States | 1997-12-23 | Wallops Island VA | (Bob Boyd) cachet on cover | Orbcomm-FM05/FM12 launch |
| 1998-02-10: Orbcomm-FM03/FM04 (and Celestis-3 and GFO) | ||||
| United States | 1998-02-10 | Lompoc CA, Vandenberg AFB | (Black printed) cachet on cover | Orbcomm-FM03/FM04 launch |
| 2012-10-08 (launched to ISS) [with Dragon-CRS-1] 2012-10-08 (deployed before docking with ISS): Orbcomm-FM101 [partial failure1] |
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| United States | 2012-10-07 | Hawthorne CA | (Lollini) cachet on cover | Dragon-CRS-1 launch (with Orbcomm-FM101) |
| United States | 2012-10-07 | Cape Canaveral FL | (Lollini) cachet on cover | Dragon-CRS-1 launch (with Orbcomm-FM101) |
| Russia | 2012-10-10 | Korolev, Moscow Oblast | (Multi-color printed) cachet on cover | Dragon-CRS-1 docking with the ISS (with Orbcomm-FM101, a secondary payload deployed earlier in this mission, failed to reach its orbit) |
| Russia | 2012-10-28 | Korolev 141079 Moscow Oblast | (Multi-color printed) cachet on cover | Dragon-CRS-1 un-docking from the ISS and splashdown/recovery |
| United States | 2012-10-28 | Long Beach CA | (Lollini) cachet on cover | Dragon-CRS-1 un-docking from the ISS and "splashdown"/recovery |
| United States | 2012-11-02 | Houston TX | (Black and green printed) cachet on cover | Dragon-CRS-1 returned to Houston (with cover launched with ATV-3) |
| 2015-12-21: Orbcomm-FM105/FM119 | ||||
| United States | 2015-12-21 | Cape Canaveral FL | (Lollini) cachet on cover | Orbcomm-FM105/FM119 launch |
1Orbcomm-FM101, carried as a secondary payload, was planned to be deployed from the second stage of the Falcon-9 launch rocket. However, during the ascent an engine anomaly in one of its nine first-stage engines resulted in an automatic engine shutdown and a subsequent longer-than-planned first-stage burn of the remaining eight engines to attain the correct insertion orbit for the Dragon capsule (the primary payload). This was accomplished at the expense of increased propellant use (compared to the nominal mission). Because of this, the planned second-stage burn was canceled and Orbcomm-FM101 had to be released into an unusable orbit, which decayed rapidly so that between two and four days later the satellite burned up in the atmosphere. Prior to the mission, both SpaceX and Orbcomm were aware of the risk that the secondary payload satellite could remain stranded at the lower altitude of the Dragon insertion orbit. Orbcomm agreed to take the risk, given the dramatically lower cost of launch for a secondary payload.
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