Quote:
Originally Posted by xelasnave
Have you ever seen one while observing?
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They always seem to be around sunset or dawn - presumably because they are low-altitude satellites - so generally a bit early for peak telescope viewing time for me. I've never tracked a satellite with any of my telescopes (only visual / binoculars), but I have it in my "bucket list" of things to try.
The Heavens Above web page
http://www.heavens-above.com and iPhone / Android apps are a great way to identify upcoming Iridium flashes (and other satellite passes) at your location. I'm looking forward to checking out the new "Mayak" flashes, if / when they start making good predictions.
A couple of years ago (thanks to Heavens Above predictions) I had the good fortune to see a transit of the ISS across the face of the Moon (which I did see with my telescope - but it was tracking the Moon, not the ISS), AND an Iridium flash, on the same evening, at the same location (Robertson, southern suburb of Brisbane). I dragged all of my family along with me (who usually simply "tolerate" my strange hobbies), and even they had to admit that it was a "pretty cool" evening!