|
|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Observing Satellites and Jets
Hi all! I'm new to observing satellites in the sky. I had a question - when I see a light at night move in the sky and it does not blink, is that a good chance it's a satellite? Do all passenger aircraft have lights that blink? I saw something move across the sky last night while I was attempting to find a satellite. I don't think I saw the satellite but I did see a non blinking light move across the sky. Since it was not blinking I was wondering if what I saw was a satellite. Also, In the mid-west - Indiana. Will I be able to observe satellites that are suppose to be viewable to me around 9:30pm? Something like the Lacrosse satellite? Thanks |
#2
|
|||
|
|||
Observing Satellites and Jets
In article , Von Fourche wrote: Hi all! I'm new to observing satellites in the sky. Welcome, Von! Are you hooked on the hobby yet? :-) I had a question - when I see a light at night move in the sky and it does not blink, is that a good chance it's a satellite? Do all passenger aircraft have lights that blink? They do, but if the plane is up high enough and still has its landing lights on, it will be bright but you won't be able to see its other lights. I saw something move across the sky last night while I was attempting to find a satellite. I don't think I saw the satellite but I did see a non blinking light move across the sky. Since it was not blinking I was wondering if what I saw was a satellite. Could have been a plane, or a satellite other than the one you were looking for. They move differently; you should start noticing the difference soon. Also, In the mid-west - Indiana. Will I be able to observe satellites that are suppose to be viewable to me around 9:30pm? Something like the Lacrosse satellite? I just checked tonight's predictions, and one of the Lacrosse satellites should have been easily visible (magnitude 2.5) in the Indianapolis area just after 9:00 p.m. tonight. Are you using Heavens-Above to generate satellite pass information for your exact area? Of course, which satellites you can see will be limited by how bright the sky is in your area. I'm in a suburban area, so conditions are pretty bad. :-( Patty |
#3
|
|||
|
|||
Observing Satellites and Jets
"Patty Winter" wrote in message ... In article , Von Fourche wrote: Hi all! I'm new to observing satellites in the sky. Welcome, Von! Are you hooked on the hobby yet? :-) Yep. I went out tonight four times. Once I did not see anything. But the three other times I spotting things in the air that did not blink, going the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above, and appeared around the time the were suppose to (give or take thirty seconds or so). I could clearly tell that the jets had blinking lights. Also I can see with binos dark outlines of the jets. But the three non-blinkers I have to believe were satellites because - 1. They did not blink. 2. They were heading in the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above. 3. They appeared around the time they were suppose to appear. Hmm, I thought finding satellites was extremely hard. Using Heaven's Above and also a nice satellite application for my iTouch, it seems easy, unless those three tings were jets and not satellites. lol. |
#4
|
|||
|
|||
Observing Satellites and Jets
In article , Von Fourche wrote: Hmm, I thought finding satellites was extremely hard. Using Heaven's Above and also a nice satellite application for my iTouch, it seems easy, unless those three tings were jets and not satellites. lol. :-) I'll bet they were really satellites! If you want to get up early, ISS is making some predawn passes over the U.S. these days. In fact, it's so bright now that some people have been able to see it during the day, as you probably saw mentioned on Heavens-Above. Next, we get you hooked on Iridium flares. :-) Patty |
#5
|
|||
|
|||
Observing Satellites and Jets
"Patty Winter" wrote in message ... In article , Von Fourche wrote: Hmm, I thought finding satellites was extremely hard. Using Heaven's Above and also a nice satellite application for my iTouch, it seems easy, unless those three tings were jets and not satellites. lol. :-) I'll bet they were really satellites! If you want to get up early, ISS is making some predawn passes over the U.S. these days. In fact, it's so bright now that some people have been able to see it during the day, as you probably saw mentioned on Heavens-Above. I stayed up all night Thursday night/Friday morning. I went out side around 5:17am Friday morning and sure enough - I saw the ISS! It zoomed across the northern sky really really fast. Yep, I saw that article on Heavens-Above about seeing the ISS station during the day. Are people really seeing it during the day? |
#6
|
|||
|
|||
Observing Satellites and Jets
On Sat, 22 Aug 2009 00:17:56 -0400, "Von Fourche"
wrote: "Patty Winter" wrote in message ... In article , Von Fourche wrote: Hi all! I'm new to observing satellites in the sky. Welcome, Von! Are you hooked on the hobby yet? :-) Yep. I went out tonight four times. Once I did not see anything. But the three other times I spotting things in the air that did not blink, going the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above, and appeared around the time the were suppose to (give or take thirty seconds or so). I could clearly tell that the jets had blinking lights. Also I can see with binos dark outlines of the jets. But the three non-blinkers I have to believe were satellites because - 1. They did not blink. 2. They were heading in the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above. 3. They appeared around the time they were suppose to appear. Hmm, I thought finding satellites was extremely hard. Using Heaven's Above and also a nice satellite application for my iTouch, it seems easy, unless those three tings were jets and not satellites. lol. Heavens Above is great, but you can't go past Orbitron which is free. Well, when I say free, it's actually 'cardware' which means its author, Sebastan Stoff would like a post card from you. Go on. Download it and send him a postcard. He'll add you to his postcard map. :-) Minge |
#7
|
|||
|
|||
Observing Satellites and Jets
"Dan Minge" wrote in message ... On Sat, 22 Aug 2009 00:17:56 -0400, "Von Fourche" wrote: "Patty Winter" wrote in message .. . In article , Von Fourche wrote: Hi all! I'm new to observing satellites in the sky. Welcome, Von! Are you hooked on the hobby yet? :-) Yep. I went out tonight four times. Once I did not see anything. But the three other times I spotting things in the air that did not blink, going the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above, and appeared around the time the were suppose to (give or take thirty seconds or so). I could clearly tell that the jets had blinking lights. Also I can see with binos dark outlines of the jets. But the three non-blinkers I have to believe were satellites because - 1. They did not blink. 2. They were heading in the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above. 3. They appeared around the time they were suppose to appear. Hmm, I thought finding satellites was extremely hard. Using Heaven's Above and also a nice satellite application for my iTouch, it seems easy, unless those three tings were jets and not satellites. lol. Heavens Above is great, but you can't go past Orbitron which is free. Well, when I say free, it's actually 'cardware' which means its author, Sebastan Stoff would like a post card from you. Go on. Download it and send him a postcard. He'll add you to his postcard map. :-) I downloaded it but don't have time to play with it for a few day. I do like Heavens-above maps of the constellations. That's how I've been able to find the satellites - Little Dipper, Big Dipper, Cassiopeia, etc... |
#8
|
|||
|
|||
Observing Satellites and Jets
"Dan Minge" wrote in message ... On Sat, 22 Aug 2009 00:17:56 -0400, "Von Fourche" wrote: "Patty Winter" wrote in message .. . In article , Von Fourche wrote: Hi all! I'm new to observing satellites in the sky. Welcome, Von! Are you hooked on the hobby yet? :-) Yep. I went out tonight four times. Once I did not see anything. But the three other times I spotting things in the air that did not blink, going the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above, and appeared around the time the were suppose to (give or take thirty seconds or so). I could clearly tell that the jets had blinking lights. Also I can see with binos dark outlines of the jets. But the three non-blinkers I have to believe were satellites because - 1. They did not blink. 2. They were heading in the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above. 3. They appeared around the time they were suppose to appear. Hmm, I thought finding satellites was extremely hard. Using Heaven's Above and also a nice satellite application for my iTouch, it seems easy, unless those three tings were jets and not satellites. lol. Heavens Above is great, but you can't go past Orbitron which is free. Well, when I say free, it's actually 'cardware' which means its author, Sebastan Stoff would like a post card from you. Go on. Download it and send him a postcard. He'll add you to his postcard map. :-) How do I get it to give me future sighting of the ISS? I can get other satellites but not the ISS for some reason. I really can't explore it till later this week. |
#9
|
|||
|
|||
Observing Satellites and Jets
On Mon, 24 Aug 2009 15:55:49 -0400, "Von Fourche"
wrote: "Dan Minge" wrote in message .. . On Sat, 22 Aug 2009 00:17:56 -0400, "Von Fourche" wrote: "Patty Winter" wrote in message . .. In article , Von Fourche wrote: Hi all! I'm new to observing satellites in the sky. Welcome, Von! Are you hooked on the hobby yet? :-) Yep. I went out tonight four times. Once I did not see anything. But the three other times I spotting things in the air that did not blink, going the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above, and appeared around the time the were suppose to (give or take thirty seconds or so). I could clearly tell that the jets had blinking lights. Also I can see with binos dark outlines of the jets. But the three non-blinkers I have to believe were satellites because - 1. They did not blink. 2. They were heading in the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above. 3. They appeared around the time they were suppose to appear. Hmm, I thought finding satellites was extremely hard. Using Heaven's Above and also a nice satellite application for my iTouch, it seems easy, unless those three tings were jets and not satellites. lol. Heavens Above is great, but you can't go past Orbitron which is free. Well, when I say free, it's actually 'cardware' which means its author, Sebastan Stoff would like a post card from you. Go on. Download it and send him a postcard. He'll add you to his postcard map. :-) How do I get it to give me future sighting of the ISS? I can get other satellites but not the ISS for some reason. I really can't explore it till later this week. Easy. There's an excellent prediction mode you can go into. It will display the times ISS or any other satellite you choose is overhead. Couldn't do without it. Orbitron is undoubtedly the best free tracker on the market. Minge |
#10
|
|||
|
|||
Observing Satellites and Jets
"Dan Minge" wrote in message ... On Mon, 24 Aug 2009 15:55:49 -0400, "Von Fourche" wrote: "Dan Minge" wrote in message . .. On Sat, 22 Aug 2009 00:17:56 -0400, "Von Fourche" wrote: "Patty Winter" wrote in message .. . In article , Von Fourche wrote: Hi all! I'm new to observing satellites in the sky. Welcome, Von! Are you hooked on the hobby yet? :-) Yep. I went out tonight four times. Once I did not see anything. But the three other times I spotting things in the air that did not blink, going the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above, and appeared around the time the were suppose to (give or take thirty seconds or so). I could clearly tell that the jets had blinking lights. Also I can see with binos dark outlines of the jets. But the three non-blinkers I have to believe were satellites because - 1. They did not blink. 2. They were heading in the general direction that showed on Heaven's Above. 3. They appeared around the time they were suppose to appear. Hmm, I thought finding satellites was extremely hard. Using Heaven's Above and also a nice satellite application for my iTouch, it seems easy, unless those three tings were jets and not satellites. lol. Heavens Above is great, but you can't go past Orbitron which is free. Well, when I say free, it's actually 'cardware' which means its author, Sebastan Stoff would like a post card from you. Go on. Download it and send him a postcard. He'll add you to his postcard map. :-) How do I get it to give me future sighting of the ISS? I can get other satellites but not the ISS for some reason. I really can't explore it till later this week. Easy. There's an excellent prediction mode you can go into. It will display the times ISS or any other satellite you choose is overhead. Couldn't do without it. Hmm, I can get predictions for there satellites but not the ISS. I must be doing something wrong. |
|
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Observing Report - Icehouse Observing Plateau (Sierra foothills,California) | Shneor | Amateur Astronomy | 1 | August 5th 08 10:58 PM |
US Earth-observing satellites in jeopardy, AAAS Board cautions (Forwarded) | Andrew Yee[_1_] | News | 0 | May 2nd 07 03:46 PM |
LOX/H2 jumbo jets? | [email protected] | Technology | 34 | January 30th 06 03:21 PM |
Spicules: Jets on the Sun | Sam Wormley | Amateur Astronomy | 1 | August 6th 04 06:29 AM |
Pulse Jets | pervect | Technology | 61 | January 16th 04 05:21 PM |