Non-Stationary Station

Moving left-to-right 13 degrees above the northern horizon in this image, the International Space Station (ISS) created this light streak, a product of a 3.5 minute exposure taken from about 9:58-10:02 PM, Sunday, August 21, 2011. The image was shot from Echo Hill Presbyterian Church in Marion, Iowa. Polaris, the North Star, is seen at top (center-right), and The Big Dipper asterism at upper left. The blobs of light on the horizon are car headlights along C Avenue. Settings for this image included an f/3.5 aperture, 400 ISO and 18mm focal length. The ISS, traveling at an average ground speed of 17,227 mph, regained this same observation point from its previous orbital pass in just one hour and 34 minutes.