COVER N. 680 - SRI LANKA
Postmark: Headquarters P. O. Colombo Mail 20.01.2026
Posted on the 20th January; Received on the 29th January 2026
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2026 is going to be an exciting astronomical year since here in Portugal we will have the opportunity of witnessing a total solar eclipse, something that hasn't occurred since 1912, that is more than a century ago.
In practice the area of Portuguese soil where the eclipse will be fully visible will be quite restricted, being limited to the north-eastern tip of our continental territory, Natural Park of Montesinho being probably the most privileged viewing point to go stick your neck up in the air. (after the eclipse, a full tour of the park area is highly recommended..., for it is a nice place to visit and enjoy not only the sights but also the gastronomy.... you can't go bad with a Posta à Mirandesa......)
Since the full eclipse will only be visible for 26 seconds and there will be no possibility of rewinding and playing it again, I gather that the Park will be quite a hot spot on the 12th August...
Anyway, I got a full preview yesterday. Ravindra kindly sent me a cover with the three stamps of the "Wonders of the Universe" that he still hadn't sent me and one of them shows a beautiful photograph of a "Total Solar Eclipse with Corona".
බෝහම ස්තුති, Ravi!
The stamps are part of the 10x20 Rupee sheet entitled, "The wonders of the Universe", issued on 25SEP2025.
Further to the solar eclipse on the stamp in the centre, the one to its left is illustrated with " Galactic wrekage in Stephan's Quintet" (hmmm.... a nice title for a jazz piece, I would say), an Hubble image., while the one on the right shows "Sagitarius A" a black hole in our old Milky Way., which recently made the news because for his was the first photograph taken of such a celestial body, thing...(so dense, I can't find a word for it :-).
As usual, the postmark was applied at Colombo's Central P.O.
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