A brilliant pass in more ways than one. Maximum magnitude was definitely much more than those predicted by Heavens Above or Calsky. It was as good as some Iridium flares and may have been as much as -2 or -3. in a clear sky, one of the few we have had for some time at suitable times for observation. Through 7 x 50 binoculars I was able to see the shape of the complex. It faded much more slowly than had been indicated and was visible 1x for most of the pass after shadow exit until it was lost behind the hills which block visibility around 10 degrees elevation here. As a bonus the complex passed very close to Canopus which was predicted at 0.6 m , the ISS/STS combo was definitely much brighter. So it does appear that the predictions from the sites may be based on the normal ISS configuration without the shuttle attached. Robert Wainuiomata New Zealand 174.948e 41.261S ----- Original Message ----- From: "Robert Holdsworth" <robbonz1@xtra.co.nz> To: "Seesat List" <SeeSat-L@satobs.org> Sent: Saturday, July 08, 2006 8:12 PM Subject: Re: Magnitude of the ISS-Shuttle pair > We have an early morning shadow exit pass here at 1837 UTC. Heavens Above > gives a maximum mag of 0.4 and Calsky -0.6 > > Any in this region may care to attempt observation, I hope to do so but > despite the forecast being for fine weather there seems a strong > possibility of being clouded out if the present conditions are anything to > judge by! > > I note that Christchurch, New Zealand has prospects for some excellent > evening passes. > > Robert > Wainuiomata > New Zealand > 174.948e > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe/Unsubscribe info, Frequently Asked Questions, SeeSat-L archive: http://www.satobs.org/seesat/seesatindex.html
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