FR bookmark , .. .. ((”down to the beach!”))
We saw the ISS go by on Saturday night, and it was just awesome! The sky was absolutely clear, and we got a full five minutes unobstructed view of it. I don’t know if we’ll be able to see both on Monday night, because it’s supposed to be cloudy, dang it!
piing
A little later, I looked up and saw another object above. It was not as bright as the shuttle or ISS. It looked for all purposes as a satellite in orbit. However, instead of a steady, straight trajectory as all the satellites I'd seen before in orbit, this one was juking all about moving in a rough northeast to southwest direction.
I told my friend to look up and he saw it, too. The UFO continued to juke around on a zigzag path as it travel across the sky for several minutes before it too disappeared as it went into Earth's shadow.
To this day, I wonder what it was I and my friend saw up there. It was not like anything else I've ever seen in the nighttime sky.
I can recall as a child watching Sputnik (actually it was the satellite's trailing booster rocket also in orbit) in the Fall of 1957. That bright pinpoint of white light marching across the sky in a steady, straight line is seared forever in my memory. Yet over the next 50 years, I have seen many other space payloads, but never another like that juking one of Summer, 2005.
Over the years I've thought often about what the devil the dang thing was and why was it doing that jitterbug dance?
My best guess was it was a military payload doing that juke dance as avoidance to any possible hunter/killer satellite, but that is not something I have ever been able to find in any articles about space warfare.
I cannot believe what I saw was an alien spacecraft chucked full of little green, gray or polka dot guys and/or gals here to steal our secrets, babies, ice, water, molybdenum, supermodels or our only working copy of the Illudium Q-36 Explosive Space Modulator. It was not a scout for an invasion or a first cook sample tasting us before writing To Serve Man in his native tongue.
In truth, I do believe there is intelligent life out there in the universe. All those uncountable billions and billions and billions of galaxies and their googol (a 1 followed by 100 zeros) plus number of stars cannot help but over the billions of years since the Big Bang to produce several, if not, millions or billions of different intelligent lifeforms.
In my belief, they do not sit up nights worrying about us. I don't believe they are constantly coming here to watch us, but it would not be a life changing event for me if they showed up one day before I pass away.
Matter of fact... where are you guys? I want to know what that was I saw back in 2005 and I ain't getting any younger!!!
I’m staying awake for that.
Also here:
http://spaceflight1.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings/cities/skywatch.cgi?country=United+States
Thanks for the heads-up - partly cloudy here tomorrow, but the last time we looked for a satellite, we had a break, 80% cloud cover, but a clear track for the ship.
I once observed two space shuttles flying simultaneously. THAT was cool.
Thanks for posting. BTTT!
ping
ping
Just watched the show. Thanks for the heads up.
Triple header in Boston tonight.
ISS / Atlantis at 5:45 PM from the west, followed by USA 193 at 6:20 from the southwest.
“If It Ever Stops Snowing & The Sky Clears” Bump!
After moving to Oceanside, California in 1992 I was startled to see a dark lightless bat-like object pass through my peripheral vision while gazing up at a moonless sky. It was not until I heard what I assumed to be the sound of jet engines did I realize what I had just seen. Amazing technology.
Either they are not very high or they really are moving fast.
SPY-SAT UPDATE: Rumor has it that the US Navy may make its first attempt to hit USA 193 this Wednesday evening as the satellite passes over the Pacific Ocean. http://spaceweather.com:80/