Observed USA 129 R/B at 11:42 UTC, 02 Jan, fumbling fingers and a lack of guide stars mucked up my position obs but object is definitly flashing with a period around 30 seconds, max mag still around 2.5 - 3 fading to mag 6-7 (but not invisible). Good weather predicted for tomorrow , will atempt pos obs and PPAS. Mir pass tonight was like a searchlight, mag far beyond sirius. I always expect a UFO scare after a pass like this !! chalHuv Ian Ian & Shari Porter Rye, Victoria, Australia http://pac.com.au/~sharian/ 144.8070 E 38.3745 S 5m AMSL