Undergrad Sun elevation for ISS visibility

  • Thread starter Thread starter Cristiano
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Iss Sun
Click For Summary
Several websites are utilized to track visible passes of the ISS from specific locations. Calculations reveal low Sun elevations at the ISS, such as a magnitude of -3.8 and a Sun elevation of -19.9 degrees. This low elevation suggests significant atmospheric refraction, raising questions about the minimum Sun elevation needed for the ISS to remain outside Earth's shadow. The discussion invites the sharing of formulas used for these calculations. Understanding these factors is crucial for accurately predicting ISS visibility.
Cristiano
Messages
33
Reaction score
0
I use several web sites to search the visible passes of the ISS over a given location.
Then I calculate the Sun elevation as seen from the ISS and I get surprisingly low elevations; for example, I get ISS magnitude= -3.8 and Sun elevation at the ISS= -19.9 deg.
I suppose that the atmospheric refraction is very high, but what's the lowest Sun elevation to consider the ISS outside the Earth's shadow?

Thank you
 
Astronomy news on Phys.org
You can look up the ISS height and the radius of Earth and calculate it yourself.

-19.9 is just at the edge of visibility.
 
Please, would you post the formulas?
 

Similar threads

  • · Replies 7 ·
Replies
7
Views
2K
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
3K
Replies
10
Views
7K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
5K
  • · Replies 35 ·
2
Replies
35
Views
33K
  • · Replies 21 ·
Replies
21
Views
5K
Replies
4
Views
3K
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
14K
  • · Replies 12 ·
Replies
12
Views
3K
  • · Replies 13 ·
Replies
13
Views
6K