Heads Up

For all the space nuts out there (and those that aren't), now is a great time to catch something you have probably never seen before.

From NPR...

For the next two weeks, the International Space Station will be one of the brightest objects in the sky.

"It outshines all the stars, all the planets but Venus and actually gives Venus a run for its money," Kelly Beatty, Sky and Telescope's senior contributing editor.

But if you want to get in on the action, you have to be prepared: the sightings last about a minute because the ISS is speeding at five miles per second. That lets it travel around the Earth in 90 minutes.

Beatty says it's worth the effort, though. Using simple binoculars, he said, you'll be able to make out the shape, because right now, the ISS is huge. It's now complete — all the pieces are where they should be — making it a shiny reflective object that's the size of a football field.

This java app from NASA can pinpoint the ISS location based on your zip code. If it doesn't work, this NASA site narrows things down by parks within a city.