David S. Ball Will Speak on “Astrophilately: Intersection of Space and Postal History”
The Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum will host the 22nd Maynard Sundman Lecture Thursday, Nov. 6, at 4 p.m. ET at the museum and also online on Zoom. Admission is free, but registration is required.
David Ball, astrophilatelist and NASA Solar System Ambassador, will discuss how personal stories, philately and rockets intertwine. For nearly 100 years, human ambitions to reach and explore space have been paired with philatelic aspirations. This intersection of space and postal history—astrophilately—uses philatelic material related to space exploration, including covers and their postmarks linking the date and location of key events in aerospace history, to tell stories of humankind’s conquest of the heavens.
About David S. Ball
Ball is a recognized collector, exhibitor and author on aerophilately and astrophilately. His writings have been published in The American Philatelist (published by the American Philatelic Society), The Airpost Journal (published by the American Air Mail Society), The Israel Philatelist (published by the Society of Israel Philatelists), The Astrophile (published by the Space Unit Study Group), The Philatelic Exhibitor (published by the American Association of Philatelic Exhibitors) and many others.
His book, American Astrophilately: The First Fifty Years, was nominated in 2010 for the American Astronautical Society’s Eugene M. Emme Astronautical Literature Award, which recognizes the outstanding book that advances public understanding of astronautics. The book received a gold medal in the American Philatelic Society literature competition. With 14 contributors, the book introduces astrophilately and some of its specialties through a collection of essays and images.
Ball uses these philatelic materials in his capacity as a NASA Solar System Ambassador. This NASA program works with motivated volunteers across the nation to communicate the science and excitement of NASA’s space exploration missions and discoveries with their communities. As an ambassador, Ball has hosted events at public libraries, Merrimack College and Framingham State University and its McAuliffe Center for Integrated Science Learning.
Ball serves as U.S. delegate to the Astrophilatelic Section of the Fédération Internationale de Philatélie (FIP) and is a nationally accredited philatelic judge with specializations in aerophilately, astrophilately and Holy Land, polar and postal history.
He is currently president of the American Air Mail Society. He is also active in the American Association of Philatelic Exhibitors, the American Society of Polar Philatelists and the Society of Israel Philatelists, and is a 25-year member of the American Philatelic Society. He is also currently the awards chair and security manager on the organizing committee for the Boston 2026 World Expo.
Ball is a retired Air Force officer and health-care professional and was previously the executive director of the Spellman Museum of Stamps and Postal History in Weston, Massachusetts. He has been fascinated by space exploration since watching the Apollo astronauts walk on the face of the moon a half-century ago.
The public can visit the museum’s website for additional information and registration instructions.
About the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum
The National Postal Museum is devoted to presenting the colorful and engaging history of the nation’s mail service and showcasing one of the largest and most comprehensive collections of stamps and philatelic material in the world. It is located at 2 Massachusetts Ave. N.E., Washington, D.C., across from Union Station. The museum is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. (closed Dec. 25). For more information about the Smithsonian, call (202) 633-1000 or visit the museum website.
