by Missy Thompson

STAFF WRITER

The bright light illuminating from the International Space Station can be viewed by the naked eye several times a month. Now that the station is docked with the space shuttle Atlantis, it is even more visible and there is an excellent chance of seeing it on Friday morning.

"It's common enough that people won't go out of their way to see it," said Patrick Wiggins, NASA Solar System Ambassador to Utah. "But, if you're up, you can see it looking out the window."

Atlantis and the space station will appear on the western horizon at 6:25 a.m., where it will pass halfway over the southwest and set in the southeast at 6:28 a.m. Although that is only a three-minute window of time, it will be hard to miss.

"The two of them together are bright," Wiggins said. "If there are any stars in the sky, then you can see the space station and Atlantis."

He added that even in the "light-polluted" downtown Salt Lake City area, residents shouldn't have a problem watching the light dart across the sky.

"A few people ask if they have a telescope if they should use it," he said. "I tell them not to, because otherwise they might miss it. With your eyeball, you have a wider field of view and you may not be looking in the right spot."

Wiggins suggests going out a few minutes early just in case your clock is not exactly correct. If you miss this chance to see the space station and shuttle, going to Wiggins' Web site, utahastro.info, will direct you to NASA's Web site where they have the times and dates of when you can see it again.

Even though the International Space Station is always up in the sky, it is not always docked with a shuttle where there are people inside.

"Who knows," Wiggins said, "they may be looking down at you."

missy@tooeletranscript.com