# Saw something in the evening sky -- what could it be?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-something-in-the-evening-sky-what-could-it-be/130617>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [October 3, 2002, 12:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-something-in-the-evening-sky-what-could-it-be/130617 "2002-10-03T00:23:49Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\
**Post date:** [October 5, 2002, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-something-in-the-evening-sky-what-could-it-be/130617/21 "2002-10-05T22:11:13Z")

</div>

I think that it’s the object which is the meteor, not the light produced by it. But I’d rather not start a debate about whether one actually sees a luminous object, or just sees the light emitted by it.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![BalmainBoy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/6a8cbe/32.png) [@BalmainBoy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BalmainBoy)\
**Post date:** [October 6, 2002, 7:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-something-in-the-evening-sky-what-could-it-be/130617/22 "2002-10-06T07:23:03Z")

</div>

The coolest satellitey phenomena at present are Iridium flares.

In Houston:  
next Tuesday (8th) at 8:35pm look to the NNE at 34 degrees above the horizon;  
next Wednesday (9th) at 8:29pm in the same part of the sky.

You will see a moving satellite slowly go from invisible to the brightest object in the sky after Venus, then fade back to invisible.  
Very striking.

everyone can go to [www.heavens-above.com](http://www.heavens-above.com) to look up the times for iridium flares in their locality.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Krispy\_Original](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ec9cab/32.png) [@Krispy\_Original](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Krispy_Original)\
**Post date:** [October 6, 2002, 8:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-something-in-the-evening-sky-what-could-it-be/130617/23 "2002-10-06T08:24:20Z")

</div>

Well…it _could_ be alien spacecraft…

[Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/saw-something-in-the-evening-sky-what-could-it-be/130617.md?page=1)