Besides becoming an astronaut and hitching a ride to the International Space Station, is there another way you can see it? Like from Earth without having to leave this atmosphere?
Yes!
In fact, you may not even need to leave your yard. However, if you are interested in turning it into a Spot the Station Road Trip, you could always do that too.
I didn’t know there was a way to track such a thing. I’d heard of people seeing it, but how did they know to look?
Well, like she did when she turned me on to how to send your name to Mars, my friend Pamela K. Kinney sent me info about how to spot the International Space Station too.
So I checked it out and here’s what I discovered.
NASA & ISS Sighting Opportunities
Apparently, among their many duties, another one Mission Control handles is determining sighting opportunities for the International Space Station in almost 7,000 locations worldwide.
Several times a week they update the map and pinpoint when and where it will be visible. Well, I guess Mother Nature permitting, right? Kind of hard to do if cloudy skies obstruct the view.
The Spot the Station Map
On the Spot the Station site (link below under the For More Info section) there’s an interactive map with orange and yellow circles. Within the circles are numbers that represent the number of ISS viewing locations in that area.
To find a good viewing location near you, zoom in on where you live —or where you’d like to visit.
Since I’m in Nashville, I’ll use that to demonstrate, especially because at first blush it doesn’t seem like it’s a good spot to see the International Space Station flying over anytime soon. Au contraire!
This is a slightly zoomed-in snapshot from the image at the beginning of this section. You can see there are even more circles.
As you narrow down the area, the circles turn from a combo of orange and yellow to more yellow.
This next shot concentrates more on the Middle Tennessee area. There are just yellow circles now, but notice how the numbers within them decrease. That’s because it’s narrowing down the exact locations where you can view the International Space Station even more.
Zoom in even further and the circles transform into blue pins.
If you click on a pin, you’ll notice two things: (1) a blue radius circle and (2) a “View sighting opportunities” hyperlink under the city’s name. Anything within the blue circle is an area with a viewing opportunity. The next picture will show what information comes up if you click on the hyperlink.
The cool thing is that once you find a sighting location, NASA also provides a bunch more handy info, including the date and time the International Space Station will fly over, how long it’ll be visible and the coordinates where to look for it.
International Space Station Alerts
But what if you don’t want to go to the trouble of checking the map or you’re afraid you’ll forget when it’s flying over. Can you signup for alerts to be notified when the space station will be in your area?
Yes! All you have to do is visit the signup tab at the top of the Spot the Station website.
However, it will only notify you of “good” sighting opportunities, which they classify as ones “that are high enough in the sky (40 degrees or more) and last long enough to give you the best view of the orbiting laboratory.”
Can you see the International Space Station with your naked eye or do you need a telescope?
That’s among the FAQs on their site, which is handy because I was definitely wondering.
Apparently, you don’t. They say you can see it with your naked eye.
However, if you have a telescope handy or access to one, I’m sure that would make seeing it that much better!
Live International Space Station Tracking Map
There’s also a live space station tracking map that shows its current position as well as its path 90 minutes before and 90 minutes in the future.
For More Info
Visit spotthestation.nasa.gov/sightings.
Check-In
Have you ever seen the space station fly over where you live? And how many people do you think see it, don’t know what it is, and report it as a UFO?
Hmm…I wonder if there’s a way to see if UFO reports increase in areas after a space station flyover? If I find out, I’ll write a follow-up post!
Courtney Mroch is a globe-trotting restless spirit who’s both possessed by wanderlust and the spirit of adventure, and obsessed with true crime, horror, the paranormal, and weird days. Perhaps it has something to do with her genes? She is related to occult royalty, after all. Marie Laveau, the famous Voodoo practitioner of New Orleans, is one of her ancestors. (Yes, really! As explained here.) That could also explain her infatuation with skeletons.
Speaking of mystical, to learn how Courtney channeled her battle with cancer to conjure up this site, check out HJ’s Origin Story.
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I have seen the space station fly over. It looks nothing like a UFO. With the naked eye it looks like a shooting star except slower and longer. You can tell it’s far away, not poking around in our atmosphere like a curious alien spacecraft. It’s hard to follow with a telescope, but binoculars work, and then you can make out the linear shapes.
Ooooo!!!! I love you shared this!! I never even considered binoculars! Also, to hear from someone who has seen it and why it wouldn’t look like a UFO is VERY cool! Because I had no idea what it might look like. THANK YOU for sharing!!!