If you have yet to spot the International Space Station (ISS) there are some ideal opportunities over the next few evenings. As it transits directly over S England at an altitude of 409km it should shine more brightly than other objects in the sky, with the exception of Venus, which blazes low down in the WSW.
As usual, our predictions use asterisks to flag the directions in which it fades from view as it enters eclipse in the Earth’s shadow.
Europe’s final ATV cargo craft, Georges Lemaître, is due to undock from the ISS at 13:45 GMT on 14 February and be destroyed during atmospheric entry over the Pacific at about 18:00 the next day. Meanwhile Russia is preparing to launch yet another Progress cargo vessel to the ISS on Tuesday 17 February.
