S.S. Daphne
At 20:04:13 tonight SkopelosNews will present our readers with a short heavenly display. We three chipped in our pocket change (€ 4.47) and arranged for an “Irridium flare” but only for our local (Skopelos) readers.
If by any chance you are not asleep at 8 pm venture outside and look to the sky (up). Turn to the southeast and, at 52º or so, spot the planet Jupiter. That is where the surprise will occur.
Keeping Jupiter within your viewing area you may notice a satellite moving north to south (left to right). The satellite, that we are calling the S.S.Daphne, will gradually become brighter as it approaches Jupiter’s field of view. Just after it passes below Jupiter at 20:04:13 it will suddenly flash with a brightness level of -8.3 which is very strong. Then the satellite will fade as it continues towards the south.
The brightness level of Jupiter tonight is a mere -2.2 on a descending scale from 0.0 and it will appear as the brightest object in the sky (after Venus [-3.8] sets) until the S.S. Daphne comes along and does its momentary thing. Those in Glossa and P.K. will probably see this phenomenon as well but not quite as bright as we around Skopelos.
Hoping for clear skies and correct calculations!
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