SATELLITE TRANSIT FINDER

ISS and satellite transits near Cape Town

The next good transit near Cape Town is the Envisat crossing the Sun on Sat 10 Oct at 15:55:45.0 GMT+2 (13:55:45.0 UTC). Its centreline passes 46 km W of central Cape Town, and the strip is 16 km wide. It is 36° up in the WNW and the crossing lasts 1.63 s.

Orbit data age: ISS 0 h · Tiangong 27 h · Hubble 23 h · Envisat 19 h. Orbit data is checked every 10 minutes and a satellite’s paths are recomputed as soon as its orbit data changes. Last updated: .

Upcoming transits within 150 km

DATECAPE TOWN TIMESATELLITECROSSESTO CENTRELINEHEIGHTQUALITYSTATUS
Sat 10 Oct15:55:35.1EnvisatMoon27 km35° WNWPoor 0 (hidden: the Moon is only 0% lit)LIKELY
Sat 10 Oct15:55:45.0EnvisatSun46 km36° WNWFair 32LIKELY
Sun 11 Oct12:41:54.3TiangongSun112 km64° NExcellent 81LIKELY
Sun 11 Oct12:42:05.3TiangongMoon136 km71° NNEPoor 0 (hidden: the Moon is only 1% lit)LIKELY
Sun 11 Oct19:07:43.8TiangongMoon17 km9° WSWPoor 0 (hidden: only 9° above the horizon)LIKELY
Mon 12 Oct18:10:39.4TiangongMoon105 km32° WPoor 0 (hidden: the Moon is only 4% lit)PROVISIONAL
Mon 12 Oct20:23:30.8ISSMoon136 km7° WSWPoor 0 (hidden: only 7° above the horizon)PROVISIONAL
Wed 14 Oct11:21:19.3TiangongSun17 km60° NEExcellent 79PROVISIONAL
Wed 14 Oct11:22:20.2TiangongMoon63 km38° EPoor 11 (hidden: a low quality score)PROVISIONAL
Wed 14 Oct17:47:50.8TiangongSun87 km14° WPoor 10 (hidden: only 14° above the horizon)PROVISIONAL
Thu 15 Oct16:50:38.8TiangongMoon113 km82° NWFair 33PROVISIONAL
Fri 16 Oct15:51:37.3TiangongMoon149 km72° ENEFair 47PROVISIONAL
Fri 16 Oct17:15:40.8ISSMoon125 km83° NGood 58PROVISIONAL
Sat 17 Oct10:00:26.4TiangongSun75 km47° ENEExcellent 73PROVISIONAL
Sun 18 Oct15:28:48.6TiangongSun125 km42° WNWGood 66PROVISIONAL
Sun 18 Oct15:49:33.3EnvisatSun74 km38° WNWFair 33PROVISIONAL
Mon 19 Oct12:55:38.9TiangongMoon153 km6° ESEPoor 0 (hidden: only 6° above the horizon)PROVISIONAL

8 of these are hidden on the main finder by its quality filter (too low, a barely lit Moon, or a weak crossing). Times are Cape Town time to a tenth of a second; distances are to the centreline of the strip from central Cape Town.

Where Saturday’s transit can be seen

Cape TownStrip of the Envisat transit, Sat 10 Oct 15:55:45 GMT+2 at the nearest point
Plan this transit
NEXT 7 DAYS NEAR CAPE TOWN
12
12 transits within 150 km, 5 passing the quality filter.
    Suggestions come from the same place search used across the site.
    NEARBY CITIES
    Johannesburgnext: Sun 11 OctNairobinext: Tue 13 OctLagosnext: Thu 15 OctRio de Janeironext: Fri 9 OctSão Paulonext: Fri 9 OctBuenos Airesnext: Sat 10 Oct

    Questions about transits in Cape Town

    When is the next ISS transit in Cape Town?

    The next good transit near Cape Town is the Envisat crossing the Sun on Sat 10 Oct at 15:55:45.0 GMT+2 (13:55:45.0 UTC). Its centreline passes 46 km W of central Cape Town, and the strip is 16 km wide. It is 36° up in the WNW and the crossing lasts 1.63 s.

    Do I need to travel to see one from Cape Town?

    Usually a short way. The strip where a transit is visible is only a few to around 20 km wide, so it rarely crosses your own street. The next good one passes 46 km from central Cape Town, so the strip's edge is 38 km away.

    Can I see a transit without a telescope?

    The crossing lasts about a second and the station appears tiny, so a telescope or a long lens on a camera is needed to see its shape. Never look at the Sun without a certified ISO 12312-2 solar filter.