See the ISS make bright flight over eastern US, Canada Thursday evening
The station will be visible for several minutes, starting around 9:23 p.m. EDT in the northwestern sky, before reaching its highest point around 9:26 p.m. It will eventually disappear from sight by 9:29 p.m.
People in New York City, Philadelphia, Boston, Washington, D.C., and many other cities and towns across the region should be able to spot the ISS as it passes overhead. No telescope is needed to see the station, but cloud-free conditions are necessary.
Unlike small satellites or faint stars, the ISS is easy to find in the sky. It looks like a steadily moving white light, brighter than most stars and planets, and it doesn't blink like airplanes.
The orbiting outpost is currently home to seven astronauts and circles the Earth at about 260 miles up, traveling around 17,500 mph. It completes one orbit around the Earth in roughly 90 minutes.
Additional viewing opportunities will follow through the weekend, although the times and paths will shift each night. People interested in seeing the upcoming passes can check NASA's Spot the Station website.
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