YaHooka Forums - View Single Post - Shuttle orbit visible for past days Station and Shuttle fly over America tonight

ProfessorMurder · 06-13-2008, 04:55 PM

Did anyone see the Shuttle and Space station two nights ago.
(They were real bright and large staying in the sky for about 2 minutes)
The Station came into view in the central U.S. around 8:30 p.m.
and the shuttle was trialing it 14 seconds behind.
they traveled from the north west to the south east.
It was very bright and it's going to happen again tonight.

June 4, 2008 - 9:15am

By Lainie Frost

Special to WTOPnews.com

WASHINGTON - What travels 200 miles above the Earth's surface at a speed
of over 17,000 miles per hour? It's not a bird nor a plane. And it's definitely
not Superman.

The bright star-like object which will appear in our evening sky over the next
few days is actually the combination of the space shuttle docked to the
International Space Station.

You'll be able to the see the combo in Thursday night's northwest sky at
10:02 p.m. On Friday, it can be seen for almost three minutes beginning at
10:22 p.m.

Geoff Chester, an astronomer from the U.S. Naval Observatory, has been
observing satellites for years, even he is in awe of the shuttle sightings.

"The idea that I find really amazing is that when you see that little moving dot
going through the sky there are ten people on it," he said.

Chester said the longest arc the crafts will take across the sky will be
Thursday as they migrate east, above the North Star. They will eventually
disappear, emitting a yellowish-gold tint and then turning red before hiding in
the earth's shadow.

The "coolest" viewing will be Friday when the crafts travel past the crescent
moon, Mars and Saturn in the western sky until 10:24 p.m.

"The ones we have coming up later this week occur a little bit earlier so they
will be visible for a longer period of time and they'll have an opportunity to
brighten up to the point where it will be virtually impossible for people to miss
them," Chester said.

The Space Station is the largest single object currently in orbit. The shuttle's
additions have made it so large that amateur astronomers are able to track
and take pictures of it with great detail.

"It's just a huge piece of hardware up there," Chester said.

06-13-2008, 04:55 PM	#1 (permalink)
ProfessorMurder Jackal Ghoul Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Rio Grande Valley, Texas Posts: 888 Thanks: 10 Thanked 69 Times in 56 Posts	Shuttle orbit visible for past days Station and Shuttle fly over America tonight Did anyone see the Shuttle and Space station two nights ago. (They were real bright and large staying in the sky for about 2 minutes) The Station came into view in the central U.S. around 8:30 p.m. and the shuttle was trialing it 14 seconds behind. they traveled from the north west to the south east. It was very bright and it's going to happen again tonight. June 4, 2008 - 9:15am By Lainie Frost Special to WTOPnews.com WASHINGTON - What travels 200 miles above the Earth's surface at a speed of over 17,000 miles per hour? It's not a bird nor a plane. And it's definitely not Superman. The bright star-like object which will appear in our evening sky over the next few days is actually the combination of the space shuttle docked to the International Space Station. You'll be able to the see the combo in Thursday night's northwest sky at 10:02 p.m. On Friday, it can be seen for almost three minutes beginning at 10:22 p.m. Geoff Chester, an astronomer from the U.S. Naval Observatory, has been observing satellites for years, even he is in awe of the shuttle sightings. "The idea that I find really amazing is that when you see that little moving dot going through the sky there are ten people on it," he said. Chester said the longest arc the crafts will take across the sky will be Thursday as they migrate east, above the North Star. They will eventually disappear, emitting a yellowish-gold tint and then turning red before hiding in the earth's shadow. The "coolest" viewing will be Friday when the crafts travel past the crescent moon, Mars and Saturn in the western sky until 10:24 p.m. "The ones we have coming up later this week occur a little bit earlier so they will be visible for a longer period of time and they'll have an opportunity to brighten up to the point where it will be virtually impossible for people to miss them," Chester said. The Space Station is the largest single object currently in orbit. The shuttle's additions have made it so large that amateur astronomers are able to track and take pictures of it with great detail. "It's just a huge piece of hardware up there," Chester said. __________________ "No contaban con mi astucia!"