SPACESHIP DOWN:
Yesterday, the International Space Station (ISS) lost its sidekick
when Progress 33 reentered Earth's atmosphere and disintegrated
over the Pacific Ocean. The Russian supply ship had been accompanying
the ISS for nearly two weeks, treating sky watchers to double flybys
such as this one recorded on July 12th by Marco Langbroek of Leiden,
the Netherlands:
Langbroek notes that the Progress vehicle was about 6 magnitudes
or 250 times dimmer than the International Space Station. Nevertheless,
both were visible to the unaided eye and "it was neat to see
the two chase each other over the sky."
Soon, the ISS will have a new sidekick: Space shuttle Endeavour,
delayed by weekend
lightning, is scheduled to launch this Wednesday, July 15th,
at 6:03 p.m. EDT. Endeavour will rendezvous with the ISS two days
later, setting the stage for a new set of double flybys, much brighter
and more eye-catching than the Progress-ISS combo. Check the Simple
Satellite Tracker for flyby times.
more images: from
Dave P Smith of Bluebell Hill, England; from
Tamas Ladanyi of Veszpremfajsz, Hungary; from
Alan Dyer of Gleichen, Alberta, Canada; from
Rijk-Jan Koppejan of Middelburg, The Netherlands; from
Steve Holmes of Laxfield, Suffolk UK; from
Tomáš Maruška of Marianka, Slovakia; from
Scott Novitsky of Grand Rapids, MI; from
Rob Bullen of Cinderford, Forest of Dean, Gloucestershire, UK;
from
Jan Koeman of Kloetinge, The Netherlands
