From SpaceWeather. Of possible interest for tonight's pass: Space Weather News for May 26, 2009 http://spaceweather.com SPACE STATION FLARES: Lately, a growing number of observers are reporting intense "flares" coming from the International Space Station (ISS). During some nighttime flybys, the luminosity of the space station surges 10-fold or more. Some people have witnessed flares of magnitude -8 or twenty-five times brighter than Venus. A movie featured on today's edition of http://spaceweather.com shows what is happening: sunlight glints from the station's recently expanded solar arrays in a shadow-casting flash. Currently, the flares are unpredictable. You watch a flyby not knowing if one will happen or how bright it might be. That's what makes the hunt for "ISS flares" so much fun. Sky watchers in North America should be alert for flares this week. The ISS is making a series of evening passes over many US and Canadian towns and cities. Flyby times are available from the Simple Satellite Tracker: http://spaceweather.com/flybys On 26 May 2009, at 14:47, Patrick Wiggins wrote:
Good ISS pass for northern Utah tonight (Tuesday).
Appears 21h58m35s 3.6mag az:305.4° NW horizon
Culmination 22h03m30s -4.5mag az:217.8° SW h:80.0° Distance: 355.8km height above Earth: 352.0km elevation of sun: -12°
Disappears 22h05m08s -3.3mag az:133.0° SE h:23.3°
pw