I haven’t posted to this blog for a while, because I’ve been busy with nothing new and exciting. But for the last few nights, I’ve been watching the International Space Station (ISS) fly overhead and it is exciting to watch! Last night was the best of all–not only did I see the ISS, but I could see a supply ship following it. With the clear skies, the view was spectacular!

My interest in watching the ISS came from a ham radio friend (LW, K7LWA) who has been posting sighting information on a blog recently. He has gotten a bunch of us who hang out on the air interested in watching for it.

I got to share the experience with my sister-in-law, Katie, who was visiting for the night. We went out to the condo parking lot and watched the first pass shortly after 10 PM, and we spotted the Dragon Supply Ship following the ISS. That was an unexpected bonus. I had read in the paper in the morning about the launch of the supply ship, but I wasn’t expecting to see it. As the bright ISS passed overhead, we noticed a dimmer light following behind. At first we thought it was a star, and then realized it was moving, so we thought it was a plane. Finally, I recalled the launch of the supply ship and realized that’s probably what it was. While we were watching a carload of neighbors happened to pull into the parking lot, so I pointed it out to them, much to their amazement and delight.

After the sighting, I came back in and got back on the radio, which was buzzing with excitement and speculation about seeing the trailing satellite. We all concluded that it was the Dragon. With another pass to occur near midnight, several of us planned to stay up to see if the follower was closer than on the previous pass. Katie and I went out to look again, but unfortunately, this pass was lower in the sky and the ISS disappeared into the earth’s shadow partway into the pass, before we could try to spot the Dragon.

There is another pass tonight, which should be quite visible at around 11:01 PM, Seattle time. This pass is lower in the sky than the first pass last night, but it sill should be very bright. An even better pass occurs on Tuesday might at 10:09 PM, nearly straight overhead.

By tonight’s pass, the Dragon will have already docked, so it won’t be visible. However, I read that in order to dock the Dragon, they have to undock a previous supply ship, so I suppose it’s possible that it will be visible. I’ll be watching for it!

For more information, here is a web link to the schedule. Heavens Above.  If you click on the date on any line, you can see a sky map showing the path of the ISS, and where it will disappear. Tomorrow night will be well worth viewing the ISS. It will be the brightest it’s been since May 27, and since it will pass almost directly overhead, it will be visible for a longer time.

If you are in an area other than Seattle, you can click on “Seattle” in the box in the upper right corner of the page and change the location.

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