Robert Sheaffer wrote: > > Michael Shermer, editor of Skeptic Magazine, makes the following comment > about a forthcoming film purporting to tell how seeing the Sputnik launched > the career of the "Rocket Boys." In it he has a question about the > visibility of Sputnik I. What was the magnitude of that object? I remember > how everyone had these little skywatch telescopes to look for it, but don't > know whether or not they were really necessary. When Sputnik II was > launched, wasn't it much larger and brighter? The first sat I saw was Sputnik 3 Rocket so I didn't actually see either of these. As I recall, Sputnik 1 itself was only about mag 6. What most people saw was actually the mag 2 rocket. Sputnik 2, attached to the rocket, would have been as bright as S1 Rk. I recall Sp 3 Rk was flashing but I neglected to make a PPAS report. Sorry. -- Jay Respler -- JRespler@superlink.net Sky Views: http://njsurf.com/skyviews/ Satellite Tracker * Early Typewriter Collector Freehold, New Jersey