Re: atmospheric extinction for low altitude flares

From: Tom Wagner (sciteach@mchsi.com)
Date: Fri Jun 18 2004 - 12:49:21 EDT

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    Speaking of low altitude flares, I just discovered an old post that I had in
    my personal archives that might be a reference to the lowest Iridium flare
    anyone has seen so far. Part of this post follows:
    
    +++++++++
    ----- Original Message ----- 
    From: "Ed Cannon" <ecannon@mail.utexas.edu>
    To: <SeeSat-L@satobs.org>
    Sent: Wednesday, June 05, 2002 2:26 AM
    Subject: Very low Iridium flares
    
    > (I'm sending this just in case some folks don't know about Iridium flares
    very low in the sky.)  The last several nights I've had some bright flares
    predicted as low as four degrees above the horizon.  Mike McCants and I have
    been able to see most of them through a "notch" in the NE
    horizon of the BCRC site.  (Last night was pretty cloudy, so from the park
    near my apartment I just saw one -- predicted -6 through clouds -- all the
    way up at 12 degrees above the horizon.)  At least one that we saw that was
    only about six degrees up, I believe, was a solid -4 magnitude. Rob Matson's
    Iridflar will predict flares that low in the sky.  Obviously you have to
    have an unobstructed horizon and clear weather to see these very low ones!
    +++++++++
    
    Congratulations Ed! You may hold the record so far.
    
    Tom  Iowa  USA
    +   +   +
    
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