ISS Question

ankaragucu

This may be a silly question so apologies in advance if so.Why, during an ISS pass does it look like a circular point of light?I appreciate that what we are seeing is the reflection of the sun shining off the space station.But considering the actual complex shape of the ISS why does it look the way it does to our eyes?
The pass last night around 9pm through my binoculars it looked almost Jupiter esque.
Is it something to do with the distance involved, the atmosphere, or what?

namloc1980

ankaragucu wrote: »

This may be a silly question so apologies in advance if so.Why, during an ISS pass does it look like a circular point of light?I appreciate that what we are seeing is the reflection of the sun shining off the space station.But considering the actual complex shape of the ISS why does it look the way it does to our eyes?
The pass last night around 9pm through my binoculars it looked almost Jupiter esque.
Is it something to do with the distance involved, the atmosphere, or what?

Primarily the distance involved. The ISS is in an orbit 400km above the ground. For an observer it's even further away as it is at an angle away. Binoculars wouldn't resolve it at that distance.

Secondly the sheer brightness of the reflection overwhelms the optics when looking at it. However with powerful scopes and the right filters you can see the ISS.


Thierry Lagult is famous for his pictures of the ISS.