Tristan Cools' UnID is ERBS
Walter Nissen (dk058@cleveland.Freenet.Edu)
Mon, 23 Oct 1995 09:54:55 -0400
> Subject: unknown
> (ghost) Tristan Cools(tcools@nic.INbe.net at 5113N and 0316E)
> Last night I saw a unknown satellite moving from approximately theta Dra
> in the direction of gamma Umi were it disappeared(in the Earth's shadow ?).
> The satellite had an orange colour and could be seen with the naked eye,
> magnitude was estimated to +3. As it was moving rather fast I thought this
> satellite could be in a 500 km orbit.
> Here below you see a possible candidate for this observation. However I
> thought the satellite I saw was moving in a more northerly direction. I
> also think that 79093A couldn't be so bright and there is no indication that
> it went into the Earth's shadow at the position of gamma Umi.(maybe 79093A
> was in a slow tumble but the object I saw disappeared rather fast)
> Are there any other candidates ?
Despite its low inclination,
ERBS 4.4 1.5 0.0 6.6
1 15354U 84108B 95286.10505377 -.00000142 +00000-0 +87897-5 0 01485
2 15354 056.9954 289.7178 0009192 122.8336 237.3558 14.94900281599741
performed just as you describe, disappearing into the shadow about 951021
193010. I recently received a report from North Royalton, Ohio, USA, of
an unexpected and seemingly anomalously bright pass of ERBS.
I keep telling myself that the success of searches like this one should
never discourage me from getting astrometric positions for UnIDs. Even a
couple of seconds of time and half a degree of arc will work wonders.
So I concur with Rainer Kracht's identification. But I would not have
made the assumption he does that you gave your position in decimal
degrees. I would have thought you gave it in degrees and minutes
(sexagesimal).
Every time I load my mailer, it complains about the lack of a proper
"From:" header in each of your messages. Any chance your software, you,
or Bart (is he resending? or is that just the SeeSat-L exploder?) could
insert one?
Cheers.
Walter Nissen dk058@cleveland.freenet.edu 216-243-4980
---
Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Lord Acton