International Space Station Pass

Thanks to David Johnson, professor of biology at Samford, for this information…

The International Space Station will make a bright pass over our area Friday evening, January 16. It will appear in the SSW sky just after 5:51 PM and move right to left high across the SE sky before disappearing in the ENE sky about 5:56 PM. It will be easily visible to with the naked eye, even in the city. Its magnitude at its brightest will be -2.1, which is brighter than anything else in the sky at that time besides Venus. Here is a summary:

ISS Visible Pass 1/16:
Magnitude -2.1
Becomes visible at 17:51:13, 10º above the horizon in the SSW
Reaches its highest and brightest at 17:54:06, 54º above the horizon in the SE
Disappears at 17:56:04, 18º above the horizon in the ENE

The same night there will be a very bright Iridium flare, visible for only a couple of seconds. The details are below. An Iridium flare occurs when this satellite’s giant antenna reflects the sunlight (“flares”). However, the site from which the flare is visible is limited, so not everyone in the entire Birmingham area will see it as bright. This flare is an astonishing magnitude -7 for just a couple of seconds. The data below are for Bluff Park. However, it will vary with location, being about two seconds earlier and not as bright (magnitude -5) at Samford.

Iridium Flare 1/16:
Visible for only a couple of seconds at about 18:48:41
Magnitude -7
30° above the horizon in the SSE (azimuth 165º)

Category: Pre-November 2010 Posts