Viewing the International Space Station Tonight

A Family article with View Comments posted 29 March 2009.
Tags: iss, stargazing

International Space Station

Here in Dubuque we have two good opportunities to view the International Space Station with the naked eye as it passes over the city: tonight and Tuesday. I’ll be taking a dozen or so people up to the top of the Wartburg Tower to get above the light pollution of the city and, hopefully, get a really good view. A few more will be watching from the ground. According to the National Weather Service, we can expect only about 10% sky cover at 9pm, and I’m hoping that most of the snow that has fallen will have melted up there. Tuesday is looking like bad weather, but we’re on for tonight!

ISS Ground Track over Upper Midwest at dusk, 29 March 2009

Here’s the sky chart for Dubuque, IA for tonight, courtesy of Heavens Above. Note that West and East are reversed so that you can hold it over your head to get your bearings:

Skychart for ISS in Dubuque, IA at Dusk, 29 March 2009

We’ll also have classmates joining us in Owatonna, MN, Russell, KS, Lafayette, IN, and Ellis, KS.