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Hawaii residents can expect bright if mostly brief passes of the International Space station this week if the clouds cooperate.
At 7:36 tonight the space station will rise in the northwest and head straight up toward the bright star Vega, part of the Summer Triangle, which includes Altair in the constellation Aquila and Deneb in Cygnus. It will disappear before it reaches Vega, at about 7:39 p.m.
At 6:44 p.m. Tuesday the space station will appear in the north-northwest and move to the right, passing above the North Star and Cassiopeia. It will pass near two bright stars in the constellation Pegasus in the east between 6:47 and 6:48 p.m.
This the longest and brightest of this week’s passes. The space station will enter Earth’s shadow in the southeast at 6:49 p.m.
At 7:28 p.m. Wednesday the space station will rise in the west-northwest and move to the left, passing just under Saturn in the southwest at 7:31 p.m. The constellation Scorpius will hang below it along the horizon.
It will disappear in the south around 7:33 p.m.
At 6:35 p.m. Thursday the ISS will appear in the northwest and move high and to the left. It will pass between Saturn and Altair at 6:39 p.m. and then descend toward the south-southeast, blinking out at 6:42 p.m.
At 6:28 p.m. Saturday it will make a relatively faint pass, rising under the star Arcturus (Hokulea) in the west-northwest. Moving to the left, it will skirt the horizon, passing just under a thin crescent moon at 6:30 p.m.
It will then pass through the length of Scorpius and disappear in the south.
The space station, 254 miles up and orbiting at 17,150 mph, is visible just before dawn and just after dusk when illuminated by the sun. The crew of six includes Americans Joe Acaba, Mark Vande Hei and Randy Bresnik.
On Friday, meanwhile, another spacecraft, the Iridium-83 satellite, will flare brightly as its antenna reflects the rays of the sun just before 6:24 p.m. This will happen near the star Deneb, high in the north.
ON THE NET:
>> Heavens Above: heavens-above.com
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