Does amateur equal incompetence? No, says Timothy Ferris in a superb book exploring the role of amateur astronomers in probing the heavens. He reminds us that the root of the word amateur is love, and interweaves the stories of these lovers of astronomy with a grand tour of the universe.

Seeing in the Dark - book review

That sounds like a book I would enjoy.

I have a question for you. Last night when hubby and I were stargazing, a light moved across the sky. It moved similar to an airplane but the lights weren't flashing and it suddenly disappeared into darkness. It looked about the color/size of a star but didn't seem fast enough to be a shooting star. Maybe a comet or meteor but with no "tail" of any sort? Any idea? We are very much amateurs so all we can think is UFO.

Alice, strictly speaking, it was a UFO if you couldn't identify it! But your clear description of what you saw is almost exactly the way I'd describe a satellite pass. You may even have seen the International Space Station - I think it's currently visible in your part of the world.

We see satellites the way we do planets and the Moon, by reflected sunlight. When they go into the Earth's shadow they disappear, so this is a distinctive feature.

A meteor (shooting star) would move very quickly. (As in someone shouts "There's one!" and it's gone before you can turn your head.) Comets move, but not fast enough for you to see one moving - usually, you have to get a positions on successive nights to see it.

I often go out to watch the ISS going over, especially when it's very bright pass. But if you're outside for long enough you should expect to see a number of satellites.

You need to go to Heavens-above.com. If you register with them (free!), your viewing location shows up each time you log in, so you don't have to input it. They have info on the ISS and a number of other satellites, as well as sky maps for any time and location you request.

Thanks Mona. I had no idea satellites would show so bright. We'll be watching for more!

Satellites aren't usually as bright as, say, Venus - but the ISS can be. It's highly reflective and larger than normal satellites too. But probably the most startling things are Iridium flares. When one of the Iridium satellites catches the sunlight just right it brightens suddenly by quite a lot and then, suddenly disappears. (Probably accounts for a fair number of UFO reports!)