Hi Meredith I have only just seen this post
and was jus about too reply to you.
What you described except for any sound was
the launch of a rocket.
Your description was a near image of what we
experienced at the Queensland Astrofest about
6 years? ago.
We observed it through telescopes from 30" inch
and my 16 inch for quite a bit of time till it was
lost in the mist of the central Milky Way.
We even watched the separation of a stage of
the rocket and could see it heading on its way to it's
eventual orbit of around 30,000 kms.
It turned out to be an American Spy Satellite
You have very good observational skills,
and great sky's
Well done
Cheers
PS, One small tip
Always take your binoculars with you on your walks
you never know when they will come in handy,
whether for looking up, or even wildlife.
