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Question for veteran satellite observers..
How do you go about planning for a "session" of satellite observing? I
understand how to come up with pass predictions for any satellite using software, online services like Heavens Above, etc., but I do not know how to "choose" satellites without it being laborious. For example, I just spent an hour or so typing in "Lacrosse 2", "Lacrosse 3", etc. at the Heavens Above web site to see what interesting satellites might be visible the next night or two from my location, but I found very few passes. This seems like a very inefficient way to go about planning, so what do you guys do? Do you pick out the interesting satellites, calculate when they will make favorable passes many days in advance, and then mark those on a calendar of some sort? Is there some software that you can use to do this? Thanks very much for your help. |
#2
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Question for veteran satellite observers..
How do you go about planning for a "session" of satellite
observing? ... This seems like a very inefficient way to go about planning, so what do you guys do? Do you pick out the interesting satellites, calculate when they will make favorable passes many days in advance, and then mark those on a calendar of some sort? Is there some software that you can use to do this? I'm not a very good planner or very organized, but I'll comment anyway. I use Quicksat and Highfly and Iridflar with certain element set files to generate, for a specific evening, all passes brighter than a set estimated magnitude, and then I scan and edit the predictions. The element files are one "filter" and are on this site: http://users2.ev1.net/~mmccants/tles/ With Quicksat I use highdrag.tle, mccants.tle, leo.tle, and eccen.tle; with Highfly I omit leo.tle. Another "filter" is the magnitude file used with each program, which you can modify for your own purposes, especially the "flags". Then you filter the predictions however you want. Iridflar is specifically for Iridium flares, of course. One way you could go is get predictions like these and then get more details and/or graphics with Heavens-Above.com or SkyMap or another graphical resource. The bottom line is that you find out very quickly what objects are going over on a given evening (or morning) and then pick out the ones you want to see and find out more. Now I'll append something. We've received word that it is possible (likely? almost certain?) that official satellite elements may be withdrawn from public availability in May. See these articles: http://www.satobs.org/seesat/Dec-2003/0248.html http://www.satobs.org/seesat/Dec-2003/0359.html It will be pretty much impossible for amateurs to track and analyze the orbits of the 3,000 or so objects in the elements files above. The irony is that the result is that it could turn out that the only objects that will continue to be tracked by amateurs are the classified ones, which they have been tracking for years! I don't have much idea how many other objects a number of dedicated amateurs could track. Some objects need very frequent observations, but others do not. And it may be that quite a few elements will continue to be publicly available for various reasons. It will be interesting to see how things will develop. Ed Cannon - - Austin, Texas, USA |
#3
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Question for veteran satellite observers..
How do you go about planning for a "session" of satellite
observing? ... This seems like a very inefficient way to go about planning, so what do you guys do? Do you pick out the interesting satellites, calculate when they will make favorable passes many days in advance, and then mark those on a calendar of some sort? Is there some software that you can use to do this? I'm not a very good planner or very organized, but I'll comment anyway. I use Quicksat and Highfly and Iridflar with certain element set files to generate, for a specific evening, all passes brighter than a set estimated magnitude, and then I scan and edit the predictions. The element files are one "filter" and are on this site: http://users2.ev1.net/~mmccants/tles/ With Quicksat I use highdrag.tle, mccants.tle, leo.tle, and eccen.tle; with Highfly I omit leo.tle. Another "filter" is the magnitude file used with each program, which you can modify for your own purposes, especially the "flags". Then you filter the predictions however you want. Iridflar is specifically for Iridium flares, of course. One way you could go is get predictions like these and then get more details and/or graphics with Heavens-Above.com or SkyMap or another graphical resource. The bottom line is that you find out very quickly what objects are going over on a given evening (or morning) and then pick out the ones you want to see and find out more. Now I'll append something. We've received word that it is possible (likely? almost certain?) that official satellite elements may be withdrawn from public availability in May. See these articles: http://www.satobs.org/seesat/Dec-2003/0248.html http://www.satobs.org/seesat/Dec-2003/0359.html It will be pretty much impossible for amateurs to track and analyze the orbits of the 3,000 or so objects in the elements files above. The irony is that the result is that it could turn out that the only objects that will continue to be tracked by amateurs are the classified ones, which they have been tracking for years! I don't have much idea how many other objects a number of dedicated amateurs could track. Some objects need very frequent observations, but others do not. And it may be that quite a few elements will continue to be publicly available for various reasons. It will be interesting to see how things will develop. Ed Cannon - - Austin, Texas, USA |
#4
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Question for veteran satellite observers..
Ed Cannon wrote:
Now I'll append something. We've received word that it is possible (likely? almost certain?) that official satellite elements may be withdrawn from public availability in May. See these articles: http://www.satobs.org/seesat/Dec-2003/0248.html http://www.satobs.org/seesat/Dec-2003/0359.html After looking at these messages, I can't understand the rationale behind this bizarre decision. Didn't it occur to anyone that amateur observers might prove to be a security asset? If someone launches a satellite covered with radar-absorbent material, the government might need a large number of experienced satellite spotters to watch the object. Is there anyone in the government we can write to and ask to get this changed? (Senators? Congressmen? I'm not sure that any of mine can read, but I'd write them anyway if it would help.) --Bill Thompson |
#5
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Question for veteran satellite observers..
Ed Cannon wrote:
Now I'll append something. We've received word that it is possible (likely? almost certain?) that official satellite elements may be withdrawn from public availability in May. See these articles: http://www.satobs.org/seesat/Dec-2003/0248.html http://www.satobs.org/seesat/Dec-2003/0359.html After looking at these messages, I can't understand the rationale behind this bizarre decision. Didn't it occur to anyone that amateur observers might prove to be a security asset? If someone launches a satellite covered with radar-absorbent material, the government might need a large number of experienced satellite spotters to watch the object. Is there anyone in the government we can write to and ask to get this changed? (Senators? Congressmen? I'm not sure that any of mine can read, but I'd write them anyway if it would help.) --Bill Thompson |
#6
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Question for veteran satellite observers..
Allison Kirkpatrick wrote:
How do you go about planning for a "session" of satellite observing? "Planning"? I understand how to come up with pass predictions for any satellite using software, online services like Heavens Above, etc., but I do not know how to "choose" satellites without it being laborious. I don't have any non-laborious way of doing it. H-A will list all satellites visible on a given night down to magnitude 5.0, and donbarry.org will list them down to 6.0. If I want to look for something else, it's a matter of looking up the satellite by name on H-A. One thing that will speed the process on H-A is to use their wildcard function, the percent symbol. Put in lac% and you'll get a list of all the Lacrosse objects (put in la% and you'll get both Lacrosses and Landsats). --Bill Thompson |
#7
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Question for veteran satellite observers..
Allison Kirkpatrick wrote:
How do you go about planning for a "session" of satellite observing? "Planning"? I understand how to come up with pass predictions for any satellite using software, online services like Heavens Above, etc., but I do not know how to "choose" satellites without it being laborious. I don't have any non-laborious way of doing it. H-A will list all satellites visible on a given night down to magnitude 5.0, and donbarry.org will list them down to 6.0. If I want to look for something else, it's a matter of looking up the satellite by name on H-A. One thing that will speed the process on H-A is to use their wildcard function, the percent symbol. Put in lac% and you'll get a list of all the Lacrosse objects (put in la% and you'll get both Lacrosses and Landsats). --Bill Thompson |
#8
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Question for veteran satellite observers..
"Allison Kirkpatrick" wrote in message
om... How do you go about planning for a "session" of satellite observing? I understand how to come up with pass predictions for any satellite using software, online services like Heavens Above, etc., but I do not know how to "choose" satellites without it being laborious. For example, I just spent an hour or so typing in "Lacrosse 2", "Lacrosse 3", etc. at the Heavens Above web site to see what interesting satellites might be visible the next night or two from my location, but I found very few passes. This seems like a very inefficient way to go about planning, so what do you guys do? Do you pick out the interesting satellites, calculate when they will make favorable passes many days in advance, and then mark those on a calendar of some sort? Is there some software that you can use to do this? Thanks very much for your help. I suggest Mike McCants' QuickSat program: http://users2.ev1.net/~mmccants/programs/index.html Ted Molczan |
#9
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Question for veteran satellite observers..
"Allison Kirkpatrick" wrote in message
om... How do you go about planning for a "session" of satellite observing? I understand how to come up with pass predictions for any satellite using software, online services like Heavens Above, etc., but I do not know how to "choose" satellites without it being laborious. For example, I just spent an hour or so typing in "Lacrosse 2", "Lacrosse 3", etc. at the Heavens Above web site to see what interesting satellites might be visible the next night or two from my location, but I found very few passes. This seems like a very inefficient way to go about planning, so what do you guys do? Do you pick out the interesting satellites, calculate when they will make favorable passes many days in advance, and then mark those on a calendar of some sort? Is there some software that you can use to do this? Thanks very much for your help. I suggest Mike McCants' QuickSat program: http://users2.ev1.net/~mmccants/programs/index.html Ted Molczan |
#10
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Question for veteran satellite observers..
Bill Thompson says...
Ed Cannon wrote: ... possible ... that official satellite elements may be withdrawn from public availability in May. See these articles: http://www.satobs.org/seesat/Dec-2003/0248.html http://www.satobs.org/seesat/Dec-2003/0359.html After looking at these messages, I can't understand the rationale behind this bizarre decision. Basically, they can't face the fact that big expensive spysats are easy for motivated amateurs to track. (Also, for some crazy reason, they won't release elements for vehicles that launch classified satellites, even though there's no security risk there that I can imagine. But what do I know?) There may be an element of privatization of everything and wanting more revenue involved. It could even be industry people. I've read that commercial weather outfits really don't like it that the government provides weather data to the public for free. But I figure that really we pay for it in taxes already, like so many things. So maybe some aerospace industry people are just looking for another few dollars in revenue via this, and it fits in with the weird thinking of security maniacs. It's so ironic with security maniacs -- the only people who didn't know about Area 51 for a long time were US taxpayers. The Soviets had satellite photos of it long ago. I figure it's the same with satellites. If they withdraw the elements, it won't affect other nations that matter. Does anyone think that Russian, China, and even India can't track satellites with radar, not to mention visually? I figure that those all, along with others, track many many satellites now, so the withdrawal of USA-supplied elements won't affect them. And amateurs will continue to supply data on classified satellites. It's almost like when China was trying to control news getting in (back around Tienanmen Square times), but it was getting in anyway via fax machines, shortwave radios, etc. I'm hoping that at least a fair minority of orbital elements will remain available due to there being no point at all in them not being so. Didn't it occur to anyone that amateur observers might prove to be a security asset? If someone launches a satellite covered with radar-absorbent material, the government might need a large number of experienced satellite spotters to watch the object. Of course the USA has advanced visual tracking also, but it's conceivable that an amateur network could add significant data. Is there anyone in the government we can write to and ask to get this changed? (Senators? Congressmen? I'm not sure that any of mine can read, but I'd write them anyway if it would help.) --Bill Thompson Maybe senators and a congressman might be worth a letter, as well as the president. I wish I could drive up to Crawford some evening and show Mr. Bush how easy they are to see and explain to him how a smart adolescent with binoculars and a PC can track them. Ted Molczan learned to track them when he was a kid, before there were any PCs. (I just tried unsuccessfully to find his message to SeeSat-L where he wrote about that.) Ed Cannon - - Austin, Texas, USA |
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