On the mornings of Friday 20th and Sunday 22nd March I had a busy couple of mornings, with a bright pass of the International Space Station (ISS) over my location, as well as capturing Jupiter (20th and 22nd) and the Moon. The great thing about the ISS pass was that the Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-119) was docked at the time so I was hoping for good seeing and hoping I’d be able to track it accurately.

I was able to capture reasonably detailed images during both passes, but of course you always want more. For the image on the 20th, my shutter speed was a little too slow so the frames were a bit soft. The lighting and angle meant the backside of the shuttle was facing us and was not illuminated and could not be resolved.

ISS on the 20th March

The image from the 22nd shows a lot of detail and structure in the radiators and also includes the new S6 solar panel that was installed by the STS-119 crew on the 21st March. Space Shuttle Discovery is barely visible – only it’s tail is illuminated and was just about the noise level.

ISS with Discovery Docked on the 22nd March

Please continue reading for more information about the capture and processing and the challenges of recording the ISS!

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