Naked-eye astronomy is more than just meteors.
For you meteor hunters out there in the boonies, there is other visible stuff buzzing around up there: satellites. The easiest to see is the International Space Station. It’s extremely bright and, with a good pair of binoculars, a “shape” can be discerned. It’s possible that you have already seen it and mistook it for an aircraft flying with its landing lights on; it crosses the sky at about the same perceived rate as an airliner.
Other interesting but more challenging objects are the Iridium Communication satellites. These satellites very in brightness and are only visible for a very short time, perhaps a minute or less, thus they are called Iridium Flares. There are apps out there for satellite tracking, which will help in your hunt. The best thing about sat-spotting is that they happen within a couple of hours of sunrise or sunset so no need to stay up late.
The app I’m currently using is the ISS Detector.
Iridium Satellite info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iridium_satellite_constellation
Happy hunting!
LS
Other interesting but more challenging objects are the Iridium Communication satellites. These satellites very in brightness and are only visible for a very short time, perhaps a minute or less, thus they are called Iridium Flares. There are apps out there for satellite tracking, which will help in your hunt. The best thing about sat-spotting is that they happen within a couple of hours of sunrise or sunset so no need to stay up late.
The app I’m currently using is the ISS Detector.
Iridium Satellite info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iridium_satellite_constellation
Happy hunting!
LS
