Evanescence Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Hi all, Can anyone identify three very bright objects (they were all I could see through the thin cloud) that I saw about half an hour ago at 6.00am GMT? One was dead south at about 40 degrees, one approx. SE at 35 degrees and one in the East at about 30 degrees. Any ideas anyone? Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turtle Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Here is a UK sky map link. One object may be Aldeberon. What time is it there? Mars may be rising?http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/space/myspace/nightsky/observingnotes.shtml Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evanescence Posted October 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Well It's 7.15am now but none of the objects seem to have moved, but they are still very bright (the one south is brightest). I was thinking initially that it could be a satellite, but since it's not moving it obviously isn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay-qu Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 well the fact that its not moving is an argument for it been a satellite, stars and planets more -while a satellite, depending on its orbit can stay 'stationary'. Hence the name geo-stationary orbit, these satellites can be used for tv, phone and even the internet because it would be useless if they where only in a certain places line of sight for a limited time per day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Qfwfq Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Geostationary sats are very far away and you'll never see them from the surface without a good instrument, you certainly wouldn't call them bright. Low orbit sata can be quite bright shortly after sunset or before dawn, you can often see them appear or faint out as the go in or out of Earth's shadow, but their motion is definitely noticeable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turtle Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 ___Looking at the sky map here ; http://www.bbc.co.uk/print/science/space/myspace/nightsky/observingnotes.shtmlI see Arturus low in the South. In this position it's apparent motion will be very slow, as if it stands still.___There is no substitute for standing out with a skychart night after night familiarizing yourself with what is in the sky & how everything moves over time. Everytime Venus for example returns to the sky after its absense, the number of calls to emergency, airport officials, & other officials goes dramatically up. This is because it wasn't there a few days previous, it is VERY bright, & it appears unmoving. It is no less remarkable when you know it's Venus; knowledge is power. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evanescence Posted October 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Hi again everyone, Been outside tonight for an hour or so already, picked out The Big Dipper, Bootes and Corona Borealis in the NW. I did see about three objects moving quite slowly and steadily passing overhead within a few minutes of each other. Two were heading East, and one heading SW.They weren't planes as I saw the last one at the same time as a plane and the lights on the plane's wing were flashing, while the other object didn't blink at all. Does anyone know what these could be? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mercenaryend Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 i think it may be mars and jupitor, im not sure but i remember something like what your telling me right now that i observed in 7th grade, and as far as the third goes??? ....i dont know lol sorry Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evanescence Posted October 13, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 I doubt they were planets as they seemed very small and I would have thought planets moved slower - they were about the speed of a cloud moving over. I've just been looking at Mars (or at least I thought it was lol) through a telescope, I've never seen it closer up before and I have to say it was amazing! I think I could see Phobos and Deimos as well - or at least there were two small things sitting around it lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turtle Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 ___Here is a page with info on viewing satellites:http://www.space.com/spacewatch/satellite_hunting_020524.html ___As for identifying whether an object is a planet or star, proper practice makes perfect. As you know the Big Dipper, use that as your start point on your sky map & then work out from it to other objects. Learn about the motion of planets so you understand how precession can make Mars for example appear to change course & move backwards.___One last note on planets; they always appear in the ecliptic. Any light you see outside of the ecliptic is not a planet. :) PS a pair of binoculars is a great addition to skywatching. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rockytriton Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 angels? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evanescence Posted October 14, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 Thanks for the link Turtle. I still don't know whether they were satellites. All I know is that they were directly overhead and took about three minutes to cross the sky, do anyone know of any satellites that oribt that quickly? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turtle Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 Did you use the link? Here is another resource; it too is useless if not used.http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/cities/index.cgi :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Evanescence Posted October 15, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2005 Yes, I did use the link. What I'm saying is that I still can't decide whether they were satellites - according to that page they fly directly overhead, which the objects did, and they are in low orbit - they did look about the same height as an aeroplane, and they are about 6 metres across - that's probably right as well because they just looked like stars moving across the sky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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