Five more chances to see space station

NORFOLK

You might get two for one this week, as the International Space Station and a Russian supply ship will put on a nightly show for Hampton Roads residents.

The station will be visible each night for the next three days, weather permitting, sometimes for exceptionally long periods. It will appear as a solid white light, brighter than most stars, moving steadily across the sky.

Following it, much fainter but still visible, especially in dark-sky locations, is Progress 33, a Russian ship that is moving closer to the space station to test a new docking system. The Russian ship was about 1 minute behind the space station early Wednesday.

The following listings are compiled from www.spaceweather.com and http://spaceflight.nasa.gov/realdata/sightings. It is helpful to remember that 90 degrees means straight overhead.

• Wednesday, July 8: 3:57 a.m., visible for 5 minutes, elevation 26 degrees, moving north-northwest to east.
• Wednesday, July 8: 9:56 p.m., visible for 5 minutes, elevation 31 degrees, moving west to north-northeast.
• Thursday, July 9: 4:21 a.m., visible for 6 minutes, elevation 87 degrees, moving west-northwest to southeast.
• On Thursday, July 9, spaceweather.com lists the ISS as being visible at 8:45 p.m. for 3 minutes, elevation 73 degrees, appearing in the south-southwest. NASA does not have this time on its list.
• On Friday, July 10, spaceweather.com lists the viewing at 9:10 p.m. and NASA lists it at 9:14 p.m. Both sites agree that the ISS will be about 30 degrees above the horizon, visible for 2 minutes, appearing in the northwest.