WGNO

International Space Station to fly over Gulf Coast Wednesday night

NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Look to the skies just after 8 p.m. Wednesday for a chance to spot the International Space Station.

The ISS will be visible over the northern Gulf Coast starting at approximately 8:04 p.m. under mostly clear skies.


The space station will be visible for just over 7 minutes, moving from the southwest to the northeast.

The ISS will be high in the sky, reaching a maximum height of 75 degrees above the horizon. For reference, 90 degrees would be directly overhead and 0 degrees would be right along the horizon.

Similar to how a large airplane would appear at night, the space station will look like a bright twinkling light, but moving more quickly than an Earth-based aircraft.

The ISS will pass by once again on Friday at 8:05 p.m., but it is only expected to reach a height of 22 degrees above the horizon — too low for most to see.