Looking Up

I had a pretty amazing experience last night. Actually, I had two.

I went outside mid-evening to take a look at the blue moon (second full moon of the month). It wasn't up yet, but I could see a glow from behind the neighbors' trees that indicated it was on the way. I went inside to finish watching something on television and then I went back outside at 10:00.

Since we have a tree in our front yard, I had to walk down the front sidewalk and along the street a little to see the moon. It was definitely worth it: a big globe of white against the dark sky, framed by a few wispy clouds. I admired that sight for some time, the first amazing experience.

Next I let my eyes roam the sky, taking in the few stars I could see (our streetlight makes most of them invisible). Then I noticed movement and focused on that. There was a gold-tinted dot of light moving steadily over my head, from the southwest to the northeast.

I had only seen it for a few moments when I knew what it was, although I couldn't quite believe that was possible. It's been a few years since I last saw it, but I remembered the experience well: I was seeing the International Space Station!

What are the odds that I would walk out at that particular time, look in that particular direction, and recognize that particular dot of light???

I knew it, though. I was positive! The way it moved made it obvious it wasn't a plane and its size made it obvious it wasn't a satellite. I tried to comprehend that there were humans soaring above me, even while I was scurrying down our street to follow its path. It was visible for a few minutes before it sank out of sight to the northeast.

Only when it was gone did I rush into the house and turn on my laptop. I first checked the HDEV site, which showed me that the trajectory was correct to take the ISS over Kansas. I then checked the NASA site that lists times when the station will be visible for various locations. Both of them confirmed that I had seen the ISS.

If you want to check when you can see the ISS in your area: spotthestation.nasa.gov

If you want to see the view from the ISS: NASA HDEV

July can be a long, hot month, but its last evening was pretty cool for me this year.