Strange flare in Leo 19April 22:30GMT

[themos]

I was out skygazing with two friends last night and I was showing them where Leo was when a spot of light appeared, about 5 degrees from Rasalas (Mu of Leo). The magnitude reached a maximum of about 1, brightening quickly and fading more gradually, all in the space of about 4 seconds. The spot did not appear to move at all, was of white colour and lacked any structure. The time given is an estimate only.

[merlinxlm]

Yes I saw something at about 22:46, but it was three/four brilliant flashes. Never seen anything like that before.

[acey]

At around that time last night I saw two very bright reddish lights near my southern horizon (nowhere near Leo). At first glimpse I thought it was Antares rising then reckoned it was an aircraft or flare, then it was joined by the second light and they just hovered for a while, perhaps a minute, slowly rising then sinking again. I reckoned they must be helicopters or something military but that's not a direction I usually see such things in. Can't be the same as your sighting, Themos, given how long they lasted, but just thought I'd mention it.

[themos]

You've seen rocket motors doing something "enlightening", Acey, haven't you? Do they appear stationary? I'm thinking of the obvious candidates first: spacecraft, baloons,...and the GRB-type events last.

[Izar]

Yes Themos.

I was setting up the scope to view Saturn,

and saw the same thing at the same time.

[acey]

The obvious candidate in your case Themos is Iridium flare - but that would have been moving. I wonder if some high slow-moving satellites ever glint brightly. I don't think it would be anything to do with a rocket - fuel dumps are a nebulous glow, not a bright flash.

How about a meteorite oriented exactly along your line of sight? Rare but surely not impossible - or is it?

Andrew

[Talitha]

It could have been a piece of orbital debris that was tumbling and caught the sunlight for a second.

[jgs001]

Or a tumbling Iridium satellite. Apparently there's quite a few of them. Have a look here see of there's any indications.

[themos]

Tumbling space junk is a distinct possibility except I am pretty sure I did not think at the time that it was moving.

[Talitha]

Maybe you wouldn't be able to detect movement if it was in a high enough orbit.

The ISS and Shuttle seem to scoot along pretty fast because they're closer to us, but the movement of satellites in a very high orbit may not be naked eye detectable.

Here's a pretty interesting site: NASA Orbital Debris Program Office.

Wow, lots of stuff floating around out there.

[DanDare]

A similar thing happened to me last night, I was having a look (naked eye) towards Cancer when there was a bright flash, lasted about a second, shortly after noticed a satellite moving from the direction of the flash NNE through Gemini. This was at approx 22.10. I think this was sunlight glinting off of the satellite. Have since discovered that this was MetOp-A, a meteorlogical satellite.

Roy