Weather permitting, the International Space Station will be making a few nicely visible evening passes across Santa Barbara’s skies in the next week. Its orbit may change, and I’ve only listed the best evening events. To get the latest and most complete predictions, visit Heavens Above.
On Friday, September 26, the ISS will make a low appearance across our mountain horizon, starting in the NNW at 8:13 PM PDT, passing under the bowl of the Big Dipper asterism to below the mangled W of Cassiopeia in the NNE, where it will disappear at 8:16 PM.
On Saturday, it will have a brief pop up in the WNW lasting a minute, climbing into Boötes where it disappears into our shadow at 9:02 PM.
Sunday’s pass will be very bright, rising at 8:11 PM in the NW, from the handle of the Big Dipper, along Draco, and into Cygnus in the E, where it will fade out after passing Deneb, the tail of the Swan, in the E at 8:15 PM.
The station will make another bright pass on Monday from the NW to the ESE, starting along the pointer stars of the Big Dipper at 7:23 PM, passing by Polaris, then through the Great Square of Pegasus to vanish in Earth’s shadow at 7:28 PM near the yellowish spark of Saturn. If you have a telescope, take a peek at Saturn. The rings are now appearing nearly edge-on, and look like a bright line through the ball of the planet. Saturn is now up to 274 known moons, but you will most likely see only Titan, in line with the ring about three ring diameters away. The relative direction from the planet where you will see it depends on the optical train of your telescope.
Tuesday evening the ISS will appear in the WNW at 8:10 PM, pass by bright orange Arcturus, along the length of Serpens, and into Sagittarius in the S by the Moon, where it will disappear at 8:15 PM.
The only bright evening ISS pass in October will be on Wednesday, October 1, when it will rise in the NW at 7:21 PM and cruise through Canes Venatici and Boötes, then near Rasalhague, the head of Ophiuchus, and then into Capricornus by the Moon in the SE, setting at 7:28 PM. It will then transition into our predawn sky for the rest of the month.
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