Philosateleia is a satellite of Earth. Its dense atmosphere and distance from Earth, combined with the warping of light from the sun through the magnetic fields of both bodies, makes it virtually invisible from the surface of the planet.

Satellite
The satellite was discovered during the first half of Stamp Year 163 (A.D. 2002-03 in Earth years), and colonization efforts began shortly thereafter. Philosateleia is independent of any of the current governments on Earth.

Philosateleia sports a total surface area of approximately 50 million sq. km, but approximately half of that is covered by water. The total land area, then, is around 25 million sq. km or approximately one and a half times the size of Russia. From the great mountains of Shakalaka to the coasts of Dulceren and Fishlandia, and from the gently rolling hills of Philatelis to the stark swamps and forests of the Wilderness, a seemingly never-ending variety of landscapes cover the globe.

Although the land is host to much life, Philosateleia's bodies of water are also home to an amazingly diverse set of plants and animals. There are no significant saltwater bodies on Philosateleia.

Flag of Philosateleia

Flag
The white background of the flag of Philosateleia stands for purity, while the black mock-perforation fringe represents philately. The Philosateleian postmark is featured prominently in the upper right corner of the flag; the circle of the postmark represents Philosateleia as a whole, while each of the cancellation bars represents one of the five administrative regions.

The purple box does not really mean anything, but the flag designer thought that it looked good.

Stamp Year Calendar
Because Philosateleia's first residents were colonists from earth, the Gregorian calendar is widely used on the satellite. The government also promotes the use of the Stamp Year calendar, however.

The first postage stamp was issued on Earth by the government of Great Britain in May 1840. The Philosateleian Government views that date as the beginning of the Stamp Era, and May 1, 1840 as the first day of Stamp Year 1 (SY1).

The current Stamp Year is easily determined. If the date is before May 1, the Stamp Year is the Gregorian year minus 1840; if the date is on or after May 1, the Stamp Year is the Gregorian year minus 1839.