First U.S. Rocket to the Moon: Pioneer 1 Launch Covers.

A postal card and a stamped cover, both cancelled at Patrick Air Force Base, Florida, on October 11, 1958 at 1:30 p.m., the same day the Thor-Able rocket carrying Pioneer 1 lifted off from Cape Canaveral’s Launch Complex 17A at 3:42 a.m. Eastern time.

Each bears a red octagonal cachet reading “First U.S. Rocket to the Moon — Cape Canaveral A.F.B., Florida — U.S. Air Force — USNC-IGY” alongside the “Année Géophysique Internationale / International Geophysical Year 1957-1958” seal, sponsored by the U.S. National Committee for the International Geophysical Year. The cover carries the 3¢ IGY commemorative stamp issued that February; the postal card uses the pre-printed 2¢ Franklin indicium.

Pioneer 1 was NASA’s first launch, coming just ten days after the agency’s founding, and the first American attempt to reach the Moon: a guidance error kept it from escaping Earth orbit, but it still returned 43 hours of data on the Van Allen radiation belts before burning up on reentry. Both pieces are addressed to the Fass family of Jackson Heights, New York.