thanks to all those who replied to my request (namely: Don Gardner, Alan Pickup, Mike McCants and Robert G Fenske Jr). it was indeed an iridium flare, and a good one at that. following is a repost of what I sent in reply to Don: -------------- thanks for the help, and the mystery is finally solved: Iridium 18 20:13:06.5 19 Oct 97 mag -6.2 now I have ammunition for my friend's question: "was that a supernova?" thanks again, this has been a four-month mystery! -------------- cheers, Tyler (Joe Stats) MacKenzie Department of Oceanography, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Canada http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/Hangar/5918/ 44.636N 63.595W 50m ASL