You can find satellite tracking in CdC by clicking on Calendar then Artificial Satellites tab. The program comes with sample TLE files (which are probably out of date for accurate tracking). To download the latest data you must register with www.space-trak.org. There is a Download button which will do the download automatically. TLE files are text data files which describe the orbits of satellites in 2 lines (Two Line Element), usually there is a description line preceding the two lines which will give you the name of the object and its status. There are sometimes a couple of objects with the same name which usually indicates that they are pieces of the same launch (engines, boosters, casings, payload, etc). There are supplementay programs that run within CdC to calculate the current and predicted position and appearance of the satellites, as the brightness can vary according to the altitude, sun position, attitude of the object.
We are in our rain season and it has been mostly cloudy overhead in the evenings, so I haven't actually seen any satellites yet, but I have been testing various software/hardware setups to see which works best. I have an iOptron SmartStar-A altaz/eq mount fitted to an EQ3 tripod, with a Skywatcher 4" f5 OTA piggybacking a Canon SLR with a 100-400mm (160-640mm effective with crop factor)lens. My interest was triggered a few months ago when ISS passed overhead in the afternoon and was clearly visible to the naked eye. The event was well "advertised" in the local press. ISS circles (ellipses) the earth every 91.3 minutes, but is only visible for a portion of about 1 pass a day and then not in the most easily seen positions. --- In [email protected], "Geoff" <dudley.ge...@...> wrote: > > Interesting, I didn't know CDC could track satellites, I must visit the > website a bit more often! Is it tricky to set up? --gd >
