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(Photo: NASA)
By Chuck McPartlin
The International Space Station will be making some nice visible evening passes through Santa Barbara skies in early August, weather permitting. Its orbit can change a little, and it also can be seen in the early morning, so to get the complete and most recent predictions, visit Heavens Above.
On Thursday, August 2, the ISS will rise in the NNW at 10:30 PM PDT and make a low, short pass over our mountains from the nose of Ursa Major to fade out below Polaris, the North Star, at 10:32 PM. Remember, Polaris isn’t all that bright, no matter what you’ve heard!
On Friday, the station will appear at 9:39 PM in the W and make a low skim over our mountains to set in the NE at 9:42 PM.
Saturday’s pass will be a short pop-up at 10:22 PM in the NW, vanishing into the Earth’s shadow while still climbing in the NNW at 10:24 PM in front of the bowl of the Big Dipper.
ISS passes will get brighter starting on Sunday, when it will rise at 9:31 PM in the NNW, pass through the nose of Ursa Major and along the top of the squished “W” of Cassiopeia, and disappear in shadow in the dim constellation Lacerta, the Lizard, in the NE at 9:34 PM.
On Monday, August 6, we’ll get two visits. The first will be a lower, dimmer version of Sunday’s pass, rising at 8:39 PM in the N, and skimming our mountains to set in the ENE at 8:44 PM in Pegasus. On its next orbit, it will pop up at 10:15 PM in the NW, and fade out while still climbing at 10:17 PM in the NNW in Canes Venatici, the dogs chasing the Big Bear.
There will be a nice bright pass on Tuesday, rising at 9:23 PM in the NW, passing along the bowls of both Dippers, and entering Earth’s shadow at 9:27 PM in the E while still high in Cygnus.
Wednesday will have two ISS passes, the first one showing up at 8:31 PM in the NNW in the nose of Ursa Major, and following the mountain horizon to disappear by the nose of Pegasus in the E at 8:37 PM. The second will rise at 10:08 PM in the W, vanishing at 10:10 PM in the WSW near a line between orange Arcturus and bluish Spica.
Thursday’s pass will start in the WNW at 9:16 PM, pass under Arcturus, over Jupiter, and fade out in the S at 9:20 PM in Ophiuchus, near Saturn.
Friday, August 10, will be the best appearance of this sequence, rising at 8:23 PM in the NW by the Big Dipper, sailing high overhead through dim Hercules, and disappearing by bright orange Mars in the SE at 8:30 PM.
On Saturday, the station will rise at 9:09 PM in the W, pass above Venus, below Jupiter, and set low in the SSW at 9:13 PM, below orange Antares, the heart of Scorpius and the Rival of Mars. Mars is really winning that contest this year.
The last good evening pass for August will start on Sunday at 8:16 PM in the W in twilight, through Leo, above the Moon and Venus, just below Jupiter, and tracing the Fish Hook of Maui (Scorpius) to set at 8:22 PM in the SSE below Saturn and Mars.
The ISS will be back to visit us in the evenings in the third week of September. There will be plenty of bright predawn passes in between if you’re an early bird.
Hasta nebula – Chuck
