vanguard, etc
richard.keen@kingsmarket.com
Sun, 15 Mar 98 00:26:58
I just enjoyed a calm, clear evening - a rarity this winter - although
it was well lit by the moon. The highlight was a commemorative
observation of Vanguard 1. Here's the Quicksat / Highfly output
(heights and distances in miles), followed by my notes:
1997 Coal Creek Canyon, CO 2000 15.0 15 F F T T F
1998 Mar 15 Sun UT 154 1227
H M S Tim Al AziC Dir Mag Dys F Hgt Shd Rng R A Dec Name
Ofeq 3
2 11 36 .2 42 171C 90 7.9 3 8 257 133 368 7 6 -7.5 Ofeq 3
mag. 5.5 in 7x50 binoculars, moving right along.
TiPS
2 16 55 1.0 49 241C 267 7.3 54 4 658 611 833 420 13.4 TiPS
6 seconds late relative to this prediction with 54-day old elements.
I tracked the "orbiting shoe string" in the 12-inch for almost 8
minutes as it headed south.
Vanguard 1
3 31 12 .0 70 179C 267 12.5 6 8 1396 789 1463 8 1 19.4 Vanguard 1
I was lucky this time - it rose to mag. 12.0 for about 2 seconds as it
zipped through the 1-degree field of view of the 12-inch reflector.
Moving at 9 degrees per minute, that 2-second "flash" covered about 1/4
degree. The rest of its passage through the field of view was
invisible, and I was unable to re-acquire the object as it moved on.
Telstar 1
3 56 56 .0 67 196 316 9.8 5 8 17951003 1900 759 17.1 Telstar 1
3 59 19 .0 74 150C 270 9.4 5 8 1653 664 1700 9 4 25.4
In the 12-inch, mag. 10.5 -> 10, with one flash to mag. 7.5 near the
position at 03:56:56. The magnitude prediciton is based on a Quicksat
standard magnitude of 7.0; however, I find that ol' Telstar usually
runs about a magnitude fainter than predicted - so, the standard
magnitude should perhaps be 8.0 (not including the flashes).
39.877 105.391 8950. Coal Creek Canyon 2000 17.0 20
1998 Mar 14/15 Sat evening/Sun morning UT
H Mn Alt Azi Mag Hgt R A Dec Range
20040 Superbird A 89 41A M 4.0 ELDY 14 M2 -2
2 55 42 138 12.1 22328 9 22.8 .1 23475
flashing to mag. 5.
21533 Gorizont 23 91 46A 5.0 M 4.5 ELDY 12 M2 -2
2 55 41 141 12.7 22466 9 17.0 -2.2 23671
flashing to mag. 6 over a 51s period.
23051 GOES 8 94 22A 13 M 3.5 ELDY 11 M2 -2
4 25 34 137 11.7 22241 11 11.1 -6.4 23773
A steady mag. 10.5 from 04:25 until it faded into eclipse at
04:34-04:35. Last month I observed GOES 10 at a steady magnitude 12.0;
since I think GOES 8 and 10 are of the same design (a cylinder aligned
north-south and covered with solar panels), the brighter GOES 8 tonight
might be due to specular reflections off the solar panels around the
time of the equinox.
6779 Intelsat 4 F3 R 71 116B 20 M 2.0 ELDY 4 M2 0
5 15 51 212 6.9 4696 8 25.1 5.2 5206 0515-24, m.9
5 20 55 201 6.4 3932 9 2.3 6.4 4312 fl.5-6
In the 12-inch, mag. 9, flashing to mag. 5 or 6 over a period of about
9 seconds. Then it slide into the earth's shadow.
Cheers, Rich Keen
Coal Creek Canyon, Colorado, USA (39.877 N, 105.391 W, elevation
2728m)