Re: Iridium pattern question

From: Thomas A. Troszak (tom@bullhammer.com)
Date: Wed Aug 30 2000 - 05:31:50 PDT

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    Matthew.Fawcett@eastriding.gov.uk wrote:
     I saw a flare, suggesting a pattern of
    >      Iridium flares in the North, 5 minutes or so earlier each night.
    >      Does this kind of pattern occur regularly or was it just a
    >      co-incidence? 
    
    I have not noticed exactly such a pattern, and I do not think that the
    Iridium sats are timed to pass the same spot at the same "solar time"
    each day, but sense that there is a definite pattern to where flares are
    most likely to be visible from any particular location.  At my
    location,  we have repeatedly observed early AM flares at approx 72 deg.
    SW, and several early evening flares at about 60 deg. SSE.  Later in the
    evenings we get repeated flares at approximately 45 deg. ENE.  Sometimes
    there are two flares in the same general area in the same evening, most
    often they are separated by a day or two.
    
    There seems to be an even larger pattern where the flares are predicted
    in the SSE (evening) over a week or so, then all of the bright flares
    seem to be happening in the SW (morning), etc., suggesting that the
    overlapping time cycles create "hot spots" where Sun angles and
    satellite traffic converge on a regular basis.
    
    I am certain that the fine folks who have figured out the flare
    predictions themselves could explain this better, but a pattern seems
    evident to me.
    -- 
    Tom Troszak
    Asheville, NC, USA
    35.601 N, -82.554 W
    mailto:tom@bullhammer.com
    
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