I went to watch the NOSS 3-2 pair (03-054A,C; 28095, 28097), and there was a third object traveling along with them, forming a nice triangle. It was above them, same magnitude, very similar apparent velocity, but through the pass it very gradually gained on them and finally moved out ahead of them. It turned out to be Cosmos 785 (75-116A, 08473). Like Randy John, I also managed to see the NOSS 2-1 triplets, due to the help of Mike having his scope aimed at them. I had a very difficult time finding them with the 8x42. I guess they've engaged a stealth mode, because just a week or so ago they were very easy to see. Utter confusion! I went looking for Superbird A (89-041A, 20040). It flashed. Then in roughly 22 seconds it flashed again, and again. There were crossers. Then, something flashed about four degrees to its right!! Then in about 22 seconds, that one flashed again! Good grief! Mike asked where to aim the scope, and I gave Superbird's coordinates, saying the other one was to the right (west) of it. Before long Mike was saying that the one he was watching at those coordinates was flashing every 22.4 seconds. The one on the right was Superbird! Ack! I scanned my flashing geosynch predictions. Finally I saw that TVSat 1 (87-095A, 18570) was about four degrees east of Superbird. I finally checked my stopwatch and found that the first one, that I had thought was Superbird, was flashing every *24* seconds. (I had three 24.00-second clicks in a row.) That matched TVSat 1. Fred was with us, and I had pointed out the star, but he couldn't find them, he didn't see any of it. Finally after the fact, in looking at the star charts, I had told him kappa Virginis, when the correct star had been iota Virginis! Sorry Fred! ... The two satellites flashed at almost the same time at about 3:44:30 July 15 UTC, both just west of iota VIR. Mike was watching Viking (86-019B, 16614), and its maxima got brighter as it went north. Finally it did some very bright flashes, easily visible without binoculars. USA 32 (88-078A, 19460) was easily visible without binoculars for much of its near-zenith pass, and it did one of those ten-second mad-flashing events as it approached culmination, reaching at least as bright as +2.0. We were beginning to get ready to leave. I looked at my next to last Quicksat prediction, something northbound kind of low in the WNW. I found it - flash, flash, flash, flash! A rapid flasher! Mike and Fred were saying, "Where is it?!" Finally they found it. Its flash period was almost too fast to count. Mike said, "Is that the new Zenit?" I checked my prediction again -- Oh, yeah, it's 04-21B (28353)! D'oh! Fred said that was a very good one for the end of a session. Sometimes, too many things happen too fast. (E.g., the four or five, or maybe six crossers while watching TVSat 1 and Superbird. Well, three of them were the NOSS 2-3 triplets.) I've got to get those 4x21 binoculars, a narrow-field model, so I won't see so many interlopers.... Just use the 8x42 on gibbous/full Moon nights. BCRC: 30.315N, 97.866W, 280m. I think I've coined a new term: "pre-IDs". They're the ones we see, for which we don't have predictions. Then if we ID them later, good; if not, then they become "un-IDs" (or the more easily typed "unid"). We've now had a string of clear, moonless nights. Too bad I have to go to work.... I'm too tired to do any more observing this morning. I'm going to have an observing (and Seesat-L report writing) "hangover". Ed Cannon - ecannon@mail.utexas.edu - Austin, Texas, USA ------------------------------------------------------------------------- Subscribe/Unsubscribe info, Frequently Asked Questions, SeeSat-L archive: http://www.satobs.org/seesat/seesatindex.html
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