Re: Naked eye EGP, Top 10 , TiPS
JAY RESPLER (jrespler@injersey.com)
Thu, 25 Jul 1996 01:12:36 -0400 (EDT)
On Wed, 24 Jul 1996, Stephen Thompson wrote:
> Jay Respler wrote recently:
>
> > I never got a positive response to my question a while ago:
> > Has anyone seen EGP naked eye?
>
> Yes, on Dec 10 95 I was able to locate it with 10x50s and afterward I could
> see maybe 10% of the glints without the binoculars.
That's why I don't consider it a naked eye object. If it's that hard to
spot even after having been found in binoculars, it's not appropriate for
a list of bright sats.
What was your naked eye mag limit at the time?
> On another subject, I think VISUAL.TLE is a good list, I have been able to
> see all but about 30 of them without binoculars. I think there may also be
> a need for two other lists.
>
> A Visual 10 containing only really easy and bright stuff including Mir, HST,
> the tumbling boosters C 2278 r, C 2297 r, EORSATs ect. This list would
> serve as training wheels for those just getting started and for use in town
> by the rest of us. I keep such a list for use at outdoor parties.
Problems arise when we try to narrow down the lists too much. For
instance, HST is mentioned. But for most of us, HST is only a binocular
object. It's only naked eye at low latitudes. It gets to be a bit of a
hassle to make lists for various latitudes. Beginners may not realize
why something on the Top 10 list is not visible at all.
> A Binoc 10 would also have a place. EGP, TiPS, USA 32, USA 81, C 1933, HST
> Array are all easy in binocs and each has something interesting about it
> that would encourage beginners to use binoculars and maps.
List can not include the classified sats mentioned. First of all the
elements are not always current. Again, beginners would not realize that
they're not seeing those sats because the predictions can be off by a few
minutes.
I do compile VISUAL, but the elements are posted courtesy of TS Kelso.
The folks at SATELLITE TIMES magazine have now provided him with a web
site to distribute the elements.
Kelso gets the elements from NASA so they never contain classified elements.
TS provides many different lists. This takes a lot of his time and I
wouldn't want to impose on him by asking for even more lists that
essentially duplicate what is already available. We can't just make a
new list for every observer's individual desires.
However, I do have a suggestion for all those who want a list of just
certain objects. Make up your master list. Get any of the larger lists
that contain your objects. Use Kelso's Passupdate to quickly update
your smaller list. This way everyone can have a small personal list of
favorite objects always up to date.
Jay Respler
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Satellite Tracker * Early Typewriter Collector
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