gorizont 23
richard.keen@kingsmarket.com
Fri, 02 Jan 98 00:32:18
Hi -
Using Traksat predictions kindly supplied by Ron Lee for Falcon,
Colorado, about 100 km to my south, I was able to find and follow
the Gorozont 23 geosynchronous flasher for over an hour tonight,
from 0151 to 0256 UTC on January 2, 1998 (UT date). I observed
with my 32-cm reflector, using a 12-mm Plossl at 105x
magnification.
Of course, the major flashes every 51 seconds or so (I didn't
time them) were obvious, running about magnitude 6 early in the
observation period and dimming to between 7 and 8 towards the
end. I was able to track the object continuously between flashes
at magnitude 12 to 13.
Between the major flashes, there were smaller flashes to
magnitude 10 or 11 at intervals of one-fourth of the primary
period; i.e., at approximately 13, 26, and 39 seconds after the
major flashes. The flash at the half-period, i.e. 26 seconds
after the major flash, tended to be brighter than those at the
quarter periods, but this was not consistently so.
It's a fascinating object - which it would have to be to keep me
staring at it for over an hour in sub-freezing temperatures and
gusty winds!
Cheers, Rich Keen
Coal Creek Canyon, Colorado, USA (39.877N, 105.391W, elevation
2728m)