Do you survey the skys at night?

After reading this thread, I did it and I didn't see any because we have had some very overcast nights lately. Thank you for posting this thread, I will definitely keep a weathered eye on the sky now.

Originally posted by thealchemist
After reading this thread, I did it and I didn't see any because we have had some very overcast nights lately. Thank you for posting this thread, I will definitely keep a weathered eye on the sky now.

Right, well, good luck.
I am digging out some of my old digital cam equipment and might as well film some of this stuff...see how well it comes out.

Oh, according to the person I talked to in the first place, you can either go out right after sunset for 90 minutes or so, or right before dawn for the same time roundabout for the best chances...basically, whenever the sun can shine on the bits and bobs overhead but still nighttime down here.

He said he has seen the odd one here and there in the middle of the night, but very far and few in between...he said basically your waiting for them to turn the lights on at that point, and that doesnt happen very often.

as to the person with a streetlamp....a pellet gun may solve that issue -chuckles-...or, take a trip to the beach or country, whatevers closeby for a sunset party and a actual watching event...unless your on house arrest or something, then you dont have to stay at home to watch the early evening. heh

reply to post by SaturnFX


I'm going to guess you live near a city. I live on an island of 1400 people, and the few aircraft that pass by here are regularly scheduled.
We can easily identify conventional aircraft.

I hope I don't sound challenging -- I don't mean to be. It's just frustrating for me and m'Bride, who spend an hour or more outside nearly every night, sitting facing each other, so we can both cover a different sector of the sky. People around the world see or claim to see a mysterious "star" located "in the west" that is supposed to be a portent of a messiah.

Others take photos and video of flashing thingies. We can easily pick out down to 6.0 magnitude satellites, even without predetermining that they will be there.

Appreciate you taking the time to relay your viewing tips, though. Happy viewing! I usually have the camera set up on the tripod. Perhaps someday soon I'll see something worth capturing I've been at this all my life, however really got serious about skywatching 15 years ago, when we moved here.

Cheers

edit to add:

the person I talked to theorized that your seeing the sun reflecting off of the object, hense why you watch them right after sundown for about 90 minutes when they are most visible, after which, they are in shadow..
and I have not seen many after about 10:30pm here (which is about right...stars start coming out at about 9pm here currently).

Yes. this is completely consistent with satellite viewing. 10:30 EST is waaay too late to be able to see conventional satellites due to the low angle of the sun by that time. Irridium flares early in the morning, as well as satellites. Optimum time for satellite viewing is sundown - 9:00 EST.

[edit on 21/6/09 by argentus]

reply to post by SaturnFX


Just got back from a bit of skywatching Saturn. You inspired me to get the NV out again and put on the camera adapter and hook up to the camera. I saw nine objects, only two of which I would've seen without the NV. I'd guess that all nine were satellites, by their appearance of constant velocity and direction.

Just wanted to thank you for inspiring dragging out the auxiliary equipment. It's kind of cumbersome with my camera attached to the oversized NV monocular, and that attached to the tripod, but who knows? Maybe I'll be really fortunate and capture that one object whose flight properties are evidence of something unusual!

cheers and appreciatiion

Every time I step outside at night I always look above. You never know what you could miss if you don't.

I am yet to buy a ample sized telescope so I can study the night sky..and spy on the neighbors of course...jk.


[edit on 22-6-2009 by Scooby Doo]

I always do and always have ever since I was a child, but I don't look up hoping to catch a UFO buzzing about. I wanted to be an astronaut but it just wasn't in the cards for me ( failed the color blindness test to get into the Air Force Academy although I passed every other test in the top 5%, I wanted to be a shuttle commander/pilot. I look up because it is a humbling and amazing experience. You are looking at stars that probably no longer exist and in essence looking back in time and occasionally you are gifted with an amazing sight.

As great as it would be to see a UFO, I live on the landing path to O'Hare so all i really get to see anymore are planes landing. IMO I think some UFO'ers are missing the big picture when they stare into the night sky hoping to catch a UFO in flight. You are missing what I think is something as equally profound.


Just mah 2c . ^_^

Originally posted by slinkey10
I live a couple of hundred yards from the sea on the south coast in the UK...

I regularly look at the sky, its so clear compared to London, haven't seen anything ever!!!!! gutted.....

Got my night vision binoculars just in case though......

Im in England and as soon as I start looking up I see stuff, try looking around the constellations of Ursa major, Bootes, that sort of area, Im sure you will see something, even if its just satelites passing by every few mins..

I live near the Gulf Coast (bout hour n 1/2 from G of Mex.) and our yr round warm climate results in lots of trees...tall ones...and subsequent small horizons. This limited viewing area is complicated further by high humidity and near-constant cloud cover, so even on clear nights, the haze (O3 ?) makes sky gazing an exercise in futility most times.

A clear shot can be seen from the levee on Miss. Rvr. several miles from Baton Rouge during cooler temps (Jan-Feb, sometimes March). I have seen several satellites at or near 4:00AM (I guess due to angle of the sun)...but very little else. Anyone have any advice for relatively inexpensive cams / equip / telescopes that would help? My cheap digital palm corder has a night setting that is almost a faux IR, and when set to infinity, sometimes picks out the brighter stars and occasional assorted wierdness, but not much else.

I know the obvous answer, but picking up a family of 6 and relocating just not in the cards anytime soon. Any suggestions? Any popular "sky watcher" sites up that have interesting stuff? Anyone intersted in starting one?

I saw something very similar the other day - created a thread about it but only a couple of replies....

What I saw was moving extremly fast at a very high altitude and was as bright as jupiter last year. It was moving south, south west...checked Heavens above but found no passes of any satelites at that time going above me....at first i thought straight away, that ISS but that was nowhere near me either...

Is there anyone here that may be able to help identify if i give coords as to what it could have been....

Thanks for this thread.

I watch the night skies with my daughters, but i would love to get "better" at it.

At present, we just go at at night, watch the stars, ID a few constellations and thats it. I haven't got a telescope, just some binos, but we tend to just use our eyes.

The info in this thread will be very helpfull in giving us a more exciting activity.

Thanks again.

CX.

reply to post by CX


try using stellarium - really good if you have a laptop as you can take it out with you and it will tell you what your looking at......winter nights are the best as theres not as much disturbance in the atmoshpere....

www.stellarium.org...

Awesome! S&F! I have also seen these objects, everynight i look up and always spot 5-10 of those critters!! What i see them do, is just pop out of nowhere, start taking off, light up really big, and then just disappear. very very odd. At first i thought they may be sattlites, from further investigation, and what i've seen these object do, they are not sattelites, nor any craft i've ever seen or witnessed.

Originally posted by zorgon
My vote...

CRITTERS Plasma life forms

They are harmless, they have always been here and they live in the atmosphere and space.

If you really want to see them see if you can borrow some night vision goggles. Generation 3 is best but those run around 3-4 thousand

OH and watch just before and around a big thunderstorm

[edit on 21-6-2009 by zorgon]

Zorgon, have you seen these yourself and do you have any video clips or pictures of them...

cheers


[edit on 22/6/2009 by booda]

Light pollution prevents me from really seeing the heavens. Last night the power went out and it was like a whole new sky. I only spend a few minutes a week looking skyward. I would like to join the astornomers who go 50 miles out of town every week just to gaze all night.

reply to post by booda


Could it have been LRO? have they made their earth orbits and are moon bound by now?

Also -

There are military birds not listed (spy satellites) that may pass close in an eliptical orbit (although most I would think are geosynchronus) that may appear larger... sorry, but I'm not the one to figure coordinates.

CDS

Wow, lotta replies...will go through em all in a few (been working)...
ok, first off, last nights viewing results for me.

It was not the best viewing...few clouds here and there, but did something slightly different.
First, been talking to my parents about what I am seeing. my mother decided I am cracking up so came over to watch...and yep, she seen em also, so, at least now she is cracking up with me (always good to know).

Seen something really really weird last night also, will get to that in a second.

The trail that we both seen for one of em was a massive alteration in speed, from nearly at a standstill, to suddenly racing off, then slowing again, etc...variations. this could be a satellite, but I am not sure if satellites react that way. seen another but it flashed in and out a bit too soon...came, moved a bit, hovered, then blinked out.

only seen 3 last night...the third one might have been a typical satellite...it simply moved across the sky with no variable speed and about the time hubble was due to be in the area anyhow...so, gonna say 2 for last night.

now, the weird thing...was looking up around the area of the big dipper..right to the side of it, in a nothing area...dark with the naked eye, I seen what can only be described as a explosion or something...it was as bright as..hmm..1/4th the size of a full moon..flashed for a second and then gone...this completely stunned me (mom was there but she was looking elsewhere in the sky through binoculars so didnt see it).

it was like a camera flash...superbright, there for a second, then gone...it lasted for about 1-1.5 seconds...I had enough time to yelp OMG, Wha tha..(gone)
No clouds in the area...it was a perfect sphere flash...it could be ball lightning or something, dont know enough about that phenomona, but again, no clouds nearby got me curious...seemed to originate deep in space if one can possibly measure distances...No sound came from it. (well, besides my yelping like a french schoolgirl of course..how embarassing)
Anyhow, any ideas as to what the flash could be (no trails, so it wasnt a shooting star unless it was coming perfectly straight at me..which is a bit unnerving come to think of it.)

Anyhow, even if all I am seeing is unmarked satellites, phantom ball lightning, space junk, big meteors, and whatnots...what a excellent show...beats anything on TV...least during the summer anyhow.

Originally posted by argentus
reply to post by SaturnFX

 

People around the world see or claim to see a mysterious "star" located "in the west" that is supposed to be a portent of a messiah.
[edit on 21/6/09 by argentus]

Heh, Jupiter freaked me out a few times also...caught it a couple times walking out of my home at night to have a smoke just as a thin cloud passes and it was a omfg, the mothership is coming straight for me. lol

usually takes a couple seconds to get my mind back and laugh it off as what it is...damn things bright as hell now incidently..extremely good show...but its currently more south/easterly..was west awhile back..

The brightness of the objects dont really phase me so much as the movements they make. I see satellites, think they are pretty cool...Hubble crosses the path here almost like clockwork every night at about 9:40ish..its also pretty bright, and flies in a straight pattern..its clearly a satellite. I also do see some dim ones flying straight...dont get me wrong, if I see a satellite that is not scheduled to cross, I count that as a UFO also, because, thats what it is...however, its not a ICUFO (Intelligently controlled UFO)...the ones that strike me are the ones that change speed and course. I see plenty of tubevids of people watching straightshooting objects...thats about 75% of what I see.

my count currently is 18, and of that, I would say about 6 of em did interesting stuff...aka, change speed and course..reverse, etc...the rest could be secret satellites as suggested.

oh, and 1 bright blinking object thing weird mindfark that is still beyond me (not the trick of the eye twinkle of a star...this was a direct view big flash in dead space with no clouds).

I am not stating anything I am seeing is unnatural or alien...however, I do entertain the thought of course...hell, if you dont know, might as well think its something until a more solid answer comes.

Frankly, it could be the gov secret stuff testing out grav drives high overhead..not sure...nothing really would suprise me.

Just wonder if you've seen one "light up" while it's on its path - then go back to the same dim light and continue on its way?? (Not a 'shooting star')..

* also do satellites "blink" and what about ones that just disappear?


Have you checked out Venus this morning ? WOW!

I think the more people that 'look up' at night is an indicator to 'them' that we just may be reaching out as a consciousness to say "hi!"

[edit on 22-6-2009 by watchZEITGEISTnow]

Dear SaturnFX, i have seen these things for years, the last 2 years their numbers have multiplied, this 27page thread is all about it and has video


Starlike objects that move stangely in the sky
www.abovetopsecret.com...


i have seen different versions including some witch has rotating light around them and i've seen same kind of flashes and even these stars moving and sending out flashes as they trail over the sky.
sometimes they come real low too, or take off moving outwards, the light will only get bigger when they are low otherwise its impossible to tell their height as they look like stars and mostly are in outer space

regards and keep watching, my freinds are seeing them also
skywatch

I watch the sky whenever it is clear and mostly see satellites dashing by. But I do recognize some of what you say. It appears that they slow down, speed up and wiggle in their orbit. I also see satellites but cannot find them on the tracker(but that could be that it is just another type of satellite then is shown on the realtime trackers). So I am not so sure. Today I saw two cross paths. Weird.