Observations 25/28 Oct 2005:
--------------------------------------
Cosatrak 1 (Computerised satellite Tracking System).
MINTRON low light level CCD surveillance camera (0.005 lux typical
in non integration mode) and 0.00005 lux in STARLIGHT mode with 128
frame integration.
Used with 145mm focal length f/2.5 lens. I normally integrate for
96 frames for geostationary objects which is equivalent to an
exposure of 1.92 seconds per image. Successive images are then
stacked on top of one another 200 times, giving an effective total
exposure of 200*1.92 seconds = 384 seconds. Stars show up as trailed
objects whilst geostationary satellites appear as dots if the
inclination is close to 0 degrees or else as slightly trailed
objects, the length of the trail depending on the inclination and
altitude.
Site 0433 : Longitude 18.51294 deg East, Latitude 33.94058 deg S,
Elevation 10 metres - situated in Pinelands (Cape Town), South Africa
Correction 28th October, 2005 - 60 mm focal length lens:
------------------------------------------------------------------
The observation of 90013 on 28 Oct had an incorrect time - out by one hour.
(no comment !)
The correct observation is as below:
90013 03 546A 0433 G 20051028211146800 56 15 0247400+092117 39
Observations 25th October 2005:
----------------------------------------
Following observations made 25 October with usual 145mm lens but since
I had one of the settings incorrect it was not integrating so I was
loosing about 2- 3 magnitudes, making most geostationaries too faint
to measure with certainty.
27168 02 001A 0433 G 20051025201651000 56 15 2241386+055604 39
90013 03 546A 0433 G 20051025201918500 56 15 0144195+072215 39
90037 05 638A 0433 G 20051025204210100 56 15 0403233+101909 39
90003 99 503A 0433 G 20051025205646200 56 15 0104452+025231 39
90036 05 629A 0433 G 20051025210322800 56 15 0434353+071110 39
Notes:
------
(1) The observation of an object suspected as 96072A on 30th October is
NOT 96072A since Tony Beresford saw it on time. I missed it at the
predicted time due to it being too faint to be seen and a fair
amount of cirrus. It is likely that the object reported as 96072A
may be the rocket of USA 186 - further observations are needed.
(2) #90003 flashes roughly every 21 seconds.
Cheers
Greg
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Subscribe/Unsubscribe info, Frequently Asked Questions, SeeSat-L archive:
http://www.satobs.org/seesat/seesatindex.html
This archive was generated by hypermail 2b29 : Wed Nov 02 2005 - 04:21:04 EST