Anyone hear of these or know the orbital elements of these? Would they flash/flare or be seeable using binos? ------------------------------------------------- Flying blankets threaten satellites New Scientist vol 183 issue 2460 - 14 August 2004, page 14 ... astronomers from the European Space Agency using a 1-metre telescope in the Canary Islands to scan the skies above the equator reported seeing about 55 faint objects, each about 30 centimetres across. ... appeared to be orbiting once a day, tens of thousands of kilometres above the Earth. ... these objects follow highly elongated routes. .... explained if the objects were extremely light, weighing about 50 grams per square metre. This would make them highly susceptible to the pressure exerted upon them by photons from the sun ...the thin layers of satellites' thermal blankets - made of aluminised Mylar, for example, and used to shield satellites from radiation, cold and impacts from space debris - fit the bill perfectly. ... believe high-flying geosynchronous satellites, which orbit at altitudes of about 36,000 kilometres, shed them as well, because of impacts from small meteoroids, or satellite explosions. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe/Unsubscribe info, Frequently Asked Questions, SeeSat-L archive: http://www.satobs.org/seesat/seesatindex.html
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