Question on object I saw

[Martin63]

I was scanning the sky last night and I saw what looked like a satellite in the sky. The weird thing is it wasn't glowing and had no lights on it. Just a dark brown bell shaped object going through the sky. 

I tried finding it with the naked eye but could not see it. 

Thoughts?

 

Thanks 

[Gina]

Nothing I can identify...

Edited July 19, 2019 by Gina

[Gina]

I have no explanation...  Ah - at least the system accepts that!

Edited July 19, 2019 by Gina

[banjaxed]

Might have been an obsolete satellite, there is an awful lot of junk up there.

[barkis]

At what rate was this dark object moving, were you tracking it by manual movement of your telescope, or your drive.,,? Had you perhaps been looking at bright light prior to looking through your scope?  One's eyes can play havoc when staring through an eyepiece for long periods.  What magnification were you working with, and telescope type.

Ron.

 

[Martin63]

Wouldn't it still be bright from the sun hitting it? 

[Buzzard75]

6 minutes ago, Martin63 said:

Wouldn't it still be bright from the sun hitting it? 

Depends on the angle of the sun to the solar panels/reflective surface and the angle back to you. You'll see satellites that will get brighter as the cross the sky and then completely disappear as they either go into the shadow of the Earth or the angle of incidence changes.

Edited July 19, 2019 by Buzzard75

[Martin63]

3 minutes ago, barkis said:

At what rate was this dark object moving, were you tracking it by manual movement of your telescope, or your drive.,,? Had you perhaps been looking at bright light prior to looking through your scope?  One's eyes can play havoc when staring through an eyepiece for long periods.  What magnification were you working with, and telescope type.

Ron.

 

It was moving as fast as a satellite, I manually found it was swinging my scope towards Antares, looking for a Nebula so I am sure my eyes were adjusted to the dark. 

XT8 Dobsonian  with a 2" 35.mm lens

[barkis]

I guess the only way to perhaps  Identify it as a satellite, would be to use a planetarium programme and 
take it back to the time and date of the observation you saw, and see if there was a named object that might 
have been the culprit.. It may still have info. about,  even If it is out of commission now.
Ron.
 

[Marvin Jenkins]

Do I dare say UFO.... didn’t saying flying saucer. Funny thing is it’s a flying object that is as yet unidentified..... so UFO it is.

[FenlandPaul]

Speculative, but might have been a weather balloon, possibly faintly lit by light pollution etc? Just thinking about the bell shape. Your magnification wouldn’t have been particularly huge with that scope and eyepiece, so might account for it?

Otherwise I’m all outta ideas!! 🤷‍♂️ 

[Gina]

Could it have been a spent Chinese Lantern?  That's the only flying object anywhere near bell shape that I can think of.

[Martin63]

2 hours ago, FenlandPaul said:

Speculative, but might have been a weather balloon, possibly faintly lit by light pollution etc? Just thinking about the bell shape. Your magnification wouldn’t have been particularly huge with that scope and eyepiece, so might account for it?

Otherwise I’m all outta ideas!! 🤷‍♂️ 

That makes sense, It was flying over a more light polluted portion of the sky as well. 

[Moonshane]

Or a bird?

[Gina]

The Bell Bird of Paraguay is not shaped like a bell!  😄  It gets its name from its call.

[SIDO]

Maybe a baby bag and you just can't see the Stork because the Sun is shining from the wrong angle 😉

 

                           Freddie 🙂 

 

Edited July 22, 2019 by SIDO