Space Station

[psyche101]

It would seem theNorthern Hemisphere is privy to an exciting opportunity

The next few days will be prime viewing opportunities for anyone interested in catching a glimpse of the International Space Station (ISS) passing overhead.
The space station is normally visible once or twice a day, but from Wednesday to Friday, it can be seen making as many as four daily passes over North America and Europe.
Satellites like the ISS are only visible on Earth when they are in sunlight and the viewer is in deep twilight or darkness.
Such a scenario can occur more often at certain times of the year, when the Earth's orientation relative to the Sun allows the ISS to move out of Earth's shadow.

http://space.newscientist.com/articl...ine-news_rss20

This seems an interesting opportunity. Is it possible to see much detail with a telescope, or would this look like a star?
Has anybody much experience with earth satellites? Is it possile to view any with any detail? I realise any detail would be minimal I was just wondering if it is clear enough to determine from natural bodies?
I have also read some people set up to watch meteor showers, is this possible? If so, would the view last more than milliseconds?

[AstralTraveller (David)]

As the article says, passes of the ISS are fairly common and there is a web site that gives details but I don't have the link handy. I believe trying to point a telescope at such a fast moving object would be too difficult, however binoculars are quite useful. I've seen clear detail with a pair of 8x40s. The solar panels were quite distinct. I don't know about the amount of detail you can see in other spacecraft - I've never tried.

Meteor showers can be visible over a period of days to weeks, depending on the width of the debris 'cloud'. Of course each individual meteor is only visible for a second or so. The things to consider include: the rate of meteors, normally given as the zenith hourly rate (ZHR) which is the number an observer under dark skies would see if the radiant was at the zenith (straight overhead); where the radiant is (could be overhead, could be below the horizon); and how dark your skies are. Observing tends to involve sitting in a comfy chair and looking in the direction you expect to see the meteors. If you get into it you can actually collect useful information for the science community.

[madtuna (Steve)]

Hi Psyche.... click on the "links" on the left and click on "Heavens Above"
It will give you the ISS aswell as other satelite passes for your given area aswell as the Irridium flares

[Matty P (Matt)]

Hi Psyche,

I have observed the ISS through my 8" SCT during quite a bright passing. I managed to observe the solar panels and the main structure.

The only downside was that it was over in less than a second.

[Screwdriverone (Chris)]

Hi Psyche,

I saw the ISS the other night passing over at dusk from SSW to NNE and it was brighter than every star out at the time and VERY steady light. The time I watched it for was about 30-40 seconds from just south of Sydney to well off the coast of Newcastle by the time it faded into the twilight.

I stood there transfixed staring at the sky wondering if it really was the ISS, realised it was and forgot that my 11x70 binos and scope were about 2m away inside the closed garage door DOH!!

Oh well, next time.

If you see a "satellite" trailing across the sky that is as bright or brighter than Sirius, bam, ISS.

Cheers

Chris

[Chrissyo (Chris)]

Hi psyche101,

During an ISS pass last December I made a comparison image of the relative sizes of the ISS and Saturn through my telescope. So you can get a general idea of what kind of magnification you can use to get some detail. See the attached image below. It's not my best image of the ISS, but it serves its purpose well.