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Offline Tim Alphabeaver

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Re: International Space Station
« Reply #40 on: May 25, 2020, 11:40:39 PM »
So I thought this question was answered by the Universal Acceleration page wiki page, but I don't see anything about it on there...
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Offline Tumeni

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Re: International Space Station
« Reply #41 on: May 27, 2020, 01:16:11 PM »
... it seems a tall order to reflect such a bright image from 250mls away.

The science behind the Heliograph, or Reflecting Signalling Mirror, is well-known.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heliograph

"The range of a heliograph depends on the opacity of the air and the effective collecting area of the mirrors. Heliograph mirrors ranged from 1.5 inches to 12 inches or more. Stations at higher altitudes benefit from thinner, clearer air, and are required in any event for great ranges, to clear the curvature of the earth. A good approximation for ranges of 20–50 miles is that the flash of a circular mirror is visible to the naked eye for 10 miles for each inch of mirror diameter"

There's no mention of this range being achieved only in darkness or twilight, so it seems the general approximation applies to daylight usage.  Note that the observer sees the flash at a range far beyond that at which they could discern the physical structure of the mirror.

The principle applies to the ISS; sunlight reflecting off a reflective surface toward the observer.

All that's needed is to approximate the reflective area of the ISS and apply this approximation to calculate the range at which it could be seen from the above formula.
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Offline Tumeni

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Re: International Space Station
« Reply #42 on: May 27, 2020, 01:24:26 PM »
How do you know how far away it is when you see it pass by ?

Could be calculated with simple geometry, but this is unlikely to yield a figure corresponding to the orbital height, since it is unlikely to pass directly over you; measure its angle above your horizon, and solve for distance D.




The solar panels absorb the suns radiation though although how much I don't know. Surely the panels if directed like mirrors wouldn't appear bright all over the earth ?

It's less apparent in daylight for the same reason that stars and planets are less apparent. The sunlight in the atmosphere washes all over the reflected light from ISS, planet, etc.

It's apparent from certain prediction sites that the time and place where the ISS "goes dark", i.e. the point where it passes into Earth's shadow, are predictable. It can readily be seen from your own and others' observations that the predictions are correct.



« Last Edit: May 27, 2020, 01:31:34 PM by Tumeni »
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Not Flat. Happy to prove this, if you ask me.
=============================

Nearly all flat earthers agree the earth is not a globe.

Nearly?