RE: Iridium 27 again

R_John@Rmatsc.Riem.Com
Mon, 20 Apr 1998 10:39:05 -0700

If I may add something to Ed's original question...
I believe he meant to ask if anyone had seen any
'bright' strobing on a near zenith pass.  I have seen
naked eye flashes on the same type of pass that
Ed saw: 'low in the west, poor phase, descending'.
I saw flashes all the way across the sky, but I saw
naked eye flashes at the beginning and end of the
pass.
		Randy

> -----Original Message-----
> From:	finn%main.jetnet.ab.ca%cds.plasma.mpe-garching.mpg.de@Mail.Riem.Com [SMTP:finn%main.jetnet.ab.ca%cds.plasma.mpe-garching.mpg.de@Mail.Riem.Com]
> Sent:	Monday, April 20, 1998 8:46 AM
> To:	SeeSat-L%cds.plasma.mpe-garching.mpg.de@Mail.Riem.Com
> Subject:	Re: Iridium 27 again
> 
> At 02:55 AM 20/04/98 -0500, Ed wrote:
> 
> >It appears that it may flash fairly reliably on low passes to the
> >west (i.e., poor phase angle) when it's on the descending node.  Has 
> >anyone seen if it flashes on near-zenith passes and/or low in the
> >east (i.e., good phase angle) on either descending or ascending node?  
> >(Actually, I was fairly sure that I unexpectedly saw one flash from 
> >it near the zenith several months ago but didn't have another chance 
> >or see any other messages about it for a while.)
> >
> 
> At the beginning of the new year i saw Iridium 27 'strobe' on near-zenith
> passes and on successive nights i was able to observe it. It's rate of
> flashes were varied, some were at -3 to -4 while others were barely visible.
> Some times i could only pick it up as it was directly above while other
> times i would see it coming up from the south, although only once it got to
> about 40 dgrees. As it decended to the north i could track it until it got
> to about 20 degrees. I had hoped to see it again as it came into view once
> again recently but the skies up here didn't get dark enough to see it.
> 
> Jari