From: TerryMoselaol.com
Date: 9 August 2007 22:06:9 Aug 2007
Subject: ISS + Shuttle, & Perseids

Hi all,

1. ISS + Shuttle. As you probably know, the Shuttle, STS 118, launched
successfully last night and is now on its way to dock with the ISS. They
are still some distance apart, but both can be seen flying over Ireland
to night, if the sky is clear. The ISS will pass over first, first
visible in the West at approximately 10.29 or 10.30 p.m., reaching
greatest altitude in the South about 10.32 or 10.33. At its brightest it
will be about Mag 2 for those in the N of the island, or about -3 for
those near the S end of the island. Then the Shuttle will appear,
following almost exactly the same track, about 3 minutes later. It will
be a bit fainter - about mag -1 for those in the North, and -2 for those
in the South.

The next pass will occur at about 00.04 to 00.05 for the ISS, followed
about 2.5 minutes later by the Shuttle. This won't be quite such a good
pass, as both will be a bit lower down in the sky - in the SW for most
of us - and both objects will pass into the Earth's shadow before
reaching culmination, in the WSW part of the sky.

You could try a longish time exposure to try to get both objects on the
same photo - if you have a bright sky, hold a black card in front of the
camera to cut out the skyglow in between the passes of the two objects.
Good luck, and send in any photos to the IAA website:
www.irishastro.org.

You can get more precise details for your location on
www.heavens-above.com.

2. Don't forget to look out for Perseid meteors too - activity is
building up nicely as we approach maximum on Sunday night/Monday
morning.

Clear skies,

Terry Moseley

Last Revised: 2007 August 9th

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